Tea With the Dames
Much of what I said about The Spy Who Dumped Me could be applied to Roger Michell’s documentary, Tea With the Dames. (Okay, maybe the spy stuff doesn’t carry over.) The premise for the documentary is simple: follow four friends as they discuss their lives and loves. The distinction is that the four friends are all British acting royalty, each made a Dame by the Queen herself.
Tea With the Dames is the best medicine. Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Joan Plowright, and Eileen Atkins get the opportunity to sit in a beautiful English estate (Plowright’s that she shared with her late husband, Laurence Olivier) and discuss their mutual careers, their relationships, and their long friendship together.
Michell’s camera is never intrusive, content to just sit in a corner and capture these women gossiping, celebrating their lives, and actually drinking tea! The group discusses regrets they’ve had and their fears regarding the passage of time, but all with an eye towards how they plan to face any challenges together. It’s an incredibly sweet film that eschews a conventional plot for a sweetly tempered tale of friendship and grace. You’ll wish you could sit in Joan Plowright’s sitting room and just hear these women share their history with you.