"Miss Pettigrew" is an Antique Gem

At first I thought I’d have trouble finding an image for Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day but then I remembered a fractal called Antique Brooch 2 and realized it would fit nicely with the review. Read the review and I think you’ll see what I mean.
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Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day really IS an “antique gem.” Aside from a brief shot of a male derriere and some teasers of the female lead behind a towel it could have been made in 1948 as easily as 2008. Set in 1938 London, the costumes and set are “spot on” and there is no original music--just “period appropriate” songs. Even the story is a classic “romantic comedy” plot. Only the acting is somewhat contemporary--not nearly as stylized as what you would have seen in an old move. (Still, the modern acting isn’t intrusive and the style keeps the film approachable for contemporary audiences.)
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Gwendolyn Pettigrew (played by Frances McDermond who rose to fame in Fargo) is a hard-bitten, highly-moralistic Nanny in 1938 London who has trouble keeping a job. Driven by desperation she “steals” a reference for an assignment with Delysia Lafosse (who was so perfect in Enchanted) is a young woman with a problem: she is juggling three men, Theatrical Producer Phil (Tom Payne) brutish but wealthy nightclub owner Nice (Mark Strong) or poor-but-honest piano player Michael (Lee Pace of Pushing Daisies). Will Delysia choose fame with Phil, wealth and privilege with Nick or “true love” with Michael--the only one who knows her, loves her and accepts her for who she is? Will Miss Pettigrew find love with Lingerie Designer Joe (Ciarán Hinds) or will Joe succumb to duplicitous Edythe (Shirley Henderson)? I won’t tip the secret off her but you can probably already guess: the fun in is how they get from beginning to end.
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This is a movie designed for adults: the brief nudity aside it is an old-fashioned charmer. It is a frothy confection with a dash of sugar, a bit of spice and just a pinch of salt too keep the movie from being too cloying. Younger folks might find it dull but this is one of the few movies I can recommend for anyone over forty.
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FINAL GRADE: A-