Impromptu (DVD)

From the accomplished theater director James Lapine (Into The Woods) comes Impromptu, his directorial film debut, and one that could very well be called When Chopin Met Sand. A delightful, witty and beautifully crafted film, Impromptu brings together a number of historical figures of the arts & letters variety who trade bon mots at a breakneck pace in this effervescent romp. The ambitious, social climbing Duchess d'Antan's (Emma Thompson, Love Actually), salon for the "artists of the moment," brings face-to-face the wildly unconventional and recently divorced Baroness Dupin AKA author George Sand (Judy Davis, Husbands and Wives) and the object of her unbridled affection - the talented, introspective and highly sensitive composer Frederic Chopin (Hugh Grant, Four Weddings and A Funeral). These are but two shining stars in a galaxy of 19th Century glitterati that includes composer Franz Liszt (Julian Sands, A Room With A View), French poet, dramatist and author Alfred de Musset (Mandy Patinkin, Homeland) and painter Eugene Delacroix (Ralph Brown, Alien 3). Written for the screen by Sarah Kernochan (What Lies Beneath), Impromptu is enhanced by the cinematography of Brune de Keyzer (The Princess of Montpensier) and the period costumes created by Academy Award-winning costume designer Jenny Beaven (A Room With A View).

Starring: Judy Davis, Hugh Grant, Julian Sands, Emma Thompson, Mandy Patinkin, Bernadette Peters, Ralph Brown, Georges Corraface, Anton Rodgers, Anna Massey, Jezabelle Amato, David Birkin, Andre Chaumeau, Nicholas Hawtrey, Fernand Guiot, Sylvie Herbert, Francois Lalande, John Savident, Stuart Seide, Lucy Speed, Elizabeth Spriggs

Rating: PG13