The fourth film adaptation of author Thomas Hardy's classic 1874 book, of the same name. This one was directed by Thomas Vinterberg and it was written by David Nicholls. The film stars Carey Mulligan, Matthias Schoenaerts, Michael Sheen, Tom Sturridge and Juno Temple. It tells the story of an independent woman, living in Victorian England, that juggles romantic relationships with three different men. I think it's a well made film, but it's also (somewhat) emotionally shallow.
Bathsheba Everdene is an independent farm owner, living in Victorian England. She first attracts the attention of a sheep farmer, Gabriel Oak (Schoenaerts), who proposes to her, before she inherits her farm. Although Bathsheba likes Gabriel, she doesn't wan't a husband, so she turns him down; breaking his heart. After Bathsheba inherits her land, and Gabriel's life takes a turn for the worse, she employs him at her farm. She later attracts the interest of two more suitors; a wealthy, but older, bachelor, named William Boldwood (Sheen), and a military Sergeant, named Frank Troy (Sturridge).
I really enjoyed watching this film and I already want to see it all over again. It was everything the trailer promised it would be - a beautiful and sumptuous adaption of Hardy's story, with characters you grow to care a lot about and root for, a storyline which keeps your attention and surprises you throughout and a definite feeling of satisfaction at the end. It is very well made and acted and is already a classic for me.
The film is beautifully shot, and it starts out engaging; with two pretty likable characters (Bathsheba and Gabriel). I like how empowering and strong Bathsheba is, at the beginning of the film, which is why I was very disappointed with the direction the movie takes her character; when she falls for Sergeant Troy. I haven't read the book, or seen the other movies, so I had no idea where the story was going. It just kept getting more dismal and depressing (and most of the characters are unlikable, with a few exceptions). I definitely was no longer rooting for Bathsheba by the end of the film; and I feel like the whole story is a little pointless. It is well made, and well acted though.
Overall, the story is quite a simple one, a mixture of a love story, coming of age drama and the heroines fight to find her place in a very male dominated world. The film and the heroine Bathsheba do feel very modern and though it's set in the late 19th century, the story definitely resonates to today's society. This gives the film a lovely timeless feel to it and draws you in. Bathsheba is a very humanised heroine, independent and headstrong, clever and confident, but with weaknesses and vices and she does make a lot of understandable mistakes. Yet for all it's predictability in places, there are a lot of elements within this story that definitely take you by surprise. It's a film more about the journey and the choices and mistakes made along the way than the destination.
However, it did feel slightly rushed I think it could have been even better if the filmmakers had added about 30 more minutes into the film in order to allow for some important backstories to develop more fully, and to allow for some better character development. There were some key scenes from the book that I felt helped define certain characters that were missing from the film. The film is still great but I think audiences would have felt more for and against certain characters if these scenes had been included.
85%·Rotten Tomatoes
7.2/10·IMDb
71%·Metacritic
8/10 - Verdict
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