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      Tea With Mussolini

      PG Released Apr 2, 1999 1 hr. 56 min. Comedy Drama List
      65% 40 Reviews Tomatometer 76% 5,000+ Ratings Audience Score In 1930s fascist Italy, adolescent Luca (Charlie Lucas) just lost his mother. His father, a callous businessman, sends him to be taken care of by British expatriate Mary Wallace (Joan Plowright). Mary and her cultured friends -- including artist Arabella (Judi Dench), young widow Elsa (Cher) and archaeologist Georgie (Lily Tomlin) -- keep a watchful eye over the boy. But the women's cultivated lives take a dramatic turn when Allied forces declare war on Mussolini. Read More Read Less
      Tea With Mussolini

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      Critics Consensus

      Tea with Mussolini contains few surprises, but this amiably ambling drama is too likable -- and well-cast -- to completely resist.

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      Audience Reviews

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      Mc O There should have been a gay character/romance! Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/15/23 Full Review isla s This film features a solid cast, some amusing witty comments and its a pretty pleasant watch, although the plot pace is a bit slow at the start and it may bore some I suppose. Its undoubtedly the performances that make this film work as well as it does. It has a definite sense of 'the British stiff upper lip' about it, its fair to say and I found it interesting to see how the somewhat upper class Brits handled finding themselves in a foreign country now a part of such a large scale war. However, I admit that I did find Cher's character rather irritating (as did others in the film - the loud, pompous/extroverted American doesn't go down entirely well among others). Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member 5 stars for a very enjoyable film with a great story, cast, setting...... and 5 well-crafted characters everyone can relate to and cheer for Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/12/23 Full Review Audience Member A decent watch. There's some good acting in there and a passable story. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Audience Member This is one of my favorite movies of all time. Great cast and story. I never get tired of watching it. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/23/23 Full Review Shari H My daughter and I adore this movie Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/15/20 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Tea With Mussolini

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      Critics Reviews

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      Wendy Ide Times (UK) Franco Zeffirelli drew on his early life for this evocative portrait of an expat community in pre-Second World War Italy. May 18, 2023 Full Review Lisa Schwarzbaum Entertainment Weekly Rated: D+ Sep 7, 2011 Full Review Globe and Mail Rated: 2.5/4 Mar 22, 2002 Full Review Al Weisel Out Magazine Don't expect Italian neorealism; like most of Zeffirelli's work, the film is slightly grander than life. May 25, 2022 Full Review Chase Burns The Stranger (Seattle, WA) ...in all honesty, the movie is drab. They're literally draped in drab... Jan 5, 2022 Full Review Jan Stuart The Advocate The Zeffirelli approach to history combines the time-marches-on urgency of an old Movietone newsreel with the sun-dappled sheen of an Italian Tourist Authority brochure. Jul 27, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis In 1930s fascist Italy, adolescent Luca (Charlie Lucas) just lost his mother. His father, a callous businessman, sends him to be taken care of by British expatriate Mary Wallace (Joan Plowright). Mary and her cultured friends -- including artist Arabella (Judi Dench), young widow Elsa (Cher) and archaeologist Georgie (Lily Tomlin) -- keep a watchful eye over the boy. But the women's cultivated lives take a dramatic turn when Allied forces declare war on Mussolini.
      Director
      Franco Zeffirelli
      Executive Producer
      Marco Chimenz
      Screenwriter
      John Mortimer, Franco Zeffirelli
      Distributor
      CIC Video, United International Pictures, G2 Films
      Production Co
      Medusa Film, Cattleya, Film & General Productions Ltd. [gb], Cineritmo
      Rating
      PG
      Genre
      Comedy, Drama
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Apr 2, 1999, Wide
      Release Date (DVD)
      May 1, 2001
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $14.4M
      Sound Mix
      Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround
      Aspect Ratio
      Flat (1.37:1)