Florence Foster Jenkins

Synopsis

Set in 1940s New York, FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS is the true story of the legendary New York heiress and socialite who obsessively pursued her dream of becoming a great singer. The voice she heard in her head was beautiful, but to everyone else it was hilariously awful. Her "husband" and manager, St. Clair Bayfield, an aristocratic English actor, was determined to protect his beloved Florence from the truth. But when Florence decided to give a public concert at Carnegie Hall, St. Clair knew he faced his greatest challenge.

Biography

Stephen Frears has always embraced a wide variety of styles, themes and genres. He made his name in TV drama, working almost exclusively for the small screen in the first 15 years of his career. In the mid-1980s he turned to the cinema, shooting THE HIT (1984), starring Terence Stamp, John Hurt and Tim Roth. The following year he made MY BEAUTIFUL LAUNDRETTE for Channel 4, which crossed over to big-screen audiences and altered the course of his career. After directing its companion piece SAMMY AND ROSIE GET LAID and the Joe Orton biopic PRICK UP YOUR EARS, he began working in Hollywood, with DANGEROUS LIAISONS and THE GRIFTERS (for which he was Oscar-nominated) among his most notable titles.

Returning closer to home, he directed THE SNAPPER and THE VAN; two Irish films based on Roddy Doyle stories and after a second spell of making American films (THE HI-LO COUNTRY and HIGH FIDELITY) based himself largely in Britain. Stephen Frears showed his versatility with two vastly different movies: DIRTY PRETTY THINGS, a realistic account of immigrant life in London, and MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS, a nostalgic backstage comedy-drama. For his 2006 film THE QUEEN he was again nominated for an Oscar®. His subsequent films include CHERI, TAMARA DREWE and MUHAMMAD ALI'S GREATEST FIGHT, produced by HBO and PHILOMENA, starring Judi Dench and Steve Coogan, which won one BAFTA, and was nominated for three others, along with three Golden Globe and four Oscar® nominations. Frears most recently directed THE PROGRAM, with Ben Foster playing the role of Lance Armstrong.

2013 - PHILOMENA
2013 - MUHAMMAD ALI'S GREATEST FIGHT
2012 - LAY THE FAVORITE
2010 - TAMARA DREWE
2009 - CHÉRI
2006 - THE QUEEN
2005 - MRS HENDERSON PRESENTS
2002 - DIRTY PRETTY THINGS
2000 - LIAM
2000 - HIGH FIDELITY
1998 - THE HI-LO COUNTRY
1996 - THE VAN
1996 - MARY REILLY
1990 - THE GRIFTERS
1988 - DANGEROUS LIAISONS
1987 - SAMMY AND ROSIE GET LAID
1987 - PRICK UP YOUR EARS
1985 - MY BEAUTIFUL LAUNDRETTE
1984 - THE HIT