The Bookshop

2018 • 113 minutes
3.5
33 reviews
58%
Tomatometer
PG
Rating
Eligible
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About this movie

England, 1959. Free-spirited widow Florence Green (Emily Mortimer, Mary Poppins Returns) follows her lifelong dream by opening a bookshop in a conservative coastal town. While bringing about a cultural awakening through works by Ray Bradbury and Vladimir Nabokov, she earns the polite but ruthless opposition of a local grand dame (Patricia Clarkson, Sharp Objects) and the support of a reclusive, book-loving widower (Bill Nighy, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel). As Florence’s obstacles amass, she reminds herself that a town without a bookshop is no town at all. Based on Penelope Fitzgerald’s acclaimed novel, The Bookshop is an elegant rendering of personal resolve and the battle for the soul of a community.
Rating
PG

Ratings and reviews

3.5
33 reviews
A Google user
February 19, 2019
On second viewing noted where a certain little green Nabokov book was first seen in the possession of gadfly Mr. North. Lolita's promotion by shopkeeper Florence Green (Emily Mortimer) provided a wedge to antagonist Violet Gamatt who harbored a fancy to turn the ramshackle edifice into an "Arts Center." Florence's existence challenges Violet's designs and rule of the small hamlet and its unsophisticated inhabitants. Bill Nighy, an avid reader, and ersatz 'wolf' widow is perfectly subdued.
14 people found this review helpful
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sherry wallis
January 16, 2019
A little gem of a movie that deals with an episode in the lives of two people. The characters are fully developed, and, yes, not a lot happens, but what does is compelling, and beautifully written and acted. I loved it.
19 people found this review helpful
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Kathy Chavez
November 14, 2019
This was a lovely book. Simple, gentle, British story about a young widow opening a bookstore in an awful little town. Great characters, good and bad.
1 person found this review helpful
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