First Class Film POSSIBLE SPOILERS

Rating: 10/10 (11 November 2008)

Not having read Georgiana, the Duchess of Devonshire, I'm left wondering whether the obvious parallels with the story of Princess Diana were as pronounced in reality as they are in this film. Georgiana, splendidly acted by Keira Knightly, was herself a Spencer, like Diana -- and like Diana, she is married off to a high ranking personage, the Duke of Devonshire, played by the formidable Ralph Fiennes, who doesn't love her in the least and has only acquired her to produce a male heir. There is also a menage a trois -- inside the house -- involving a woman who initially wins Georgiana's heart and then betrays her with the Duke because that's the only way she can regain the children she lost to a husband less powerful than the Duke. And, of course, there's an illicit love affair between Georgiana and a rising Whig politician by whom she has a daughter that she must surrender to the father's family so as not to bring disgrace on the Duke or her own family. I guess I'll have to read the book to discover how much is true and how much is contrived.
I'm beginning to wonder whether Keira Knightly regrets having earned all that money in the Pirates of the Caribbean series. Why? Because it has caused many critics to overlook her very real skills as an actor. From the moment she came to widespread attention as a teenage soccer enthusiast in Bend It like Beckham, Knightly's talent, as well as her remarkable physical beauty, have been obvious. She proved it in Pride and Prejudice, again in Atonement and once more in The Duchess. I trust that she will begin receiving the credit she is due -- even if she did enjoy commercial success in several quite forgettable films.