'The Beguiled' Review: Sofia Coppola has mad skills!


🌟The Beguiled🌟Review🌟8/10🌟

Directed by Sofia Coppola

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, Colin Farrell and Elle Fanning

Sofia Coppola's 'The Beguiled' is, if im honest a great period piece, beautifully made, well-cast and well-acted. Gorgeously shot, it often looks more like a Turner painting than a film, and the use of sound (and silence) is impeccable.

It is well-paced, lean yet meditative, and is contained in a single setting that, along with a broader context of Civil-War-Virginia, is used to brilliant effect. The exposition is subtle, characters complex and intriguing, and their interactions captivating. There is little to fault this film for, both in conception and execution. Yet it is somehow also underwhelming.

Coppola constructs a contained, oppressive environment, populates it with dynamic, unpredictable women and then introduces a disruptive element. The explosion that happens is more of a splash than a bang, however. If any film could descend into madness and human depravity in its third act, supported by confident direction and remarkable actors, it is this one. Coppola, whether out of loyalty to the source material or not, opts for a quieter version that never allows the characters to erupt as they seem to be set up to do. I enjoyed it and definitely recommend it.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Paul Thomas Anderson Week: 'There Will Be Blood' Review!

Image
• There Will Be Blood, 2007 • 8.2/10 • Firstly, I would like to start with Daniel Day Lewis' mesmerizing performance as the ruthless oil prospector, Daniel Plainview. The scumbag cons local landowners into selling their valuable land for pittance, and then he comes along like a "straw" and "sucks it all up," leaving him very wealthy and everyone else in his way. Paul Dano, Wow, do you really expect anything less than magic when it comes to him acting, he's a true tour de force. I wish we had preachers like Eli Sunday up at my local church. Johnny Greenwood's score is brilliant, it really gets under your skin, you then combine that with the gorgeous cinematography, smart screenplay and the brilliant acting, you then have yourself a film where even if your not paying complete attention, you will still hate the lead by the end, all the same! Yeah, I did just say that. I'm sorry peeps but it got a little boring at times (it didn't keep me hook
Read more

'Tomb Raider' Review: First Successful Game Adaptation! Kudos!

Image
• Tomb Raider, 2018 • 7.9/10 • Alicia Vikander gives Lara depth and personality much like Harrison Ford's Indiana Jones. She's vulnerable, but she's also stubborn and focused to survive on her own and has never lost hope that she'll once again see her father. The story is built on the reboot of the video game series, but takes another way after the arrival at the destination where most of the action takes place. When the story follows the video game it has weaknesses (as so many games adaptations do), but when it stands on its own, it shows glimpses of coming adventures for Lara Croft that makes you want more -- much because of Vikanders grounded performance. The script is by no means perfect, the CGI was a bit spotty in places, and yes there are a few cliches and overused story devices here and there, but overall it is an enjoyable film and our first successful game adaptation! Yesss! P.S - Dominc West was the perfect choice for Mr. Croft!
Read more

'Love, Simon' Review: What A Nice Surprise!

Image
• Love, Simon • Spoiler-Free • 8.7/10 • Well, what a surprise.... Don't get me wrong, the story of 'Love, Simon' has pretty much all been done before, just not executed as well. Bar the classic stereotypes and some cheesy moments, this film had me laughing out loud and crying even louder! Tbh when you watch a film like this, you normally expect it to try to be, too clever, too cute and too precious, but boy I have never been so far off the mark. The intelligence, depth, and charm were all legitimate and sincere here and it truly made the film into something rather special. It's funny, sweet, caring, true, real, and should pretty much be labelled a "True Story" for all its worth. The acting on all accounts was second-to-none but Josh Duhamel had the biggest tear-jerking scene going! I was sobbing like a real man! And Nick Robinson was believable and nothing short of phenomenal! Kudos! If you can get past the cheese-factor, you will definetly Love,
Read more