I enjoyed seeing the characters in Byatt's novel brought to life, but there is no way to completely cover the depth of such a novel within the two hour limit imposed by modern movie making. Several characters were edited from the movie entirely, and although the main story remained intact and was portrayed beautifully, I felt the loss, as would anyone who had enjoyed the novel. However, as a stand-alone film, it does quite well. My husband, who did not read the novel probably enjoyed the movie more than I did. What I would like to see would be a mini-series, along the lines of the Colin Firth version of Pride and Prejudice, just to do justice to the complexity and beauty of Byatt's masterpiece.
I had seen this movie before as a rental. I did not know the actor Toby Stephens at the time and he happens to be in it. I did not realize that at the time. I had an idea which character he played but I still could not REALLY remember. That is not his fault. He was not the lead male and I was more focused on Gweneth Paltrow at the time. (Also, he doesn't look like Mr. Rochester in this film...something about the hair.) I have been looking for movies showing Toby's work as an actor so I decided to buy it because it is actually a really good intellectual film about some poets and, of course, their very personal lives. It bounces back and forth between the historical past and the present as the present day researchers uncover a mystery about some historical figures. I enjoy movies where people can actually speak the English language and this one has LOTS of English so get out your dictionaries.Read full review
Then this one is for you. I happen to love Period Flix and this one does not dissapoint in my opinion, I was never once interested in moving from my chair once the movie began... BEWARE this is also one of those that if you get up and come back a moment later you may miss something essential to the story. If you see my other reviews you'll see that I devour romance novels, well this movie was like watching one of those come to life. Jeremy Northam and the Jennifer Ehle are remarkable in their potrayal of the 2 Poets, their words were moving and whomever selected them for these roles did a outstanding job.. during the movie their voices are heard reading passages from their letters to one another.. Jennifer and Jeremy's voices sound so sincere and passionate it wraps you in to this story from GO. Gwyneth Paltrow and Aaron Eckhart were believable as the 2 present day people trying to piece together a mystery from the past. I loved this movie because the 2 stories were interwined so smoothly, their were no loose ends left untied and everything made sense in the end. I haven't read the book that this movie was made from but since seeing it I have been on the Auction sites looking for the original book. If you like your movies with a "twist" at the end I would also recommend {The Red Violin} it is another period flick with a incredible story that keeps you seated throughout. Respectfully ReviewedRead full review
It's a great story for lovers of literature. It's also a mystery. And a romance. I liked it.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
A lovely movie. One of my favorite.. A great addition to my movie Library.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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