Gregory's Two Girls [VHS] [1999]

Firstly, let me be honest and declare an interest here. I am a hopeless fan of the first movie, Gregory's Girl. It is fair to say it is one of my favourite films & for lots of different reasons. It is sad, funny, sweet, low budget, quirky and best of all there is a sense of gentle optimism running right through it like a stick of rock. Oh, & the Clare Grogan character reminds me of my first ever girlfriend & this one time (at band camp!) I'm sure I walked past Dee Hepburn in the street. At least it looked a lot like her and thats good enough for me.
But I digress, I was declaring an interest. I came to watch this movie a willing victim. I would have gladly given it the keys to my car and made it up some sandwiches for the journey.
How disappointed was I? Gregory's Two Girls is possibly one of the worst films I have ever seen. Not quite as bad as Bird On A Wire, but getting there. It is muddled, schizophrenic, plodding, confused & infuriating. Infuriating because I wanted it to be good. And it just wasn't.
Save your money (& more importantly your time) & never, ever watch this movie. It is an illegitimate child we shall never speak of again.

I was looking froward to seeing this having watched Gregory's Girl and studied the book not so long ago. I was thorughly disappointed. The sequel bears no reference to the first film. Gregory's sister Maddi appears again but even her presence in the film is pointless. If you've seen the first film I advise you not to see this one as you will be disappointed. Similarly if you haven't seen the first film I dont recommend it as it will still be a dissapointment.

John Gordon Sinclair is perfect as Gregory Underwood, the bumbling teacher with strong left-wing morals, and a desire to change the world - but lacking the get-up-and-go to actually do so.

The main message of this film is one of making a difference, even if it's a small one. Mr. Underwood's infatuation with a schoolgirl is made more difficult to ignore when he becomes involved in her extra-curricular investigation into a local firm whom she believes is involved in manufacturing torture equipment.

This is a very political film and accurately reflects the feeling of many fellow left-wing thinkers in this country who recognise the wrong in the world and dream of making a change - but never getting round to it. Anti-Americanism is dealt with perfectly, and is balanced out when Gregory meets an actual `thinking American'.

Through a pupil, Gregory finds the inspiration to stamp his mark in the world and make a stand. His feelings towards her might be improper, but that doesn't make him a bad man - it makes him human. He can't help how he feels and though it undoubtedly affects his behaviour, his integrity prevents anything untoward. Infact, it's the suggestion that something indecent might well be happening that leads to the funniest scene in the film, where he tries to justify the time after school spent with Frances.

The characters are on the whole very believable, and the backdrop of grim council estates in urban Scotland give this an extra air of plausibility. Gregory reflects many guys who are perhaps misrepresented in film, and I think a fair few people can identify with his strong beliefs and perceived inability to do anything other than preach to those around him.

In a nutshell: The title of the film is misleading as the story isn't centrally based on his relationship with two women - they are important, but (and maybe I'm being a bit cynical) it seems more likely that the title is an attempt to jump on the nostalgia and appeal of the original. This could have been called something else, it is very much a standalone film rather than a true extension or sequel to the 80's British classic. Although the film sometimes feels a bit disjointed and slow, the character of Gregory is charming enough to keep you watching, and it was great to seem him absorb some of the youthful vigour from his scholar. The plot surrounding his attraction to his pupil seems (by some) to unfairly overshadow the actual story of the film.

I'd give this 3.5 stars if I could, but the distinct lack of any additional material on this disk fails to sway me to a 4.