The redcoats invade the Walker Art Center throughout the month

WHAT: Mike Leigh: Moments
WHERE: Walker Art Center
WHEN: Oct. 3-25

Lock up the cabbage and put away the toothpaste, Mike Leigh is a’comin to town! The British filmmaker will have a retrospective of work showing at the Walker throughout the month of October. The films to be shown, which reflect the director’s almost forty years in the business, are above all a reflection of Britain’s class system and the realities of everyday life. The films are chock full of British humor, for better or for worse. A&E introduces two titles from within the library to give readers a better look at the auteur.

WHAT: “Topsy Turvy” (1989)
WHEN: Friday Oct. 17, 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Walker Art Center

Jumpin’ Jehosophat! This movie is so crotchety and old that it makes “On Golden Pond ” look like freakin’ “Independence Day .” The film shows 1880s London in all its glory. Glory? Or Boring? The story follows the production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Mikado.” It has its moments of mild comedy, but as a whole this film is like the TV show “Frasier ,” i.e. funny for smart people. It is also produced in that weird British way on 35mm film, which makes everything look off and low-budget even though it isn’t, so you feel like you are watching BBC reruns on PBS at 10 p.m. on a Wednesday. Perhaps it deserves multiple viewings though; break out the Earl Grey, give it a go.

WHAT: “Vera Drake” (2004)
WHEN: Saturday Oct. 25, 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Walker Art Center

This one is newer, and although it also moves like molasses, it is actually immensely interesting. The film follows a woman in 1950s Britain who is a superhero of sorts, acting as a clandestine abortionist by night. Imelda Staunton’s performance won her more awards than Hannah Montana’s won Google image searches, and the film itself shows Leigh’s unarguable talent.
With eight other films besides the ones mentioned being showcased in the exhibition, as well as a dialogue with the director himself, most will surely find something they can appreciate. Regardless of their watchability on a Hollywood scale, Leigh’s films are very well done. They may be, at times, an exercise in patience, but they aren’t really worth missing. Like a fine Yorkshire pudding these films are better appreciated if savored and given the attention they deserve. Get over there, impress your friends, prove that we don’t all have ADHD as severely as the British undoubtedly assume we do.