Those of you who have read the 1847 novel by William Makepeace Thackeray will be able to easily point out the flaws in this adaptation but one thing that cannot be argued is the overall look of this film that is one of the best in recent memories. Story is about a young woman named Becky Sharp (Reese Witherspoon) who has just left Finishing School with her best friend Amelia Sedley (Romola Garai) and they head off to try and make the best of their lives by somehow getting into the British aristocracy. Becky becomes a Governess for Sir Pitt Crawley (Bob Hoskins) and while there she impresses Pitt's rich sister Matilde (Eileen Atkins) who takes her under her wing in London. Becky ends up disappointing everyone by marrying Matilde's nephew Rawdon Crawley (James Purefoy) who's a soldier and a gambler.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****
Becky meets Lord Steyne (Gabriel Byrne) who is an admirer of her artist father and he ends up helping her and Rawdon financially but he has his eyes on her romantically that eventually ruins her marriage. Becky's reputation gets worse over the years as she loses contact with her son and even her friendship with Amelia becomes strained but she continues on even though she's forced to work in seedy casino's in Germany.
This film is directed by the great Mira Nair who at first thought seems an unlikely choice to direct this period piece on early 1800's England but being from India she understands the importance of family connections for marriage and marrying certain types so that the entire family will be better off. Nair's attention to detail is also very evident as she hired the best cinematographer and set designer to make sure her film had an authentic look to it which it does. The performances are also very good from a scene stealing Eileen Atkins to Witherspoon who reminds us why she's one of our biggest stars. She displays a credible English accent and more than holds her own when appearing with some very accomplished actors and I do hope she continues to strive for roles such as this. While impressive looking this still is a film that has flaws and one can't help but feel coldness for the majority of the characters and the overall pace of the film plods from one scene of debauchery to another. It's a difficult film to get involved with emotionally although it's clearly not boring with the scenic locations and good characterizations. The script tries very hard to fit in a lot of different events and this hurts the film but with the impressive set designs and costumes along with some solid performances this is still a film that is worthy of a viewing.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****
Becky meets Lord Steyne (Gabriel Byrne) who is an admirer of her artist father and he ends up helping her and Rawdon financially but he has his eyes on her romantically that eventually ruins her marriage. Becky's reputation gets worse over the years as she loses contact with her son and even her friendship with Amelia becomes strained but she continues on even though she's forced to work in seedy casino's in Germany.
This film is directed by the great Mira Nair who at first thought seems an unlikely choice to direct this period piece on early 1800's England but being from India she understands the importance of family connections for marriage and marrying certain types so that the entire family will be better off. Nair's attention to detail is also very evident as she hired the best cinematographer and set designer to make sure her film had an authentic look to it which it does. The performances are also very good from a scene stealing Eileen Atkins to Witherspoon who reminds us why she's one of our biggest stars. She displays a credible English accent and more than holds her own when appearing with some very accomplished actors and I do hope she continues to strive for roles such as this. While impressive looking this still is a film that has flaws and one can't help but feel coldness for the majority of the characters and the overall pace of the film plods from one scene of debauchery to another. It's a difficult film to get involved with emotionally although it's clearly not boring with the scenic locations and good characterizations. The script tries very hard to fit in a lot of different events and this hurts the film but with the impressive set designs and costumes along with some solid performances this is still a film that is worthy of a viewing.