Not exactly jump out of your seat exciting, but a perfectly well made slice of 1961 England and the pressures of being late adolescence. Carey Mulligan deserves awards for avoiding the pitfalls of hysteria and tedium, as our lead. It's shot unspectacularly but with grace, the finest scenes focussing on the quiet repressions of the family's mother and blowhard father.
Even our villain isn't cast as entirely reprehensible, which is a step forward, though we have to keep reminding ourselves of the quaint mores of the time to follow the logic of the character's excitements and decisions. And it would have been nice if the "fabulous" lifestyle Jennie falls into was rather more "fabulous" than brown hotel rooms and dog racing. Though I suppose that's part of the point.
So, not earth-shattering, but more than pleasant.
No comments:
Post a Comment