Florence Foster Jenkins Gives Drama And Comedy An Inspiring Twist

Florence Foster Jenkins is a giant bowl of amalgam giving viewers a range of mixed reactions from laughter and apprehension to excitement. The comedy and drama is based on a true story and was released in theaters August 12.

Many viewers found themselves applauding, rooting and often cheering for Florence Foster Jenkins, played by Meryl Streep. Based on a true story, the movie is not intriguing in the beginning, but the plot picks up as Jenkins, a woman who inherits wealth, awkwardly pursues her dream of becoming an opera singer, despite having an atrocious voice.

The movie will amuse you quite often, just as Hugh Grant will rub you the wrong way. Hugh Grant plays St. Clair Bayfield, Jenkins’ husband who seems a bit too young to be her spouse. He handles the business side of her financial assets. However, he is deceitful, living a double life. Seemingly a devoted and affectionate husband, he secretly covets and lusts for Kathleen, a younger woman who despises his wife, played by Rebecca Ferguson. Bayfield fulfills his secret life wisely by plotting accordingly to avoid being caught by his wife. This is just one of many untruthful subtexts Florence Foster Jenkins offers to its audience.

Jenkins will provoke you to scream the truth about her prowess to sing as she blindly displays her voice in front of a packed house at Carnegie Hall, dragging young pianist Cosme McMoon, played by Simon Helberg, with her into rough presentations and a tough audience in the 1940s. He endures it well, despite mocking her throughout the course of each practice lesson.

With the world in the middle of World War II and the U.S. in the midst of a depression, McMoon figured he would not earn much income based on the circumstances, so he settles for the job of assisting Jenkins. But it is not long before he finds out a white lie regarding her entertainment skills.

Based in New York City, the film embodies an elegant theme, taking you back to the 1940s when women wore huge fancy dresses, men wore tuxedo suits to any occasion, vintage automobiles roamed the streets, gas prices were at 11 cents and an aspirin cost 76 cents.

Newspaper stands still mattered at the expense of Jenkins, but Bayfield made sure he kept the morning paper, The New York Post, away from Jenkins to prevent her from reading the horrid but candid review of her performance from the night before. Director Stephen Frears and writer Nicholas Martin will make you feel guilty as they telepathically transport you into the audience to make you suffer from Jenkins’ egregious singing.

To make matters worse, your feelings switch to pity when you discover Jenkins is suffering from a sexually transmitted disease—syphilis. It is discovered after one of Jenkins’ shows when she becomes ill, requiring her to visit the doctor who announces it to Bayfield, as if he was unaware. In the end, you will find out that Bayfield, McMoon and, shockingly enough, Jenkins’ maid, are the ones who truly believe in her until the very end, and you might too. Its estimated budget is  $29 million. Head to a theater near you to enjoy this exhilarating film. You won’t be disappointed.