Mrs. 'Arris Goes to Paris

Not much news on either house. The owner of the one we hope to buy is out of the country, but his realtor thinks she'll reach him by Friday. The realtor for the people who looked at our house twice say that we're on their Top Three list.

But I have this movie review ready to go...

***

Mrs. 'Arris Goes to Paris is one of the most delightful films I've seen in a long time. It is a simple story that is rich in truth for all ages.

An elderly English charwoman sees two Dior dresses in her employer's home. They are the most beautiful things she's ever seen in her life, and she decides that before she dies she's going to buy herself a Dior dress. Never mind that her friend, another char woman, thinks that she's crazy. Never mind that it takes her three years of scrimping and saving. This thing of beauty is worth walking instead of taking the bus!

She goes to the Dior salon, where she is treated as unworthy of entrance, let alone of being fitted for one of their creations. The story of how she gets her dress is also the story of how one life can minister hope and healing to everyone she meets, and how one good person who is willing to make a few waves can have a ripple effect on others' lives that continues long after she is gone.

I haven't told you the best part. The old lady is played by Angela Lansbury. "I can't help it," Bantam12 explained during the movie after an unmanly giggle escaped his nearly teenage lips, "she makes me laugh." As anyone who's ever seen her knows, she does make you smile! And in this movie, she gives one a fresh perspective on the elderly. Angela Lansbury herself is an inspiration, with a career that has not slowed down with age. "Mrs. 'Arris" is a well-drawn and appealing character with a full past and an energetic present, who, despite her age, still has hopes and dreams for the future. This film would make any child look at the elderly with more appreciation and imagination--and maybe any adult too.