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Tag Archives: Juliet Stevenson

Emma

28 Tuesday Jun 2016

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 42 Comments

Tags

1990's, Alan Cumming, Comedy, Douglas McGrath, Emma, Ewan McGregor, Greta Scacchi, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jane Austen, Jeremy Northam, Juliet Stevenson, Period Drama, Polly Walker, Romance, Sophie Thompson, Toni Collette

Film Title

Emma

Director

Douglas McGrath

Starring

  • Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma Woodhouse
  • Jeremy Northam as Mr. Knightley
  • Toni Collette as Harriet Smith
  • Ewan McGregor as Frank Churchill
  • Alan Cumming as Mr Elton
  • Polly Walker as Jane Fairfax
  • Juliet Stevenson as Mrs Elton
  • Greta Scacchi as Miss Taylor
  • Sophie Thompson as Miss Bates

A ravishing and witty rendering of Jane Austen’s classic novel, Emma is a fine comedy romance about the errors and misinterpretation when it comes to matters involving the heart. With a delightful performance by Gwyneth Paltrow at the heart of it and an equally compelling cast surrounding her, Emma is one of those films that is almost impossible not to enjoy.

In the English countryside of the early-19th-century, a young woman by the name of Emma Woodhouse lives. Emma Movie PosterA vivacious and charming woman, Emma likes to think of herself as being all-knowing when it comes to setting people up in romantic connections. This notion started after she helped introduce her now former governess Miss Taylor to the man who is now her husband. From then on Emma has made it her goal to unite others, all of it comes from a genuine place but little by little the results get complicated. Her meddling in the affairs of others begins to become a lot more complex when Emma decides to fix her shy best friend Harriet Smith up with the local minister Mr Elton. Though Harriet likes someone else, she is a little naive and instead takes Emma’s advice to pursue Mr Elton. Observing Emma’s meddling ways is family friend Mr. Knightley, who is the one person who understands what Emma is like and warns her not to get involved in other people’s love lives. Emma though is stubborn and genuinely believes she is aiding everyone with her services as Cupid, which she extends to almost everyone she meets. Mr KnightleyThe amusing part of all of it is that while she’s so busy plotting to bring others together, she doesn’t see that love could be in front of her from many men; including the wise Mr. Knightley and the dashing Frank Churchill. Eventually, through all of Emma’s schemes that have been meant to be helpful for her social circle, disastrous results and odd pairings emerge through confusion and Emma’s belief that she is always right when it comes to love. But what of her own experience with love?  Can she truly begin to see that love may be something for her if she’s so busy matching others up? And what of all the matches(or should that be mismatches) that she’s orchestrated from a good place that has gone awry?

Director Douglas McGrath mounts this comic tale with skill and a disarming wit, much in keeping with the Austen source material. He makes scenes flow into the next with a glee that is most delightful, as it captures how much of an impact Emma’s plans have on everyone’s romances and decisions. Emma and HarrietHe also writes the script and delightfully covers the ways of old society and how Emma crucially misinterprets certain bits of information and runs with them, not realizing that something else was meant by the remark. With is direction and screenplay, McGrath makes Emma a class act from start to finish. The device of us hearing Emma’s innermost thoughts is a funny one too, especially when what she’s thinking goes opposite to her facial expressions. I must give a lot of credit to the cinematography of this movie as it contributes a playful and vivacious tone to the piece, much in the same way the eponymous character does in her own mischievous way. An elegant set design is beautifully rendered and compliments the absolutely stunning costumes worn by the characters, in particular the women involved in the story. And particularly of note and worthy of praise is the lush and romantic score from Rachel Portman, that won her a well-earned Oscar.

Embodying the title role with poise, personality and a convincing English accent is Gwyneth Paltrow, in one of her best performances. Showcasing Emma’s misguided belief that she is helping others when in fact a lot of what she does goes wrong, Paltrow finds humour within Emma as well as a core of naughtiness. Gwyneth Paltrow EmmaAlthough Emma is a meddler and schemer, she does it out of kindness and Paltrow is adept at showing how she wants the best intentions for others, but how even she can’t hold sway over the heart and isn’t as skilled at matchmaking as she likes to think. It’s a stunning performance from a radiant Gwyneth Paltrow. The actors and actresses that surround Paltrow are of excellent calibre and ability. The handsome Jeremy Northam excels portraying the smart and very observant Mr. Knightley, who knows what Emma’s up to and warns her of the repercussions. A gentle and sweet performance from Toni Collette as Emma’s friend Harriet is another great part that is well suited to the talents of the very versatile actress. Then we have Ewan McGregor; delightfully charming but slightly uncouth as Frank Churchill, who could be a romantic contender for Emma’s heart. Alan Cumming is rather funny as the local minister who becomes unwittingly part of Emma’s matchmaking and Polly Walker is lovely to behold as the rather shy Jane Fairfax. Snobbery and bitchy lines come courtesy of Julie Stevenson, who is a hoot as the opinionated and stuck up woman who becomes Mr. Elton’s wife and knows how to rub Emma up the wrong way from the get go. Greta Scacchi and Sophie Thompson in small roles are both very appealing in different ways and put real stamps on the characters.

Capturing the observant nature and muddled romantic couplings of Austen’s novel as a result of the title character, Emma emerges as a hugely entertaining and lively period comedy that is topped off with a winning performance from Gwyneth Paltrow.

Mona Lisa Smile

07 Wednesday Oct 2015

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 25 Comments

Tags

2000's, Dominic West, Ginnifer Goodwin, Julia Roberts, Julia Stiles, Juliet Stevenson, Kirsten Dunst, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Marcia Gay Harden, Mike Newell, Mona Lisa Smile, Period Drama

Film Title

Mona Lisa Smile

Director

Mike Newell

Starring

  • Julia Roberts as Katherine Watson
  • Kirsten Dunst as Betty Warren
  • Julia Stiles as Joan Brandwyn
  • Maggie Gyllenhaal as Giselle Levy
  • Ginnifer Goodwin as Connie Baker
  • Dominic West as Bill Dunbar
  • Marcia Gay Harden as Nancy Abbey
  • Juliet Stevenson as Amanda Armstrong

It may not offer much in the way of originality in the inspiring teacher style of films and is occasionally meandering ,but Mona Lisa Smile more than makes up for these flaws with its warm-hearted nature, stunning look and excellent work of the predominately female cast, headed by Julia Roberts.

It is the 1950’s and Katherine Watson is a free-thinking art history teacher hired by Wellesley college for young woman for a year. Mona Lisa Smile ActressesThe college is a rigidly formal one that is base on tradition, something which poses a problem for Katherine and her progressive ideas. The girls she teaches are clearly bright and have futures ahead of them, but they have all been brought up and taught that once they finish college and even while they are in it to find a husband and settle down as a housewife. The bohemian Katherine is annoyed by this as she sees clear potential within the young ladies of her class, such as Joan Brandwyn, who has a talent for law, bashful Connie Baker and the vampy Giselle Levy, who relates the most to the way Katherine thinks. And instead of just following the planned syllabus of her class that details she must follow, she goes against this by getting the girls to discuss the nature of art and what the merits of it are.Betty WarrenComing up against opposition, mainly from the opinionated and bitchy Betty Warren who has been spoon fed the idea of being a dutiful wife and being subservient, Katherine continues to instruct the girls of what they could do with their lives and how they could go on to better things than just marriage. Bucking the trend and going against the system, she slowly gains their admiration and respect.

As aforementioned, Mona Lisa Smile is not exactly a groundbreaking movie but neither is it trying to be. Mike Newell brings finesse to the film with his directing, that lets us glimpse a woman inspiring the girls around her to break free from the chains of tradition and see beyond the horizons. Mona Lisa Smile CastDespite the odd mawkish moment and the movie sometimes needed an injection of pace, Mona Lisa Smile remains an engaging film because of the characters and the way it pokes fun at the ridiculously rigid 1950’s and what a woman was expected to do. I liked how although Katherine wants the girls to open up to the idea of going against the norm, she doesn’t force it on them. Instead, through little steps and her lessons, she shows them that they are destined for greatness and not just to become what everyone else tells them they should be. The film to look at it stunning in a rose-tinted way that also serves the purpose of exposing the unhappiness behind the seemingly perfect lifestyles of being a married woman was like. Costume design and scenery is beautifully constructed and a marvel to see. A lilting score from Rachel Portman stunningly compliments the journey of the girls as their minds are opened to the possibility of change from the status quo.

Julia Roberts makes for a sympathetic and coltish lead portraying the inspiring Katherine. Katherine WatsonThe fact that Roberts is largely associated with contemporary movies stands her in good stead here as Katherine is supposed to be a character who stands out against the restrictions of the time. Roberts brings her charm and warmth to the part, along with the desire for change that makes for a great performance. Kirsten Dunst makes an impression as the bitchy but underneath it all blinkered Betty, who constantly berates those around her for trying to be different from what they’ve been told to do. As bitchy and spiteful as the character is, Dunst brings forth the sadness of Betty and how her delusions of a wonderful married life are proved wrong. Her scenes with Roberts are fantastic as the two schools of ideas clash. Julia Stiles has a luminosity that she equips Joan with that makes her relatable as she is caught in the middle ground of following her dreams and sticking to tradition. Giselle LevyMaggie Gyllenhaal gets all the best lines as the sexy and rebellious Giselle, who brazenly has affairs, drinks a lot and just doesn’t give a damn about it or what anyone thinks. Gyllenhaal has such a vibrancy about her in this film that is very endearing and mischievous. Ginnifer Goodwin is suitably sweet as the hopelessly romantic Connie, but Dominic West is hopelessly wasted as a potential love interest for Katherine that really doesn’t go anywhere. In supporting roles, Marcia Gay Harden as a buttoned-up elocution teacher and Juliet Stevenson as the disapproving college nurse give class to an already stellar cast.

So while it brings nothing new to the table as such, Mona Lisa Smile is still filled with enough talent and story to make you connect with it.

Drowning by Numbers

11 Saturday Jan 2014

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 22 Comments

Tags

1980's, Bernard Hill, Dark Comedy, Drama, Drowning by Numbers, Jason Edwards, Joan Plowright, Joely Richardson, Juliet Stevenson, Peter Greenaway

Film Title

Drowning by Numbers

Director

Peter Greenaway

Starring

  • Bernard Hill as Madgett
  • Joan Plowright as Cissie Colpitts I
  • Juliet Stevenson as Cissie Colpitts II
  • Joely Richardson as Cissie Colpitts III
  • Jason Edwards as Smut

Written and directed by Peter Greenaway, Drowning by Numbers is a baroque examination of sorority, murder and all things numerical laced with dark humour and morbid events. It won’t be for everyone’s taste, but as a black comedy drama with strange imagery and surreal repeating games, it is a sardonic and at times disturbing watch.

drowning by numbersIn a quiet and seemingly quaint Suffolk town by the seaside, strange events are occurring beneath the supposedly docile appearance. The film focuses on three generations of women who all share the name Cissie Colpitts. As the film progresses, each of the women successfully drown their philandering and useless spouses; the eldest Cissie drowns her husband in the bath, the second Cissie disposes of her spouse in the sea and the seductive youngest drowns her husband in the swimming pool. Their murderous tasks are covered up by the local coroner Madgett, who loves to play morbid games. Although he is promised a reward for his rulings on the suspicious deaths, the three women hold back and lead him on. Madgett’s teenage son Smut, is also obsessed with death and numerical games and his imagination is heightened after the sudden increase in drownings. Yet, soon the townsfolk grow suspicious of the supposed accidental deaths and believe that Madgett knows more than he is letting on. Strange, unsettling and embedded with a knife-edge humour, Drowning by Numbers emerges as an artistic rumination on morbidity, womanhood and sexuality.

As I mentioned earlier, Drowning by Numbers will not be for everyone but there are certain things that can’t help but be praised. The strikingly saturated hues of blue and red that cover Suffolk are exemplary and capture the various themes of aquatic death and underlying passion. A lot of the imagery is really hard to get out of your head. Greenaway clearly has fun placing numbers in the scenes in various ways, such as written, on clothing or sometimes something subliminal and repeating numerous phrases relating to them.  References to historical figure’s last words, morbid games played like ancient rites and a young girl reciting the names of stars in the night sky while skipping all add to the dark tone of the film and the skittish other side that often intertwine with one another to unnerving effect.

As the film continues, the audience is sucked into the twisted game and believe me it’s a strange but interesting experience that makes you sit up and take note. Greenaway depicts an iconoclastic England rarely depicted on cinema screens, cutting through the alleged respectability and manners with a mendacious glee to show a dark undercurrent akin to a really dark fairy tale at various points. Lurid images and the importance of sisterhood play a large part of the story, embodied excellently by the murdering trio at the heart of it. Michael Nyman’s unusual score perfectly compliments the dark humour that pervades Drowning by Numbers.

The cast inhabit their strange roles with charm and wit. Bernard Hill is suitably strange and slightly lecherous as the coroner cajoled into covering up the aquatic deaths but never getting his reward with any of the women. Joan Plowright, Juliet Stevenson and Joely Richardson make for a delightfully scheming and lethal sisterhood, filling the three Cissie’s with vivacity but also showing the hidden secrecy, unspoken camaraderie and manipulation that lies beneath their pretty exterior. Jason Edwards makes quite an impression as the unusual Smut, who collects bugs and is obsessed with anything related to death. Through his narration, we see the escalating morbid quality that his games begin to take on.

It may not be for everyone, but if you want an intelligent, strangely and darkly comic look at murder boasting unusual imagery, Drowning by Numbers may be what you are looking for.

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