arup’s blog

Another movie I watched on dvd on new years day. But this time in the evening after my first trip to the ballet!

A period drama set in the late seventeenth century with Johnny Depp as the Earl of Rochester. He is debauched and vulgar but at the same time a very deliberate fellow. He spends his time in brothels, bars and in the company of his writer friends. Being a writer and literary man himself, he is commissioned by Charles II, played by John Malkovich to produce a play to impress the French ambassdor. But it’s a pornographic piece that shames and humiliates the king. In the meantime he trains a new actress and falls in love with her.

The film starts off very slowly and seems to be a costume drama for the sake of being a costume drama. But it is when he encounters Elizabeth Barry that the film really kicks off. There is a chemistry between them and you can feel it. It’s as though they are alive to be with each other. His wife, played by Rosamund Pike, who seems only to do period dramas is actually not too bad and maintains a sense of balance. But only just. John Malkovich is poor as the king, apart from his eye movements, which are priceless.

Worth a look just for a more gritty and realistic period piece rather than those sugary Merchant Ivory things. And Johnny Depp is in good form rather than cashing in and wasting his time in things like Pirates of the Caribbean.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 1st, 2007 at 9:25 pm and is filed under reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.