Movie Review-The Libertine
I will give "The Libertine", with Johnny Depp, a conditional endorsement.
I enjoyed it, it presented a fairly good representation of the seedier side of the Restoration upper class world, and the costumes were pretty good.
My primary criticism would be that it seemed a bit pat and even melodramatic at times, and often had the feeling of a very modern sensibility.
However, John Malcovich was very good as Charles II and it is definitely worth seeing, if only to encourage Hollywood to make more historical costume movies.
Comments
Walter:
First and foremost: Congratulations on your new blog!! It's been needed for a while, I believe.
As for your comments/endorsement of "The Libertine", I yet have to see it, but I would like to add to your "...and often had the feeling of a very modern sensibility" my own comment: Very often movies do a greater job at costumes than at the actual sensibility of the times. I guess they want the audience to feel identified with the characters and they go too much into the modern attitude. Such was the case of "Age of Innocence". It was a great movie in every sense, but every time Michelle Pfiefer showed on screen I thought she was walking like a 1920's maddame in a bordello. (I guess she wanted to show how ahead of her time she was being a divorce and smoking?) Who knows. It just did not go at all with corset and train dress.
Thanks for the hard work.
Marie
Posted by: Marie Valero | March 11, 2006 04:53 PM
i've not seen libertine as yet, but i have noticed that many 'period' type movies are being made 'polically correct' which does spoil the period correctness of a film or story. thank you for the info.
Posted by: Karen | March 12, 2006 11:55 AM