Thursday, May 10, 2007
Lady Chatterley
Knowing that this D.H. Lawrence story has been filmed in many versions, most of them very erotic and others like pornography, I was dubious if I should watch it or not; but with all the awards it has won I decided to give it a try and find the reason why for so many awards.
The movie starts very slowly showing the tedious and lonely life of Constance (Marina Hands) and while watching these scenes before she meets the gamekeeper I noticed I was enjoying very much the countryside scenery, the cinematography and the pace of the movie. So much that my mind stopped to think and concluded that this is definitively no Lady Chatterley Lover, this is beautiful!
Little did I knew that I was watching the most splendid love story I have seen in recent times… and is based on one of the most erotic stories of all times!! Love and eroticism does not match, isn’t?
Well, there is one director Pascale Ferran that found the way to do the most marvelous adaptation of a classic story and make it all about discovering love, discovering life and discovering romance. This is an excellent adaptation of tale that probably was meant to be told like this. Ferran also co-wrote the screenplay with Roger Bohbot.
Actually I found that there are three versions of this tale all done by D.H. Lawrence and this movie is based on the second version. Here the gamekeeper is called Oliver Parkin –brilliantly performed by Jean-Lois Coullo’ch- and this version is much more about tenderness and compassion than in the once-scandalous novel that I read a long time ago.
This is a lengthy movie with 168 minutes but you hardly will feel them and time will fly away watching this frankly sensual but never vulgar romance.
I am thinking if men would like this movie, I know French critics loved it and are all praises for Ferrin, same with male viewers; but, I wonder if men elsewhere will be moved by this adaptation… hmm, maybe not. Women will just LOVE this movie, as is romance at its best.
No comments yet