Looking up the hill tonight
When you have closed your eyes
I wish I didn't have to make all those mistakes and be wise
Please try to be patient and know that I'm still learning
I'm sorry that you have to see the strength inside me burning

"THE DUCHESS" (2008 )

- "This will be the mistake of your life"

- "No, I made that many years ago"

Recently, as I am now finished up at work and am packing up my house in preparation to move on Saturday, I went to see the new Keira Knightley film, "The Duchess". It's just been released in Oz, and I hadn't heard a whole lot about it, other than that they are already talking potential Oscar nominations for Keira and Ralph Fiennes. While I enjoyed the film, I wasn't overly moved.

As a portrait of the life and triumphs of the Duchess of Yorkshire, to me it didn't delve deep enough into the person that Georgiana was. Other than wear some simply incredible costumes and wigs, and show us her 'wronged-but-stolid-in-my-duty' face, I didn't feel like we got to see the things that made the Duchess tick. Clearly her liberal views, including the peoples' right to freedom and the vote, were important to her, which is quite ironic considering the life of virtual imprisonment she ended up living, but I think they could have been more of a focus. Also, given that we only see a snippet of her life, very little extended development as a person over time is shown, which seems to me to be a waste of Keira's talent. The shy Georgiana went from an enthusiastic but lonely young bride, to a woman loved by all, and to a hardened and incredibly strong-willed woman and mother, prepared to protect her children and do her duty at all costs. But the movie just presents it all a little blandly, which is a real shame.

None of Georgiana's relationships, either with her husband, Duke William, her lover, Charles Gray, or her best friend, Lady Elisabeth, were really delved into in any great detail. While Ralph Fiennes performance was good, it would have been interesting to see more of what their personal relationship was actually like: why did this man find his own wife so unappealing, other than that she seemed unable to produce an heir? The aggression he has towards her must have come from somewhere. Similarly, Georgiana was betrayed by her best friend, and yet why did Bess throw away their friendship and choose the bizarre life of living as a mistress in the home of her lover and his wife? The fact that she ended up marrying the Duke proves that it was more than just for her children's sake.

Keira Knightley is really starting to establish herself as one of 'the' actresses of the moment. She is very good in this film, handling the role with a lot of dignity and quiet composure. I look forward to seeing her extend herself even further in some more diversified roles in the future.

Ralph Fiennes doesn't do anything for me. I've seen him in quite a few films now and I really just find him creepy. He has a very unusual presence, but it is more on the sleazy side, rather than sexy or appealing. He is very good in this restrained role as the emotionally inept but highly aggressive Duke, but I still can't say that I like him.

Hayley Atwell is really growing on me. I recently saw her in the small-ish film "How About You", and while the film was quite clichéd, she gave a good performance. She's also in the new film "Brideshead Revisited" which is a remake being released in Oz later in the year. I feel like she was quite underused in "The Duchess", but as an actress she just seems to be finding her feet, so she's got plenty of interesting roles ahead of her.

Overall, this one is not going to shake your world, but it is well shot and directed, and has a nice feel to it, if a little weakly presented. The performances are all solid, and the story is quite interesting, if a little disappointing in its overall content. It will be interesting to see what its competition proves to be for Oscar nominations, the what sort of reviews it continues to get around the place.

For now... That's all she wrote.

LLa xxx

Lookin' at you leaving...
I'm looking for a sign.