Directed by Rupert Goold, Judy begins during the Winter of 1968. The showbiz legend Judy Garland, played by Renee Zellweger, arrives in Swinging London to perform a five-week sold-out run at The Talk of the Town.
It is 30 years since she shot to global stardom in The Wizard of Oz, but if her voice has weakened, its dramatic intensity has only grown. As she prepares for the show, battles with management, charms musicians, and reminisces with friends and adoring fans, her wit and warmth shine through.
The movie derives from the play End of the Rainbow by Peter Quilter and the screenplay adaption by Tom Edge. On the IMDB website, Quilter says Edge’s screenplay is more edger than the imaginative play.
Judy is available on Amazon Prime or wherever Blu-rays and DVDs can be purchased.
Goold directing credits include True Story, King Charles III, and The Hollow Crown, which won Broadcasting Press Guild Awards for Best Single Drama. Goold works with executive producer Sam Mendes, who directed a couple of James Bond 007 movies. Mendes is not involved with the production of Judy.
The movie looks promising with Zellweger as Judy. We come to find even her dreams of love seem undimmed as she embarks on a whirlwind romance with Mickey Deans, played by Finn Wittrock, her soon-to-be fifth husband. Featuring some of her best-known songs, we celebrate the voice, the capacity for love, and the sheer pizzazz of “the world’s greatest entertainer.”
The next trailer shows more of the movie with is flashbacks and Garland’s drug dependency and separation from her children because she needs to go to London and make money. We see more of the other actors in the movie, including Jessie Buckley, Finn Wittrock, Rufus Sewell, and Michael Gambon.
Buckley is making quite a name for herself with her starring role in the award-winning Wild Rose.
Zellweger becomes Judy Garland, and she embodies her. She makes the movie.
Judy Garland is an endearing soul who understood the hardships that life can bring. She lived tragically in the end. But I am sure she is doing well.
In this clip, I can see Judy Garland as Dorothy when she comforts the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion. Zellweger is brilliant, and I hope she gets nominated for both the Golden Globe and Oscar.
It’s heartbreaking to watch this scene because of Judy Garland’s life rollercoaster. Here she is on an upswing when we know it will be tragic again.