84 Charing Cross Road

Starring: Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins, Judi Dench, et al.

Product Description

New Yorker Helene Hanff corresponds with London bookseller Frank Doel and his colleagues from 1949 until 1969.

• Format: DVD
• Language: English
• UPC: 043396077621
• Release Date: March 2002
• Rating: PG
• Publisher: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• Director: David Jones
• Starring: Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins, Judi Dench, Jean De Baer, Maurice Denham, Eleanor David, Mercedes Ruehl, Daniel Gerroll
• Runtime: 1 hour, 39 minutes
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Good adaptation of the book

Like many people, I saw this movie before I read the book. Naturally, due to media constraints, you expect a certain amount of the book to be homogenized. Therefore, I wanted to read what was missing. To my amazement, very little was missing or modified. I was surprised to find myself wanting more when it finished. The whole book and story are about a collection of correspondence between Helene Hanff (played by Anne Bancroft in the movie), an avid book reader, and Frank Doel, an agent for a British bookseller. Not being able to find the books she wanted to read for a reasonable price, she turned to a bookseller in Britain. In the process of buying books, they strike up a friendship. As we follow the correspondents, we learn about various books and watch the timeline of what is happening in Britain through the years. The first time I watched this movie, not having any background on the story, characters, or actors, I was waiting for the action to take place. At one point, Hannibal Lecter (oops), I mean Frank Doel, says, "Very nice, very tasty.” When the final credits appeared, I realized this was not that kind of movie. Since then, I have understood to the point that I am tracking down the books that are mentioned. Interestingly, the movie is almost word-for-word the book. Also, not until I read the book I did not realize that Charing Cross Road was a real place. My wife has taken this one step further and is collecting all the books that were mentioned in the correspondence. Some of these books appear to have been reprinted due to this publication. If you can find it, there is a book called "The Library of Helen Hanff." It will give a list of the books in the movie; otherwise, you will just have to write them down as you watch the movie or read the book. I wonder what became of all the other people described in the correspondents after the book.