It was good to see a biography of Florence Nightingale interspersed with scenes from a contemporaneous musical hall revue, which made this a serious drama but with light relief in the musical interludes (e.g.
I'm afraid to say that this is one of the poorest costume dramas I have seen in quite long time. As a light biopic of a woman who was fundamental to not only the health and welfare of British soldiers during the Crimean War, but who helped set standards for field medical services around the world - this falls completely flat.
As a full-time professor of business and personal development, I have rarely had t time to watch films for pleasure. Most films I watch are to select as lessons which will tell the story of famous figures in history (especially those which are outside of my academic purview) who have made a difference.
I found this production very entertaining. It's style was not unlike 'Oh, What A Lovely War', interspersing the real life drama ,with music-hall scenes, brilliantly led by Roy Hudd.
Based on her true-life letters and memoirs (as the excessive opening declaratives inform us), 'Florence Nightingale' is a different kind of period-drama chronicling the feminist icon's early days and aspirations to become a nurse, and continuing to her subsequent breakdown following the aid she gave in the Crimean War.A major fault of this drama is the patchy, inconsistent writing; colloquialisms and informal conversation leave it seeming out of touch with the era, and grating fantasy sequences seem to have been freshly picked out of a badly performed pantomime.
The script was terrible. It was full of modern colloquialisms (e.
I found the whole presentation to have the subtle influence of a Merchant/Ivory effort. Norman Stone's direction has taken a glossier feel with this production.
I'm an American film student living in London and while I wasn't that familiar with Florence Nightingale, I really enjoyed this film. I really liked the strong performance by Laura Fraser.
It is difficult to put the entire story of a legend of History on any screen. Television makes it even more difficult with the size & time & budget constrictions put upon that production.
