sumptuous visual feast

Rating: 8/10 (18 October 2008)

"The Duchess" tells the tale of the beautiful young Georgiana Spencer (Knightley) who, in the late 18th century, is married to the much older Duke of Devonshire (Fiennes) and attains wealth, status, and prestige, all at the price of being condemned to a loveless marriage. It's familiar ground: the duke is the typically phlegmatic English nobleman, unable to express or perhaps even experience emotions, while his wife is in every way his superior: in intellect, courage, self-reliance, devotion to children, etc.
Most of the story revolves around the inequality between men's and women's lives: the former openly flaunting their mistresses while the latter are forbidden such dalliances. Men don't come off very well in this movie: they beat their wives, threaten them with separation from their children, and treat their girls with utter indifference while a boy is the ultimate prize.
While the plot is not altogether scintillating, the acting more than makes up for it. Knightley is at her best, able to convey all the emotions the role requires. But the star of this movie is Fiennes, who in spite of playing a truly unlikeable character, manages to keep him from being utterly detestable. At the end, his humanity finally breaks through just a little bit, and one wishes the script would have allowed a few more glimmers at earlier points in the movie as well.
But even if one were to magically delete all dialogue from the film, and just watch it on the big screen with the soundtrack, it would be well worth it. The constant parade of fashions, primarily women's but also men's, is like a documentary of late 18th century clothing. Each scene seems to outdo the other. It's like walking through a museum full of Gainsborough and Reynolds portraits, and seeing each one come to life; wonderful! The stately mansions, the magnificent teams of horses, the sweeping vistas of gardens and sheep on the pastures, it's all England at its very finest. The soundtrack was beautiful, lush and romantic and very apropos. I particularly liked the inclusion of much period music which was intelligently (though not always accurately) paired with the era. Was Bach played in England in 1775? I rather doubt it, but still it fit nicely and sounded gorgeous.
Do see this on the big screen; don't wait for the DVD.