For ages the entertainment industry has been trying to figure out how to get away with gratuitous T&A by pretending it’s art. Stephen Frears pulls a fast one by telling the story (inspired by real events) of someone who did just that. In 1937, fresh from her husband’s funeral, bored and wealthy Laura Henderson (Judi Dench) looks for something to do. Passing on embroidery and charity work, she buys a theater (the notorious Windmill), renovates it, hires an impresario, Vivian Van Damm (Bob Hoskins), and fills the house — for about a week. Then she has a brainstorm: why not a nude revue? So they’ve got the naked girls, all they need is a story, but that’s where Mrs. Henderson comes up short. The romantic tension between Laura and Vivian goes nowhere, Laura’s dressing up as Mata Hari and a Teddy Bear falls flat, and by the time they throw in the Blitz, it’s become obvious that what Mrs. Henderson presents is just another tarted-up excuse to trot out those naughty bits and pieces.
