The Duchess (film)

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The Duchess
Duchess poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Saul Dibb
Produced by Gabrielle Tana
Michael Kuhn
Screenplay by Jeffrey Hatcher
Anders Thomas Jensen
Saul Dibb
Based on Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire 
by Amanda Foreman
Starring Keira Knightley
Ralph Fiennes
Hayley Atwell
Charlotte Rampling
Dominic Cooper
Music by Rachel Portman
Cinematography Gyula Pados
Editing by Masahiro Hirakubo
Distributed by Paramount Vantage
BBC Films
Pathé
Qwerty Films
Release date(s)
  • 5 September 2008 (2008-09-05)
Running time 110 min.
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Budget £13,5 million
$25,2 million
€17,1 million[1]
Box office $43,306,325

The Duchess is a 2008 British drama film directed by Saul Dibb. It is based on Amanda Foreman's biography of the 18th-century English aristocrat Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire. It was released in September 2008 in the UK.

Contents

Plot [edit]

Set in the late 18th century, the story follows the life of Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire. While her beauty and fashion made her famous, extravagance and gambling made her infamous. She was married to the cold and much older William Cavendish, the 5th Duke of Devonshire. Despite the Duke's blatant infidelities, Georgiana thrived to become a fashion icon, a doting mother, a shrewd political operator, and darling of the common people. In befriending Lady Bess Foster, who becomes her best friend, Georgiana realizes she has made a big mistake when Bess and The Duke begin an affair. Despite Georgiana's anger, the Duke wants Bess to remain living with them. Bess later explains to Georgiana that the reason she had sexual intercourse with the Duke was so that she could get her children back. The Duke only wanted a male heir, which the Duchess had not yet provided. But the implication is that Bess could, already having three sons, which the Duke became very close to, and thought of them as his own.

In response to the betrayal she experienced at home, Georgiana allows herself to develop feelings for Charles Grey. However, when she asks the Duke permission to have him as a lover, the Duke is enraged and rapes Georgiana. The rape leads to a pregnancy and a male heir, William Cavendish, is born. After producing a male heir, Georgiana (with the help of Bess) begins a physical love affair with Charles Grey, which leads to another pregnancy. The Duke threatens to not only end Charles' political career but also to forbid Georgiana from seeing her children again if she does not end the affair. For the sake of her children, Georgiana reluctantly ends the affair. She is sent to the countryside where she secretly gives birth to her and Charles' daughter, Eliza Courtney. She is forced to give her over to the fathers family, the Greys.

For most of her married life, Georgiana, the Duke, and Bess lived together. However, after the birth of Eliza, Lady Georgiana no longer seems to be bothered by the arrangement and she once again finds comfort in Bess' friendship. Towards the end of her life, the Duchess gave her blessing to the marriage of her husband and her best friend who got married after Georgiana's death.

Georgiana frequently visited her daughter Eliza in secret, who was raised by the parents of Charles Grey. Eliza named her own daughter Georgiana. In the end, Charles became Prime Minister.

At the end of the movie it is strongly suggested that in consistently choosing the lesser of two evils in a situation she could not escape, Georgiana was able to rise above her circumstances to do the right thing for a higher cause. Case in point, her children grew up with a mother, even the daughter she abandoned knew that she loved her. Charles also became Prime Minister, leading the country in the direction that Georgiana believed in.

[icon] This section requires expansion. (April 2013)

Cast [edit]

Production [edit]

The Duchess is financed by BBC Films and Pathé.[2] The Duchess was filmed at Twickenham Film Studios and on location at Chatsworth, Bath, Holkham Hall, Clandon Park, Kedleston Hall, Somerset House and the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich.

Regarding lead actress Keira Knightley, director Saul Dibb said The Duchess was "a chance to take a character from late childhood – she's married at 17 – into full adulthood, 10 years later."[3] It was also a chance for Knightley to work with Ralph Fiennes, whom she regarded as one of her most accomplished co-stars to date; Dibb said, "When I said, 'We've got Ralph interested in playing the Duke', we both took a gulp and went, 'F---.' [sic] ... But I didn't for one second feel that she wasn't up to the task."[3] Originally the film was to be directed by Susanne Bier.[4]

Release [edit]

Marketing [edit]

The film advertisements which featured Diana, Princess of Wales caused the film to be branded "crudely promoted"

Studio executives wanted to use digitally-altered images of Keira Knightley in promotional materials. The alterations were specifically aimed at enlarging her breasts. Knightley objected to the alterations and they were not used.[5] The marketing campaign also drew criticism for its use of Diana, Princess of Wales, who was an indirect descendant of Georgiana's. The advertising used slogans such as "two women related by ancestry and united by destiny" and even used "There were three people in her marriage," the latter being an almost identical copy of a famous quote that Diana, Princess of Wales uttered during her Panorama interview. Michael Hellicar of the Daily Mail stated that "the Diana link is being so heavily, and it has to be said, so cynically and crudely promoted."[6]

Amanda Foreman, author of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, criticised the marketing strategy too, saying "They probably thought the only way to get the young popcorn-eating brigade to see the film was if they thought it was about Diana, but it wasn't necessary and they should never have done that. And the line 'united by destiny' is wrong. I don't think Georgiana actually died in a carriage crash".[6]

Theatrical release [edit]

The BBFC has classified the film as a 12A, citing the scene of implied marital rape, which is "delivered through Georgiana's screams of protest, heard from outside the bedroom door." The BBFC's PG rating allows implied sex as long as it is discreet and infrequent; the board decided that the scene in The Duchess is more than "discreet" or "implied".[7] The film had its world premiere on 3 September 2008, in Leicester Square and was released nationwide in the United Kingdom on 5 September.[8] [9]

Critical response [edit]

The film received mostly positive reviews. Rotten Tomatoes gives a score of 61% based on 163 reviews, with the consensus that "While The Duchess treads the now-familiar terrain of the corset-ripper, the costumes look great and Keira Knightley's performance is stellar in this subtly feminist, period drama.."[10]

Most reviewers highly praised Knightley and Fiennes' performances. Time Out London wrote: "[Saul Dibb] is also helped enormously by a mature, restrained portrayal from Knightley, a masterclass in passive aggression from Fiennes and a performance of tender seduction from Atwell."[11] The Epoch Times writes, "Ralph Fiennes brings a human quality to [the Duke] by avoiding any intent, exaggeration or ill will" and "Keira Knightley's performance gains new depth – she not only perfectly portrays a witty and feminine Georgiana early in the film, but also a caring mother, and an abandoned woman later on. Also remarkable in this role is Knightley's ability to portray the strengths, weaknesses, and the internal hurdles of Georgiana, as well as her internal contemplation."[12] Film Ireland writes "It is a slow movie but it is well acted with Knightley and Fiennes suited to their roles, especially Fiennes who gives a formidable and powerful performance."[13] Cameron Baily, the co-chair of The Toronto International Festival comments; "The Duchess Of Devonshire, with Keira Knightley, which is a beautiful film and she gives a really mature performance. You're seeing her really turn into something beyond the kind of pretty face that we've seen her do already so well. But she's actually a very serious actress and she's turning into a great, great performer."[14]

Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian wrote that "Dibb's movie looks good" but complained the film was "exasperatingly bland and slow-moving at all times" handing out a 2 of 5 star rating. However, Paul Hurley gave the film 8/10 and called The Duchess "an excellent new film" and states that "The Duchess stands a good chance of taking home some very big prizes at the end of the year".[15]

Accolades [edit]

The film's costume designer Michael O'Connor won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design, the BAFTA Award for Best Costume Design and the Satellite Award for Best Costume Design.

Awards ceremony Award Category Subject Result
Academy Awards[16] Best Costume Design Michael O'Connor Won
Best Art Direction Michael Carlin Nominated
BAFTA Awards[17] Best Costume Design Michael O'Connor Won
BIFA[18] Best Actress Keira Knightley Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Ralph Fiennes Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Hayley Atwell Nominated
Best Technical Achievement Michael O'Connor (Costume) Nominated
Golden Globes Awards[19][20] Best Supporting Actor Ralph Fiennes Nominated
People's Choice Awards[21] Favourite Actress Keira Knightley Nominated
Favourite Independent Movie The Duchess Nominated
Satellite Awards[22] Best Art Direction and Production Design Karen Wakefield, Michael Carlin Nominated
Best Cinematography Gyula Pados Nominated
Best Costume Design Michael O'Connor Won
London Circle Critics' Film Awards British Actor of the Year Ralph Fiennes Nominated
British Actress in a Supporting Role Hayley Atwell Nominated

References [edit]

  1. ^ On-set report: The Duchess The Telegraph. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
  2. ^ DAWTREY, Adam (29 July 2007) Keira Knightley set for Duchess: Actress to play the controversial blueblood, Variety
  3. ^ a b "2008 Fall Movie Guide: Preview: The Duchess". Entertainment Weekly, Issue #1007/1008. Time Inc. August 22–29, 2008. p. 50. Retrieved 2008-10-02. 
  4. ^ (18 September 2006) Susanne Bier finds The Duchess: Open Hearts helmer glamming up for period love story, Total Film
  5. ^ Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld. Fox News. Broadcast date: July 30, 2008.
  6. ^ a b Michael Hellicar (2008-08-29). "Diana and me – by Keira ... or how movie marketers used the princess' troubled marriage to promote The Duchess". Daily Mail. Retrieved 2010-03-23. 
  7. ^ "The Duchess rated 12A by the BBFC" British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved on 13 August 2008.
  8. ^ Pamela McClintock (2008-03-31). "2008 awards season shaping up". Variety. Retrieved 2008-04-01. 
  9. ^ "Knightley stars at Duchess launch". BBCNews. 2008-09-03. Retrieved 2008-09-04. 
  10. ^ "The Duchess (2008)". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. 
  11. ^ From Time Out London
  12. ^ Keira Knightley Shines in Premiere of Duchess http://en.epochtimes.com/n2/arts-entertainment/keira-knightly-the-duchess-premieretoronto-3924.html
  13. ^ http://www.filmireland.net/reviews/duchess_the.htm
  14. ^ CityNews: Brad Pitt And Keira Knightley Among Big Names Confirmed For T.O. Film Fest
  15. ^ http://www.tiscali.co.uk/entertainment/film/reviews/the-duchess.html
  16. ^ AA (2009-01-22). "Oscars 2009 Nominations =Academy Awards". Retrieved 2008-01-22. 
  17. ^ "Film Winners in 2009". bafta.org. BAFTA. Retrieved 8 February 2009. 
  18. ^ BIFA (2008-12-13). "BIFA 2008 Nominations =BIFA". Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  19. ^ Silverman, Stephen (2008-12-11). "Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt Score Golden Globe Nods". People. Retrieved 2008-12-11. 
  20. ^ "Nominations & Winners". Golden Globes. Retrieved 2008-12-12. 
  21. ^ PCA (2008-12-13). "PCA Nominations =People's Choice Awards". Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  22. ^ none (2008-12-13). "2008 13th Annual SATELLITE Awards Nominees=Satellite Awards". Retrieved 2008-12-13. 

External links [edit]

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