Posts Tagged Carey Mulligan

Saltburn: A Wickedly Funny Thriller Exposing British Upper Class Cruelty

February 18, 2024 at 3:27 am · Filed under Film & DVD Reviews, LGBT+interest ·Tagged , , , , , , ,

396 words, 2 minutes read time.

Saltburn is a wickedly funny thriller that exposes the casual, shallow cruelty of the British upper class. The film, directed by Emerald Fennell, follows Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan), a poor Oxford student who becomes fascinated by Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi), a charming and wealthy aristocrat. Oliver worms his way into Felix’s world of privilege and excess, and soon discovers a web of lies, lust, and murder.

The film is a contemporary twist on The Talented Mr Ripley, with nods to Brideshead Revisited and The Great Gatsby. Fennell sets the film in the mid-2000s, a time of economic prosperity and social transformation, to highlight the contrast between the rich and the poor. She also mocks the pretentiousness and hypocrisy of the elite, who enjoy a life of drugs, sex, and violence, while pretending to be respectable and moral.

The film is visually stunning, with extravagant costumes, locations, and cinematography. The soundtrack, featuring pop hits from the 2000s, adds to the nostalgic and ironic tone of the film. The performances are superb, especially Keoghan, who plays Oliver as a complex and captivating anti-hero, and Rosamund Pike, who steals every scene as Felix’s glamorous and ruthless mother, Elspeth.

Saltburn is not a subtle or nuanced film, but rather a bold and daring one. It is full of shocking twists, dark humor, and social commentary. It may not appeal to everyone, but it is certainly a memorable and entertaining ride. Saltburn is a film that reveals the ugly truth of the British class system, and challenges us to question our own values and identities.

One of the most striking aspects of the film is its sexual nature. The film does not shy away from depicting the erotic and violent encounters between Oliver and Felix, as well as other characters. The film explores the themes of desire, jealousy, betrayal, and identity through the lens of sexuality. The film also shows how sex is used as a weapon, a tool, and a currency by the characters, who manipulate, seduce, and exploit each other for their own gain. The film does not moralize or judge the characters’ sexual choices, but rather exposes the consequences and complexities of their actions. Saltburn is a film that pushes the boundaries of sexual representation, and invites us to reflect on our own fantasies and realities.

Reviewed by Pat Harrington

Picture credit: By IMP Awards, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=74710333

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Film Review: Suffragette (2015)

October 27, 2015 at 7:31 am · Filed under Film & DVD Reviews ·Tagged , , , ,

Director: Sarah Gavron
Running time: 1h 46m
Written by: Abi Morgan
Stars: Carey Mulligan, Anne-Marie Duff, Helena Bonham Carter

“I would rather be a rebel than a slave”. This line, the rallying cry of the elusive suffragette leader Emmiline Pankhurst (Meryl Streep), has been the cause of a storm of controversy in the twitterverse about the ‘tone deaf’ and implicitly ‘racist’ nature of Sarah Gavron’s film, Suffragette. Streep has been criticised for wearing a t-shirt with this quotation in interviews publicising the movie and her cameo role in it. Some feminist groups have picketed showings of the movie for failing to conform to their own narrow agenda, for its lack of diversity, etc, etc.

That’s a shame, because this is a fine movie which gives some insight into how women – especially poor working-class women – were treated just a century ago and why some of them chose to follow a militant path to achieve votes for women. Carey Mulligan gives a fine performance as Maud, a poor working mother who slaves away for long hours in a laundry for a pittance. One evening, delivering a parcel to a customer, she come across a group of suffragettes breaking windows as part of their campaign of direct action to win votes for women. Soon she gets drawn into the movement, rejecting the attempts of Scotland Yard to recruit her as an informer, and ends up in prison where she undergoes the indignity of force-feeding.

The wonderful Helena Bonham Carter never disappoints in her role as the local suffragette leader. She recruits new members, encourages and supports them and provides safe houses to those – like Maud – who are thrown out of their homes by their outraged husbands who find they can no longer control their wives.

Streep’s role is fleeting, but her character dominates the film as the hidden inspiration for these brave women. Brendan Gleason also excels as a Liverpool Irish policeman who had made his name combatting Fenian outrages a few years before. A copper with a conscience, he finds it hard to approve of how his colleagues treat these troublesome women.

I have no idea how historically accurate Gavron’s film is in its details but it’s a cracking story! Today’s women may not always appreciate it but they owe their status today – imperfect as it may be – to women like Maud and Emily Wilding Davison (played by Natalie Press), the young women who died under the hooves of the King’s horse at the Derby. Don’t miss this one!

Reviewed by David Kerr

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