Four Weddings And A Funeral (1994)

He's quite engaging. She's otherwise engaged.

Such a successful romantic tragi-comedy. Really funny, moving, emotionally credible. A breakout success that paved the way in the US market for a rush of other British films.

Remarkable how no backstory is given for the characters. Yet we believe in them as a strange social group. The plot cleverly excludes almost all references to the world of work, so the characters exist in a pure world of social relationships.

The WH Auden poem, Stop All The Clocks, is a real highpoint. I saw it on the day of a colleague's funeral, and wept.

Such a good performance by Hugh Grant - probably the key to film's success. Also of course Kristen Scott Thomas. Not to mention the gay couple Simon Callow and John Hannah. And McDowell is fine, if less desirable, ultimately, than Scott Thomas, who is luminous, rivettingly (regally?) fine and intelligent.

• Rating: Exceptional
• When seen: 17 Dec 2010
• Where seen: School
• More information: IMDB | RottenTomatoes | Wikipedia

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Amendments: added actor tags: "Simon Callow, James Fleet, Rowan Atkinson, John Hannah, David Bower, Charlotte Coleman". Removed link to Wikipedia-sourced image. Added ranking image.