Eloise at the Plaza is a 2003 American made-for-television comedy film based on the Eloise series of children's books written and illustrated by Kay Thompson and Hilary Knight. It stars young Sofia Vassilieva as Eloise, an irrepressible six-year-old girl who lives in the penthouse at the top of the Plaza Hotel in New York City.
| Eloise at the Plaza | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Based on | Eloise by Kay Thompson |
| Teleplay by | Janet Brownell |
| Directed by | Kevin Lima |
| Starring | Sofia Vassilieva Julie Andrews Jeffrey Tambor Kenneth Welsh Debra Monk Christine Baranski |
| Music by | Bruce Broughton |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producers | Thomas D. Adelman Christine A. Sacan |
| Cinematography | James Chressanthis |
| Editor | Gregory Perler |
| Running time | 89 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | April 27, 2003 |
This film was produced by Handmade Films and DiNovi Pictures for Walt Disney Television with distribution handled by the ABC Television Network, and released on both VHS and DVD by Buena Vista Home Entertainment in 2003.
Plot
editEloise (Sofia Vassilieva) is a fun-loving six-year-old girl with a knack for finding adventure every place she looks. While under the care of her "rawther" wonderful nanny (Julie Andrews), Eloise tries to play matchmaker to a lonely prince and wrangle an invitation to the society event of the season.
Cast
edit- Sofia Vassilieva as Eloise
- Julie Andrews as Nanny
- Jeffrey Tambor as Mr. Salomone
- Christine Baranski as Prunella Stickler
- Kenneth Welsh as Sir Wilkes
- Jonas Cherick as Philip
- Stephanie Anne Mills as Molly Daniels
- Debra Monk as Maggie
- Gavin Creel as Bill
- Jessica Beitchman as Debutante Linda
- Sheree Smith as Laundry Supervisor
- Eve Crawford as Mrs. Daniels
- David Sparrow as Charlie, the 59th Street Doorman
- Kintaro Akiyama as Leon
- Denis Akiyama as Prince of Kushin
- Thomas D. Adelman as Pamphlet Guy
- Araxi Arslanian as Head of Housekeeping
- Tannis Burnett as Miss Thompson
- George Chiang as Mr. Toyama
- Corinne Conley as Mrs. Thornton
- Sergio Di Zio as Lou the Bellhop
- Greg Farkas as Ruth's Date
- Amber Fraser as Eloise's Mother
- Rothaford Gray as Security Guard
- Graham Harley as Walter the Concierge
- Fionnuala Jamison as Guest with Mail
- Jason Jones as Bartender
- Peter Keleghan as Mr. Nye
- Hilary Knight as Street Artist
- Colm Magner as Thomas the Maitre'd
- Debra McGrath as Cornelia
- Patrick Meehan as Male Tourist
- David Michie as Cook
- Jeffrey Ong as Dancer
- Julian Richings as Patrice
- Sol Rosenthal as Palm Court Waiter
- Cara Rubenstein as Female Tourist
- Cliff Saunders as Max
- Tony Sciara as Assistant Chef Marco
- Sam Strasfield as Linda's Date
- Jim Tooey as Doorman
- Janet van de Graaf as Beautician
- Genelle Williams as Ruth
- Jonathan Wilson as Frederic the Bellhop
- Victor A. Young as Mr. Peabody
Reception
editAlessandra Stanley from The New York Times praised the film's fidelity to the book and the actors' performances.[1] Reel Film Reviews gave the film two out of four stars, stating: "Eloise at the Plaza is mildly entertaining, if only because it seems to consist of one caper after another. The film's structure soon becomes perfectly obvious – Eloise gets into a madcap adventure, adults chase her around, Nanny admonishes her, etc – and the fast pace is clearly in place to keep younger viewers interested. But, though there are a number of talented actors in the cast, Eloise just isn't a compelling enough character to sustain an entire movie. There's no doubt that the movie will act as wish fulfillment for kids – who wouldn't want to run amuck and get away with it? – but when you get right down to it, Eloise is awfully thin and one-dimensional (not to mention annoying)."[2] DVDizzy.com wrote: "The film even ascends beyond the second-tier quality that most television movies are satisfied to achieve. Eloise deserves praise not merely as a more bearable Wonderful World of Disney presentation, but as a genuinely entertaining family film, regardless of format."[3]
For his work in Eloise at the Plaza, Bruce Broughton won one Primetime Emmy Award in the category of "Outstanding Music Composition for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Dramatic Underscore)".[4]
References
edit- ^ Stanley, Alessandra (25 April 2003). "TV WEEKEND; That Girl Is Loose At the Plaza Again". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
- ^ "Eloise at the Plaza (December 14/03)". Reel Film Reviews. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
- ^ "Eloise at the Plaza DVD Review". DVDizzy. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
- ^ "55th Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners". Emmys. Retrieved 17 June 2017.