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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready....
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Since 1996 |
Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready....
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Easy
Virtue
Stars: Jessica Biel, Ben Barns, Colin Firth, Kristin Scott Thomas and Kris Marshall Director: Stephen Elliott Scriptwriters: Stephen Elliott and Sheridan Jobbins Composer: Marius De Vries Cinematography: Martin Kenzie Ealing Studios Rating: PG 13 for language and sexual situations Running Length: 100 minutes “Easy Virtue,” a term of the 1920’s referring to a woman who had a mind of her own, aptly fit’s the main character here. Jessica Biel, in a lightweight performance, plays an American woman in England. She is a widow and now newly married to a younger man of some wealth. The premise is meeting his parents for the first time. Easy Virtue is beautifully photographed by Martin Kenzie and has a memorable soundtrack by Marius De Vries. Ben Barnes is the happy groom and doesn’t anticipate problems with Jessica meeting the family. Has he looked around him lately? Mom (a brilliant Kristin Scott Thomas) rules with the flick of an eyebrow and Dad (Colin Firth who steals the film) stays buried in his newspaper or puttering in a garage. Ben’s younger sisters are copies of their mother, so when Jessica appears driving a racing car and a hankering for cigarettes (Mom hates that), the sparks fly instantly. Most everyone is on Jessica’s side, including the household staff and the butler (Kris Marshall) who doesn’t let anything faze him, even small pets. We have the usual fox hunt, and see how Jessica, the animal lover, gets around this, a formal party, embarrsing moments including a small dog and the digging around for information. Ah, yes, this family may be pure cream on the top, but sour underneath. All this against a slowly decaying mansion that symbolizes the decline of aristocracy in England. It takes money to keep up pretenses and what to do when the money is gone? Acting is so well done and timing is everything. In the light-hearted moments, Jessica Biel fits in with the rest of the cast, but when there are serious moments, she falters. Scott Thomas doesn’t miss a beat with stern look and snapping body. Ben Barnes plays the carefree boy quite well, and is satisfied with his decision to marry. It is the presense of Dad (Colin Firth) who is sort of a Greek chorus here. The camera goes back to him when situations happen and he always has just the right remark for the occasion, though no one hears him. One begins to wonder how he and Scott Thomas got together in the first place. There are secrets and secrets and one by one, the layers are peeled off until human beings appear and not just stiff-upper-lip facades. Easy Virtue plays well though this is not really a film for Biel. She doesn’t pull off the dramatic scenes well, though her tango with Colin Firth definitely sizzles. This well may be a memorable dance scene for cinema fans. Copyright 2009 Marie Asner
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