My Cousin Rachel

Seen at the Gala Cinema in Warrawong, NSW

Cecil says: Rebecca was one of those films that haunted me as a child: the scene with the cackling madwoman on the roof of the burning mansion house left me cowering behind the sofa as a 7 year old (or whatever age it was). So when I saw that My Cousin Rachel  was another Daphne Du Maurier adaptation, I was not put off. And surely 50+ year old me would cope with any terrifying characters this plot might conjure up.

I think the trouble with 50+ year old me is that I have no time for the wasted energy of youthful infatuations. And that’s what most of this film is about: a young 24/25 year old (the birthday is a significant point in the storyline) infatuated with the woman who is the widow of his foster father. She turns up in his stately home and wins his heart in no time instead of being subjected to his inquiry into how his beloved parent had died.

Sure there are some mysteries about Rachel Weisz’s Rachel (yes actor and character share the same name) and as the story develops, more and more of her behaviour and actions leave the viewer uncertain as to whether she is evil or just confused, and even more uncertain of what really happened in her life. But right from the start she failed to engage me, and I would have been cautious about any involvement emotional or financial if I had been Philip.

I’m not sure whether this was because Rachel Weisz didn’t draw me in, or whether it was the film’s direction. Or was it back in Du Maurier’s text that my dislike would have found its source?

Having seen that the original 1952 version starred Richard Burton and Olivia de Havilland, I am inclined to seek out the old black and white movie rather than read the novel.

But I felt less engaged by the 2016/7 version of My Cousin Rachel  than I have by any film for quite some time.

Any redeeming aspects? I quite liked the early scene with the horse and carriage going up an Umbrian hill, as it vaguely reminded me of Room with a View. I quite liked Seecombe, the loyal but rather gruff butler, who dressed more like a farmhand than a posh person’s main man, though it did make me wonder if the northern English nobility were a bit more rough round the edges than the image we have from Downton Abbey…

**.5

Bea says: I loved Rebecca and Jamaica Inn, both as novels and film/TV adaptations, but had never seen the earlier version of this or read it.  The story is good – typical du Maurier, with strong, enigmatic female characters and a good dose of crime and psychology.  But, like Cecil, something didn’t quite work in this film.  It wasn’t particularly memorable (we are blogging sometime after seeing it), and it felt rather – stiff, like everyone was trying too hard and not just allowing the strong plot to run. 

I would now like to read the novel, in case that feeling is in the book too; I haven’t’ researched it but perhaps it was an earlier work and du Maurier hadn’t really hit her stride.  Weisz is usually good, and she is really all I can remember about the film; everyone else has faded into oblivion.  Perhaps she was too strong for the other characters and that explains the held back feeling?

Worth a look, but may disappoint.

**1/2

The Light Between Oceans

Seen at the Roxy Cinema in Nowra

Cecil says: Best film of 2016. A gripping story from the opening scene through to the final sunset. Be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster if you go to see The Light between Oceans: there is a beautiful romance to kick the film off, with wonderful connections between a hardened World War One veteran (superbly played by Michael Fassbender) and an apparently delicate young thing from a small Western Australian town (Alicia Vikander, who played in The Danish Girl, is wonderful here too); then Dostoevsky themes of Crime and Punishment, with dilemmas thrown in to compare with Sophie’s Choice.

There are so many levels to this film and I guess depending on your own life story it will resonate with key moments of your own journey.

Dilemmas over what to do when a loved one wants one thing and you know it is morally wrong; what to do when you are offered a way out but that would condemn your loved one to prison or even death; how to resolve that prick of conscience that can torment you after the act; how to forgive and not to resent.

The setting of the lighthouse on a small island off the west coast of Australia is utterly beautiful, too, though you can’t help feeling the small town attitudes cross that stretch of sea with their hatred of Germans after the war, their joy at the ‘new baby’, and the pure visibility of every family misfortune and drama that happens in or near the town.

The soundtrack is beautiful – a combination of music composed for the film and old mediaeval work by Tavener. The costumes are wonderful. Even the veggie patch looked a dream, though I had to wonder how they got the vegetables to grow so well in what must have been such salty air…

An all-star cast, with Rachel Weisz, Bryan Brown and Jack Thompson putting in just as polished a performance as the two main characters.

And you know what, I’d see it all again quite happily, just to see what other aspects of my life it may make me think about on a second viewing.

*****

Bea says:  I was in two minds about seeing this film as I knew enough about the storyline to expect it to be sad, and enough to know that the subject matter might be painful for me.  I had not read the book for the same reason.  However, the story – as all good stories are – is actually about larger, more universal truths, like forgiveness, one’s own moral compass, and the importance of relationships, and these truths transcend the immediate storyline.  Still, I did connect with Isabel’s early experience, and left the film thinking – as much as I shared her experience, I do not think I would have done that.  I didn’t think this judgmentally, just in a way that found my own moral compass point, and that was reassuring.  I liked the film’s focus on embracing forgiveness, renouncing resentment, doing what’s right, and remaining connected to people close to you.  These are things that matter in life, and that you can hold on to in the face of loss or grief.

But this is all about the (very strong) storyline – the performances were superb, particularly the wonderful Michael Fassbender as Tom.  I appreciated the direction; it’s rare these days for a film like this not to be overlong and drawn out.  The pace was very good, it lingered long enough to set the scene but not too long.  The settings were incredibly beautiful (Dunedin and North West Tasmania apparently – I can see some trips to those locations in the future!).  It was great to see those old stalwarts Jack Thompson and Bryan Brown in films again.  And as a knitter, the knitwear was great eye candy.

It was actually great escapism as well.  In a week full of the world’s problems, it was great to travel 100 years back in time and be absorbed in the fictional problems of fictional people.  As I said to Cecil on the way home, right now the thought of living on an isolated island lighthouse for 3 years seems rather appealing….

*****