Topsy Turvy: Japanese No! Japanese Yes!

My favorite scene from Mike Leigh's "Topsy-Turvy"
1885. Gilbert and Sullivan are in rehearsals for the Mikado, when Gilbert (Jim Broadbent) invites four Japanese guests from a traveling exhibit to watch the proceedings.
Watch for Andy ("my precious!") Serkis!
D'Auban's parting shot is "I haven't laughed so much since my tights caught fire in Harlequin Meets Itchity Witch and the Snitch."

[@mturynP]

Andy Serkis' motion-capture work here looks _amazingly_ natural. Kudos to him and the animators.

[@gogiggs6416]

Jim Broadbent's performance in this film is one of my favorite lead performances in a film ever.

[@BuckyNugget]

agreed! He's both taskmaster and petulant child.

[@nefersguy]

absolutely brilliant scene from a Superb film. "if he doesn't speak english he's hardly likely to speak italian - Mrs Rutherford! "

[@Harriet-Jesamine]

This Film is insanely humorous and poignant simultaneously. Been in my top since I worked at a Cinema in 1999 and first saw it!

[@joyceharrison1682]

"Will this take long? I'm to arrange a mazurka at four o'clock." Gosh, I love this film.

[@BuckyNugget]

Andy Serkis!

[@markhager2216]

Martin Savage is DYING at that piano with his newspaper. Broadbent is amazing. And the whole issue of “if you speak English loudly enough, everyone can understand it” is a tradition in much of the English speaking world. Broadbent (Gilbert) continuing tor refer to the woman as “Miss Sixpence Please” cracks me up every time.

[@BuckyNugget]

hahaha... you gotta love the level of respect and disrespect Gilbert shows everyone!

[@maggiesmith856]

It would have been nice if Gilbert had thought to hire a translator. You can see them thinking "The British are weird !"

[@aclark903]

変な外人

[@andrea22213]

Ahh The marvellous Dorothy Atkinson as Miss Jessie Bond. Magnificent

[@almadora]

i'd love to see the scene where he announces he cuts the mikado song, and all the surrounding backstage talk and collaborative revolt to reinstate his number. some of the best stuff in a truly excellent film.

[@tywilliamnash5078]

I love this film, and I have it too. I watch it at least once a year. Lots of people have tried to reproduce 'Three Little Maids' on stage, but nothing compares or even comes even close to this. These girls nail it. I love Timothy Spall's performance singing some song about the Emperor and the daughter-in-law elect. He nails it.

[@Lucadance]

I love this movie! I periodically think of this scene and the very funny D'Auban character. An excellent film. Perfect in every way.

[@johnerwin6617]

One of my few ALL TIME FAVORITE films. Thanks for the post!! :)

[@davidwalker8955]

As always a great film by Mike Leigh .

[@Stantzs]

wow, you can tell the cast loved every minute of that,

[@redwolf481]

@Shamborn andy serkis is great in this...I can't tell u how many times I have seen this movie and i never knew it was him

[@johnerwin981]

a 'great' scene from the movie. Also, the 2 actresses in their dressing room, conversing w/ each other another scene i enjoyed. Thanx again fr th posts from the movie!

[@georgemonet1888]

But didn't he tell Leelee that this was just low burlesque on the river Thames during the dressing room scene? So is it an original Japanese Opera or low burlesque on the river Thames?

[@CarlosEmilioEsq]

That's the funny part. He told his actors whatever he needed to tell them to get them to do as he wanted. It was interesting how he handled them. Some he coddled and was sweet as pie with, others he was firmer and colder to. Great backstage dynamic.

[@malkamusik]

This film is more of an interesting character study of various peoples' lives back in Victorian England, and less a musical. However, the musical performances are excellent!! If you haven't yet, SEE THIS FILM!

[@treesny]

Although the characters, almost all of whom are actual historical figures, are presented vividly thanks to the sharp screenplay and a brilliant cast, the true subject of this great film is to show the blood, sweat and tears that theater folk put in so that an audience will enjoy their seemingly "effortless" work. One of the few films about the theater that shows how it really is!

[@adpny]

@Shamborn I loved Another Year. I notice Jim Broadbent was in both films. It's nice to see actors who have worked repeatedly with Mike Leigh over the years.

[@peterdavies2960]

‘Oh please don’t think I’m prejudice! 😲´ -Sir William Gilbert aka Jim Broadbent aka Professer Horace Slughorn 😂

[@ShaddySoldier]

Dude you've commented this same thing 3 times over the past year lol

[@krogdog]

GROSMITH RULES!!! Martin Savage just oozes charisma in this movie!

[@tnrc75]

Thank you VERY MUCH! Absolute brilliance.

[@maggiesmith856]

I think the guy dancing around is Andy Serkis (Gollum).

[@thomashogan16]

Yes. He is.

[@merledoughty5787]

Arthur Sullivan had visited Libertys in London during an exposition by the Japanese and Ms 6 pence please was named after one of the ladies there I have a great tape of this

[@bluegrassbobify]

The Criterion bluray is being released on March 29th!! The cover is truly topsy-turvy, unlike the cover of my current DVD from 1999. It was the first DVD I ever bought

[@ジョルジュメリエス]

英語全然分からんから字幕付きでちゃんとこの映画見たい

[@jonp3890]

Hihihihi

[@phxsns1]

I just love how Gilbert calls the Japanese woman "Miss Sixpence Please".

[@alcockell]

Her minimal English from the cultural exchange seen earlier...

[@phxsns1]

@@alcockell Right

[@operettas_are_lovely]

Come along tortoise!! Such a great scene. :D

[@peterdavies2960]

As Professor Slughorn aka Jim Broadbent would say ‘oh please don’t think I’m prejudice! No!’ 😂

[@TylerDevilMcCrudden]

Was that naoko mori

[@CaptainSiberia]

Fantastic!

[@TheSoundsage]

Brilliant- almost miraculous

[@EmperorGarm]

For those of you playing at home and don't understand this comment, you should watch this movie from the beginning so that you can appreciate the set up this becomes a wonderfully understated joke.

[@Kiyotea.clarinet]

Yay for japanese?

[@redwolf481]

where is andy serkis

[@Sapphonouveau]

lol - it's a shame Torchwood wasn't as good as Topsy Turvy, but she was still good in it.

[@diddymuck]

nyaaa

[@braintree2]

Oh, diddymuck. You must be such a fun person to be around!

[@niskycat]

@YuukiUchiha14 lol yesssss! I remember that!

[@Karusik123]

And mine!

[@diddymuck]

that's not to say its a brilliant piece, but a product of its time.

[@naota83]

The First Weeaboos

[@michaeloflannegen]

I think Mickey Rooneys Japanese character??? in Breakfast at Tiffanys belongs right beside this questionable take on Japanese culture.

[@BuckyNugget]

I definitely look at this movie differently than I did 20 years ago :/

[@misterwibble6411]

@@BuckyNugget I don't. There's nothing wrong with this scene at all and it's in no way racist in any way.

[@misterwibble6411]

absolute nonsense. God save us from people who see racism everywhere. Please pray tell us in what way this scene is questionable?

[@misterwibble6411]

@@BuckyNugget why would i want to read your carefully selected web article that has an axe to grind......

[@diddymuck]

the mikado is a flagrant insult to the Japanese when taken in its basics. Much like Porgy and Bess in America.

[@thomashogan16]

Not really. Calm down.

[@ShaddySoldier]

Bro it's a play, chill out lmao

[@treesny]

The Mikado is a fierce and brilliant satire on Victorian England society, with its rigid class system, repressed eroticism and a great vein of bloodthirstyness underneath its "civilized" exterior. The Japanese veneer has never fooled anyone, nor was it meant to: from the opening chorus on, Gilbert is sending up the stereotypes that the English had about Japanese society. The comparison with Porgy and Bess is completely inappropriate.

[@michaeloflannegen]

Boring scene. Who cares. Give me Amadeus. Now that was a movie. Sideshow Bob is brilliant at singing and sending up this awful song.

[@misterwibble6411]

trololololo fail. You must try harder. troll fail is fail.