One of the things I'm doing to pass the time is watch movies that I'm getting from Netflix. I've had a Netflix account off and on for several years. I've learned that I really don't have much time during the school year for movies because I spend my precious-little viewing time on TV shows that I've recorded on the DVR.
In anticipation of my extended down-time this summer, I restarted Netflix at the beginning of June. The first movie I watched was The Dutchess, staring Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes (2008). Here is the short summary of the plot from IMDB: "A chronicle of the life of 18th century aristocrat Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, who was reviled for her extravagant political and personal life."
This is supposedly based on real people and real events. Based on my viewing of the movie, I don't think it has much to do with her extravagant political life, although that is mentioned. I found the story to be more about her relationship with her husband, the Duke of Devonshire. The Duke married Georgiana Spencer in 1774 with one goal in mind: to have a male heir. How unusual for an 18th century story, you say! She married him, naively believing that he loved her and that he would be good to her. She quickly learned that he was having sex with other women, including servants in their household, and she was shocked and hurt by this. At some point, Georgiana brings home a female friend for an extended visit, and the Duke proceeds to seduce her as well.
Georgiana also falls in love with another man, and a big part of the movie is how she navigates that relationship and tries to negotiate a relationship with him with the permission of the Duke. The relationship dynamics between the Duke and Duchess are the basis of the movie. I am not going to give away any more of the plot.
I did enjoy the movie. I thought it was well-written and very well-acted. On some levels it would probably be considered a chick-flick. There really isn't any action, adventure, suspense. The scenery and costuming are fabulous eye-candy. I would recommend this movie to anyone who likes period movies and enjoys analyzing relationship conflict.
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The second movie I watched was also a period piece. The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio, starring Julianne Moore and Woody Harrelson (2005).
Julianne and Woody play Evelyn and Kelly Ryan of Defiance, Ohio. At first, they appear to be a very normal middle class family with 10 kids. In this movie, the period is the 1950s and early 60s, and to me, that was the charm of the movie. The period aspect of this movie is amazingly well-done.
The main focus of the story is that Evelyn keeps the family going by winning many jingle-writing competitions. She wins money, appliances, trips, cars, food. Woody is a bit of a loser whose jealousy over his wife's successes drives him to drink. It creates a vicious cycle. The more she wins, the more he spends on alcohol and the more she needs to win to help support the family.
This is a true story that was written by one of the 10 kids: Terry Ryan. I really enjoyed this movie. There is more complexity to it than seems to be the case at the outset because of the dynamics of the relationship between the 2 main characters. "Father" is abusive when he drinks too much, which is often. "Mother" seldom stands up to him directly, but she finds other ways to deal with the issues his behaviors create.
I really enjoyed this movie and highly recommend it. It's not an action/thriller, but it does have the relationship complexity going for it. Also, the "period" aspect is charming and fun.
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