tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post1994010031775124526..comments2024-03-21T00:15:41.466-04:00Comments on Elizabeth Kerri Mahon: Scandalous Movie Review: The DuchessElizabeth Kerri Mahonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-24833075138371228012008-10-13T09:08:00.000-04:002008-10-13T09:08:00.000-04:00Thanks Heather! I just read your review and I agre...Thanks Heather! I just read your review and I agree completely, that there are two different Georgiana's, the movie version and the real one, and you don't get much of the real one in the movie. I see that you liked it a bit more than me. I think my expectations were just a bit too high given the level of talent in the film.Elizabeth Kerri Mahonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-21790203093303463442008-10-11T20:53:00.000-04:002008-10-11T20:53:00.000-04:00I finally read this, woo!I think you summed everyt...I finally read this, woo!<BR/><BR/>I think you summed everything up beautifully. I'm in the process of dividing my review into two because I was never good with abbreviated writing- such a bad blogger. Great review, Elizabeth!Heather Carrollhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03544318718074061879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-57103818204918665422008-10-02T15:25:00.000-04:002008-10-02T15:25:00.000-04:00I'm not a screenwriter, but you have to wonder som...I'm not a screenwriter, but you have to wonder sometimes at the choices they make when they adapt historical biographies. The historical record is always more fascinating. I would have loved to have seen more scenes of the toll not being able to bear a child took on her before she gave birth to her first two children. Still the costumes were pretty, and you get a taste of the grandeur and the emptiness of their lives, despite the status of being a Duke and Duchess.Elizabeth Kerri Mahonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-78465567482385996102008-10-02T13:03:00.000-04:002008-10-02T13:03:00.000-04:00Thanks, Elizabeth, it is as I thought. I think tha...Thanks, Elizabeth, it is as I thought. I think that in this case, sticking with the facts would have made for a more interesting film. A woman can be deeply unhappy in a marriage to a controlling husband without necessarily suffering from physical abuse.elena maria vidalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17129629173535139807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-91892375341590519992008-10-01T12:07:00.000-04:002008-10-01T12:07:00.000-04:00Thanks Eliza. When I decided to write the review,...Thanks Eliza. When I decided to write the review, I felt that since I knew so much about Georgiana, I needed to talk about the ways in which the filmmakers distort Georgiana's life. I do believe it is worth seeing if only for the costumes and the beautiful houses. <BR/><BR/>I'm always of two minds with films about historical personages, I'm glad that they are being made, but I get frustrated when they change things. Inevitably what they change it to is less dramatic then the truth.Elizabeth Kerri Mahonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-60293689937165760202008-10-01T10:41:00.000-04:002008-10-01T10:41:00.000-04:00What a shame! I had looked forward to seeing it. ...What a shame! I had looked forward to seeing it. I'll wait until it comes out on DVD.<BR/><BR/>On another note, this was the best movie review I've ever read! Not only did you share you view on the movie but you gave us a history lesson, which of course is my favortie part!<BR/><BR/>Cheers!Eliza Knighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17209596240914705136noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-48317200099323393262008-10-01T09:15:00.000-04:002008-10-01T09:15:00.000-04:00Elena, I just re-read Amanda Foreman's biography a...Elena, I just re-read Amanda Foreman's biography and there is nothing to suggest that the Duke was physically abusive to Georgiana. In the movie, that scene was supposed to demonstrate the Duke's control over Georgiana. It comes after she tries to get the Duke to force Bess to leave. That too was never mentioned in Amanda Foreman's book. By the time Bess came into their lives, Georgiana had given up any hope of the Duke loving her. Her only concern was giving him an heir at that point.<BR/><BR/>Catherine, while the movie has a great deal of problems, I'm hoping that viewers will be moved to seek out the biography after seeing it, so that they can learn the true story of Georgianna's life, and not just the superficial treatment Hollywood has given her.Elizabeth Kerri Mahonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-59108667556370449872008-09-30T21:05:00.000-04:002008-09-30T21:05:00.000-04:00It is a shame. Georgiana is spectacular character ...It is a shame. Georgiana is spectacular character and I weep when I think what a really great actress like Cate Blanchett or Kate Winslet could have done with the part.<BR/><BR/>Elizabeth, I understand that the Duke is shown raping Georgiana in the film. Was that in the book? I may have missed it. Have you ever read anything about such physical abuse really happening to her? If he did do that to her, it would explain some of her heavy drinking and other self-destructive behaviors.elena maria vidalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17129629173535139807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-52642744587640230532008-09-30T17:29:00.000-04:002008-09-30T17:29:00.000-04:00I do want to see this movie, and everything I hear...I do want to see this movie, and everything I hear about it sounds so dreary! And with a character like Georgiana, too. What a shame...Catherine Delorshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08737845394982542863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-32254345067112758392008-09-29T12:02:00.000-04:002008-09-29T12:02:00.000-04:00That was actually one of the biggest problems that...That was actually one of the biggest problems that I had with her performance. I wish that the director had suggested that she gain at least ten pounds to play the role, so that she filled out the costumes better. The standard of beauty in that age was not skinny minnies, and Georgiana from her portraits was definitely not a twig.Elizabeth Kerri Mahonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-26232007278834149512008-09-29T09:46:00.000-04:002008-09-29T09:46:00.000-04:00Great review, by someone familiar with the story o...Great review, by someone familiar with the story of the real Georgiana. Yes, from the book I had the impression that Georgiana wanted Bess to stay around, no matter what.<BR/><BR/> Elizabeth, I am so glad you mentioned Kate Winslet since she is the one whom I pictured in the role, having more of a range than Keira Knightley. Keira is just too thin for any eighteenth century role.elena maria vidalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17129629173535139807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-34254147558421950972008-09-29T08:37:00.000-04:002008-09-29T08:37:00.000-04:00I really like Keira Knightley too, however I feel ...I really like Keira Knightley too, however I feel she's still too young to do justice to a role like this. She just doesn't have the life experience to portray a woman like Georgiana yet. She manages to capture the innocence of Georgiana in the beginning, and the spirit but she's no match for Ralph Fiennes.<BR/><BR/>La Belle Americaine, I enjoyed The Illusionist too, although it was kind of crap history as well. I'm glad that I went to see the film, even though I was disappointed in the end. I just felt after the seven hours that HBO invested in John Adams, at least 4 could have been devoted to Georgiana by the BBC or ITV, instead of remaking Tess of the D'Urbervilles or Oliver Twist for the 18th time.Elizabeth Kerri Mahonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-6595823805560693842008-09-27T21:07:00.000-04:002008-09-27T21:07:00.000-04:00I was debating going to see this movie, but I stil...I was debating going to see this movie, but I still have the book Georgiana sitting in my bookcase and have yet to read it. I think I will read the book first. I hate when hollywood mucks up the facts.<BR/><BR/>I am a big fan of Keira Knightley too so I am looking forward to seeing her performance...even if the movie is a bit dull.Bearded Ladyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06182921236123895352noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-36213343494787265262008-09-27T19:51:00.000-04:002008-09-27T19:51:00.000-04:00I won't read your review except for the first para...I won't read your review except for the first paragraph and last grade because I'm trying so so hard to go in neutrally. But I am favoring it cos I am <I>dying</I> to read it :)<BR/><BR/>It's really unfair that the rest of america gets it Oct 9, grrr.Heather Carrollhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03544318718074061879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7468836798747722663.post-28559690980848516282008-09-27T16:08:00.000-04:002008-09-27T16:08:00.000-04:00I wish they had made a miniseries. In fact, I feel...I wish they had made a miniseries. In fact, I feel most historical movies--whether biographies or period fiction--should be miniseries only, as a two hour film is rarely enough to tell the whole story and capture its nuances. The only historical movies that have worked for me have been contemporary-written works, such as <I>The Illusionist</I>(though the reign of Franz Josef II was rather vague) or <I>The Prestige</I>. I feel even Merchant-Ivory hasn't been able to successfully captured everything in their films.<BR/><BR/>I do want to see this, as I am a fan of Keira Knightley, and I want to at least show there is an audience for historical films. However, Hollywood is going to run the sub-genre into the ground with its attempts to dumb down history and its people to attract larger (and more often, younger) audiences.Evangeline Hollandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00132593133675388609noreply@blogger.com