FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS – Review

Could singing so bad it provoked laughter raise the spirits of a nation at war? In the case of Florence Foster Jenkins, an heiress and patron of music, it did, although many of her fans did not realize that Mrs. Jenkins didn’t know she was being funny. She really did think she could sing.

This strange but true story is the basis of  director Stephen Frears’ FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS. The film stars Meryl Streep as the deluded Mrs. Jenkins, Hugh Grant as her solicitous manager/assistant/second husband St. Clair Bayfield, and Simon Helberg as her beleaguered accompanist Cosme McMoon. Actually, there may have been a reason beyond ego for Mrs. Jenkins’ belief in her singing voice, as a tragic illness might have impacted her hearing. A promising pianist when young (whose performances reportedly included one at the White House during President Rutherford B Hayes’ time), her wealthy father had forbidden a professional career in music, frustrating his daughter’s theatrical bent, and an unhappy series of events further ended those dreams. But her love of music never died and in the 1940s, rumors circulated about a wealthy woman, a generous supporter of serious music and sponsor of many musical greats, whose private performances featured costumes and tableau vivant (elaborately staged poses of a historical or mythic event, popular early in the century), and some truly bad singing. But as the concerts were private and attendance carefully screened, reports in the press were vague, although wits and wags relished sneaking in to secretly mock the delusional diva. During World War II, that situation changed, as the socialite longed to play Carnegie Hall.

This same real-life person was, more loosely, the inspiration for the 2015 French film MARGUERITE, but that version moved the story to France and also transported it to the 1920s. In that film, Catherine Frot creates a more complex version of the person, in contrast to Streep’s simpler, sweet one. This new film version is closer to the story of the real Florence Foster Jenkins, who was American and had her heyday in the 1940s, but it is still a fictional film.

Not surprisingly, Frears’ film is polished and filled with wonderful period costumes and sets. As FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS shows us, Mrs. Jenkins has a taste for fancy costumes, especially with angel wings, despite her heavy, past middle-age figure, and Streep handles the scenes with unflattering outfits with comic style. Jenkins also has a taste for theatrical staging, as she sang some of opera’s most difficult arias. Like any diva, she liked to be the center of attention.

Streep (who actually can sing) warbles dreadfully as Jenkins, but crafts a character who manages to charm us with her generous spirit nonetheless. Streep’s Florence can be quirky and temperamental, as well as easily hurt, and Grant as her protector/husband struggles mightily to shield her from all unkind words. A former not-too-successful British Shakespearean actor, who still occasionally performs in Florence’s private concerts, his life now revolves around soothing and encouraging his wife. For this he is well rewarded, with his own apartment and a younger mistress, Kathleen (Rebecca Ferguson) to whom he goes home after his wife goes to bed for the night, a situation Florence appears to ignore.

When Florence is in need of a new accompanist, to help her prepare for an upcoming concert, a plethora of musicians apply, all determined to woo her with their passionate playing. But cagey Cosme (Helberg) correctly assesses the situation and wins the job with oozing charm and a soothingly classic piece. Once he hears his new employer sing, he is not sure any amount of money is worth this.

In many ways, Grant is the real center of this film, a complex character who is more than he seems. In one entertaining party scene, he steps out with some smooth dance moves to some hot ’40s swing music. Helberg as Cosme also gets a featured role as the ambitious but starving musician worried about what Florence’s career is doing to his own. Helberg and Grant provide a lot of the comedy in Frears’ generally sweet little film, while Streep does the pathos. Nina Arianda has a featured comic spot as well, as the blonde trophy wife of one of Florence’s rich friends, literally rolling on the floor laughing. Oddly, Streep’s singing as Florence, which reported sparked uncontrollable laughter, is not particularly laugh-provoking, just cringe-inducing. It is a flaw of sorts but it does not really harm the film.

Frears’ ode to a unique personality is a sweet, oddball tale which is kinder and gentler with its real-life central character than the earlier French film. Still that film added a bite to the story, and a fuller, human depth to the character, which Streep’s too-winsome portrayal lacks. FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS is a warm and appealing film but it could have used a bit more depth and thoughtfulness.

4 of 5 Stars