Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
Written by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara
Cast: Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz, Nicholas Hoult, Joe Alwyn, Mark Gatiss, James Smith, Jenny Rainsford
Three years ago I’d never even heard of Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos, but ever since he transitioned to English-language films, I have been a fan of his work, starting with The Lobster, then The Killing of a Sacred Deer, and, now, The Favourite.
It’s a story of the same old story (power, money, sex), based (however loosely) on true events, but with Lanthimos’s signature dark humor and narrative drama. It inevitably draws comparisons to Barry Lyndon, which is fair, given that they’re both period pieces that take advantage of natural light, but they are distinct. For one thing, The Favourite isn’t nearly three-and-a-half hours long, and it’s much, much lower on the pretension scale; and, dare I say, as far as the acting goes, both individually and collectively, The Favourite takes that title by a mile.
Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, and Rachel Weisz are absolutely brilliant in a power dynamic worthy of any great gangster film (hence the above title), Nicholas Hoult threatens to steal every scene he’s in, and the rest of the cast from stem to stern is exactly what they need to be. However, the three great ladies are truly at the center, and what’s truly impressive is the range in both their characters (thanks to the screenplay) and how they bring it out in their performances; from light fun to deep sadness to cunning ruthlessness, it’s truly a tour de force of emotion.
If I have one complaint, and I’m not sure if this was an artistic choice or purely necessity based on location shooting, but some of the interior shots appear to have been done with a fisheye lens and the visual distortion took me out of what I was watching a little bit. This is admittedly a nitpick though, as the film is generally outstanding visually, particularly in the production design, costuming, etc.
On the whole, I fairly well thoroughly enjoyed The Favourite (truth be told I’ve already seen it twice) and it will no doubt go down as one of the best films of the year. Don’t take your kids to see it, but for a grown-up audience it’s quite the experience.
Rating: ★★★★☆