REVIEW: Blithe Spirit occasionally charming, but ultimately forgettable | Culture dailynebraskan.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailynebraskan.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
By KATIE WALSH Tribune News Service
February 17, 2021
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Noel Coward’s 1941 play “Blithe Spirit” is classic material: a comic screwball play about a mystery novelist who is haunted by his ex-wife, summoned by a medium while trying to work through his writer’s block. The play has been staged numerous times on the West End and on Broadway since its debut, adapted to a musical (“High Spirits”) and filmed as a movie in 1945, starring Rex Harrison. The ongoing revival continues with Edward Hall’s film version, starring Dan Stevens, Isla Fisher and Leslie Mann.
Dan Stevens, left, and Leslie Mann in “Blithe Spirit.” (Courtesy of IFC Films/TNS)
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Noël Coward’s 1941 play “Blithe Spirit” is classic material: a screwball comedy about a mystery novelist with writer’s block who is haunted by his late first wife after she is inadvertently summoned by a medium. The play has been staged numerous times on the West End and on Broadway since its debut, filmed as a movie starring Rex Harrison in 1945 and adapted into a musical, “High Spirits,” in 1964. The ongoing revival continues with Edward Hall’s film version, starring Dan Stevens, Isla Fisher and Leslie Mann.
In this particular adaptation, the play has been given a Hollywood twist, with the novelist, Charles Condomine (Stevens) struggling to write the screenplay of one of his works for the producer father of his wife, Ruth (Fisher). When the couple attends the mystical show of Madame Arcati (Judi Dench), they find her to be a fraud, but Charles thinks observing the tricks of her trade might offer some inspiration for his writing. During the séance, Madame Arc
TV Editor
Tonight s top TV tips include new Marvel show Wandavision, Brenda Fricker on The Late Late Show, new episodes of The Simpsons, and new reality show Bling Empire . . .
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This is a brand new series from Marvel Studios, starring Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany.
After the events of Avengers: Endgame (2019), Wanda Maximoff and Vision are living the ideal suburban life in the town of Westview, trying to conceal their powers.
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Two episodes will premiere today, with a new episode released every week for the rest of the nine-episode season.