A warm and friendly movie, with Kate Winslet as landscape designer Sabine de Barre on top form. She just seems to get better. The only nasty part was when her new garden in Versailles gets sabotaged. Director Alan Rickman (who also plays the King) brings in a colourful and well told story despite the flimsy plot. And his scene with just Winslet is joyously outstanding. The sets, locations, photography, dialogue and costumes are all marvellous. Why were most of the critics so disparaging? Probably because it was so conventional and had no punch. But they couldn't really say why. They and I loved the cameos from Stanley Tucci and Helen McCrory. Maybe it's my age, but I loved it.
I can hardly remember John Schlesinger's 1967 movie with Julie Christie but here is another good British movie. This time the Thomas Hardy novel has been adapted by director Thomas Vinterberg and screenwriter David Nichols. Their condensation of the novel works as it never fails to be gripping. Of course they are lucky having Carey Mulligan as Bathsheba Everdene ( just why did The Hunger Games have to pinch her surname and then vandalise it ) who gives a convincing yet modern performance. Although it does show up the pretty ordinary acting from Matthias Schoenaerts (replicating that in A Little Chaos) and Tom Sturidge. Fortunately we have Martin Sheen. I thought he would be completely wrong in the role of Boldwood but he was brilliant. He provides a sense of pain and vulnerability in a subtle and restrained piece of acting, deserving at least of an Oscar nomination. The few action scenes are well filmed and the dialogue again has a modern feel. And then there are Mulligan's dresses. They almost steal the film on their own.
Somehow it was good to see an American film after two British melodramas, even if it had the biggest and most laughable co-incidence in movie history. A fantasy romantic drama featuring two obviously cheap leads, probably all it deserved. But suddenly over half way, there he was, Harrison Ford as we have never seen before. The well heeled (obviously) father of Adaline's boyfriend, and seeming to have appeared from another movie being shot on the the same set. The implausible story was helped by a decent script, beautiful photography (again) and locations. It was just about worth seeing.
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