उपयोगकर्ता समीक्षाएं

I found this movie to be quite beautiful, and it opened a period of history seldom explored in films. It tells the tale of a Jewess in 19th Century London who must disguise herself as a gentile to obtain employment as a governess. Her joy for life and her searching mind attract her to her employer, who is trying to discover a way to "freeze" the photographic image. It is very much of its time. Minnie Driver is excellent, very sensual and convincing. Tom Wilkinson is incredibly strong and attractive. The dark colors and the general sense of gloom are very well depicted. I thought it was a marvelous film.

After her father is murdered, Rosina (Minnie Driver) must marry without love or strike out and try something different. She changes her name and takes a job as a governess.

Of course, she also has to hide her Jewishness and learn to be a Protestant.

Her employer, Charles Cavendish (Tom Wilkinson) is a photographer working on a way to fix the photos he takes so that they last more than a day. She shows an interest in his work and spends her spare time helping. As expected, Minnie Drivers sensuality soon captivates him. He gives up his photographs of nature and gets into portraiture.

He realizes that he is not her intellectual equal and, when he discovers that he was in love with a Jewess, he turns very cruel.

She returns to London during a cholera epidemic, finding her mother dead. He new knowledge enable her family to survive, and she flourishes.

Driver was outstanding, and Jonathan Rhys Meyers was also good as the son.

Sandra Goldbacher's first feature film shows much promise.

I quite enjoyed this movie. Sure, my mind wandered a lot because the story is hardly gripping. I'm also positive I won't remember much about it next week, except that Minnie Driver's talent and beauty is stunning. STUNNING. I did also feel that the leading man was poorly cast. He did not seem to me a person that a young, vibrant woman would fall for. I'm sure the script called for a older man, but age wasn't the problem. He just didn't seem to fit in with Minnie Driver. Nonetheless, the whole movie was excellently shot and wonderfully acted and extremely high quality, but conversely it's regrettably forgettable. (That's a nice phrase, no?)

Do not be put off by the negative comments in the user reviews here! This is a thoughtful, lovely, well-made film. I would watch it again, which is, for me, the highest endorsement. I can not comprehend how anyone could find it "boring".

The story is not up to great things, oft told one way or another and smacking of Jane Austen romantic drama aspirations: a beautiful jewess of sephardi descent in 1830s London decides to take the job of governess to a little girl in a great big mansion supposedly on the Island of Skye, Inner Hebrides, Scotland (though I did glimpse a bit of Glencoe, Scottish mainland, and indeed what was definitely the beautiful Cuillins on Skye) where she falls in love with the master of the household, father of the little girl, and then the son falls in love with her. Well, that alone might have you wandering over to the next projection sala or just twiddling with the remote control, if it were not for certain other factors which may well be called redeeming, so good they are.

Minnie Driver certainly looks the beautiful jewess, but her interpretation goes a bit awry at times, or even careers off the rails; her performance has ups and downs of feelings and passions which do not really make much sense. Better directing might well have produced better results from Ms. Driver, as well as the fact that the focussing of the story is very much a feministic appreciation, rather slanted perhaps, forgiveably so I am not so sure, rather as if Ms. Goldbacher herself was brought up on the aforementioned Jane Austen, as well as Daphné du Maurier, a touch of the Brontës, and she finally spiced it all up with some misgivings from D.H. Lawrence. The result is a confusion of desire and sex being mistaken for romantic love. But don't we all, anyway?

The excellent photography and scenification makes up quite a lot for many of these pitfalls; the costumes and the settings of the interior of the house of such lucky landed-gentry is superb, as well as the scenes in London in the opening and closing parts of the film. This visual experience is greatly enhanced by the musical setting. Ed Shearmur has done an excellent job of creating his own `sephardi' music, helped by offerings from the Israeli singer, Ofra Haza. The music contributed greatly to the setting of scenes, ably supplying tone and atmosphere. Such that I feel one could enjoy this film solely for the photography, costumes and sets, and the music, and you could quite happily skip most of the story. It is not that the story is so bad, just that it is not anything special to write home to mother about, although she might well be the first to disagree.

The Sephardi songs made me remember an old recording I have of some very beautiful melodies sung by Soledad Bravo on a CBS record maybe 20 years ago and which might be found on a Sony CD. The intepretation of these songs, sung in `ladino' (sometimes called judezmo) which is an archaic form of today's Spanish, is pretty authentic. Ladino is still used today by descendents of people thrown out of Spain during the `Inquisición', and now living in parts of Turkey (specifically I found it being spoken in Izmir), Bulgaria, Macedonia, Montenegro and the Croatia coast. Within Israel of course, this language is pretty frequent.

I'm always surprised when I see a movie with Minnie Driver. She's not the best looking actress, or the most skilled but she makes every movie she's a part of worth watching. Even Disney's Tarzan was vitalized by her sparkling voice and energetic acting. This movie places the main character in a very odd position in a house with no love. The dangerous triangle betwixt the governess, the father and the son is very interesting. I would however like to have more motives and reason for the governess treatment of the son. Also that relation seems not to "fit" in the movie and should have been given more time to grow. The photography is beautiful and the nice singing of late Ophra Haza adds value to the movie. It has been a while since I last was left so puzzled and thoughtful after a movie. See this movie with a dear friend.

This is a deeply flawed film. Supporting characters are never fleshed out and the ending simply does not ring true. But coming as it does in the wake of several films about the Holocaust (with more on the way, one imagines), "The Governess" accomplishes something extremely important: it presents Judaism and Jewishness as normal and desirable.

Indeed, the film takes a fairly dim view of other states of existence. Gentiles -- particularly Christians -- who are thinking of seeing this film should be warned that they and their culture do not come off very well.

"The Governess" is also a very beautiful film to look at and listen to.

Happy Passover, everyone!

THE GOVERNESS is a moody period piece, the meandering story of a Jewish woman who, upon the death of her father, sets out to 1830's Scotland, posing as a Gentile to get work to support her family in London.

Rosina - or Mary, as she calls herself in a none too subtle piece of symbolic writing - is a rudderless child, a socialite with dreams of being an actress. She strikes up an alliance with her employer, and by accident solves a crucial problem in his research with photography. Giddy with success, they begin a halting and uncomfortable affair while the eldest son of her paramour falls hopelessly (and inexplicably) in love with her.

And like a child, she fails to understand the consequences of her actions - in the end, betraying those she deceived in order to make a life for herself.

Many claim this is something of a feminist manifesto, but I disagree. Whether intended or not, this film only resonates with me if I think of it as a cautionary tale. In the end, Rosina's greatest disappointment is the truth - that she lied, happened upon a way to help a man she wanted to be both her father and her lover, and in the end contributed nothing but destruction. As such, the end of the film gives me the impression that nothing she did, no one she used, made her happy - and that is exactly as it should be.

Did I need a movie this long and langorous to teach me this lesson? Not at all. On the contrary, had it not been for excellent cinematography, unique score and my hope that she'd get her come-uppance, I wouldn't have stuck with it to the end of the film.

Fans of Minnie Driver will likely be disappointed by her uneven performance but may wish to see it anyway; I doubt young female fans of Jonathan Rhys-Meyers will be able to stay awake for the payoff they expect, and I can't help thinking this holds too little cultural detail to be of interest, even to photography buffs. The 3 points I award the film are solely for its visual style and score. On the strength of their other work, I assume the actors' performances are so disappointing because of a poor script and worse directing, but they are, in the end, unremarkable.

Driver plays a Jewess in 19th century Scotland who poses as a gentile and takes a governess position to provide income for her family following her father's death. An artistically and technically excellent film, "The Governess" is flawed to the detriment of the overall effort. Driver's character grows ambiguous and the film wears on; the juxtaposition of the Jewish and Christian is overwrought; the male lead is not sufficiently charismatic; and the story stutters at the end which is anticlimactic at best. Nonetheless, well worth a look especially for Driver fans.

I thought this movie was beautiful. It was somewhat overlooked in America when it was released in 1998, partly because it had to compete against some higher profile British films and partly because it is not commercial. It could not be sold to the general public for a very sad reason - most movie goers have absolutely no sense or knowledge of history. So, the story of being a Jewess in mid-19th Century England and Scotland would seem too odd to them. In addition, the average person might have difficulty in grasping how amazing photography was to people in those days.

For those who do have knowledge of history, I highly recommend this film. Some might say that Rosina [Minnie Driver] is too much of a modern character, but intelligent women, rebellious women and highly sensual women have ALWAYS existed, regardless of the morals and hypocrisies of the times they lived in.

If I heard the male lead say "This is madness!" one more time I would have barfed. The film is one big cliche, with fake "grind him under your heel" attitudes. Not one male in this movie has one redeeming quality; reminds me of Soviet-era films with strongly politically-oriented messages. I couldn't even understand WHY there was attraction between the leads, nor could I wait for the ending.

"The Governess" is Mary Blackchurch's (her 'Christian' name) story. It is set in 1830s (we learn from the Daguerre reference) in London and the Scottish Isle of Skye, where she becomes a governess to help the family after her father is murdered. If we are to believe Ebert's instincts, it is the author's life story, much as "Boyz N the Hood" is.

Being a photographer, I was 'hooked' when the film turned in that direction. Although not historically accurate, it certainly does a good job of depicting the trial and error used back in the 1800s to master a photographic process in which the resultant image could be "fixed". There was a British Cavendish, Henry, but he was not into photography. In this film, Mary accidentally helps discover a fixing process using ordinary salt water. Mary and Carles develop a bond, become lovers, Mary talks of their "future" together, Charles pulls away, "You consume me. I cannot be consumed."

I cannot say too much about how fine a performance Minnie Driver gives here. Especially the scene near the end when she basically is willing to do anything, give anything, to avoid rejection by Charles. Failing, she returns to London, giving nude photos to Charles' wife, and taking along enough chemicals to get her started in her own photographic studio.

Charles looks her up, she does a portrait, but the love she professed had been shattered beyond repair. She had given her whole self to Charles, had been rejected, and she moved on.

This is a really fine film, different, but enjoyable in the vein of "Dangerous Beauty", another period piece where the female protagonist is empowered. The infidelity in "Governess" is certainly not glorified, but used in the context of a weak husband whose marriage was a routine formality, and a young girl who knew no boundaries, and found a soulmate for the first time.

I like Minnie Driver, I really do, but honestly, this film is a disappointment. The story and characters have so much potential, but the movie is a drag of uninteresting scenes that are way too long and unrealistic. I keep waiting for something interesting or intense to happen but somehow it never did. The build up that supposely leads to the relationship between Rosina and Charles seems weak and vague. The relationship between Rosina and Henry, however, seems more interesting but too short. Wouldn't recommend this to anyone unless you are a huge Minnie Driver fan, it is always a treat to watch her act.

"The Governess" is one of those films you want to like--an independent effort to tell the story of people we rarely here about, the Jewish community in Victorian England. But instead of telling their story, or the story of Rosina (played by an excellent Minnie Driver)as she discovers herself and her love for photography, it spends all its time on an improbable romance. It's really rather demeaning for the beautiful, intelligent, young Rosina to fall so absolutely in love with her employer (Tom Wilkinson). To be blunt, he's not young, not at all good looking, not kind, and a lot dumber than she is. The romance, in other words, never works. And why, may I ask, do all female coming-of-age films have to center on love and sex? I expected a lot from this film, and I'm afraid I was quite disappointed.

I wanted to like this one - the situation was rich, and the setting unusual and interesting. But the story is swamped with childish female gothic romance elements that are hard to swallow. The director is unfairly prejudiced against the 'goy' characters -- content to let them be grotesque cardboard caricatures -- and inexplicably indulgent towards the homewrecking behavior of the heroine. The potentially interesting power struggle between the inventor and the governess is not really dealt with.

Feminist film makers will get more credibility when they stop manipulating situations to throw all the sympathy to the heroine, and start dealing honestly with issues. This movie more closely resembles 'The 7 Pieces of Gold', another earnest failure, more than 'The Piano' - a real tale of passion.

The Governess was a beautiful film that I think deserves more credit than it got. I feel this film followed in the same quality and artistic depth as Jane Campion's 'The Piano'. Of course the story is very unique. Minnie Driver plays Rossina da Silva, a Jewess in victorian era England, who is forced to find employment in a Christian family when her father dies. She takes on the persona of 'Mary Blackchurch' a pious Christian women. She ends up in distant Scotland, where her employer turns out to be a deeply intelligent scientist - whose family feels detached from society because of his work. Mr. Cavendish's work interest Rossina and in their work they discover not only some breathtaking advances in science but new emotions and feelings, which they each explore differently. The film technique is just impeccable. There are beautiful shots on the shores of the ocean. The use of color and glass distortions makes Rosinna's Jewish world come to life like I have never seen before. I think I loved this film, not only for its story, but also because it opened up a realm to me that I had never been aware of: Jewish life in the 19th century. Minnie Driver is wonderful in this film, her Rosina is stronger than any other role I have seen her in. Tom Wilkinson of 'Full Monty' fame is also a very believable and caring Mr. Cavendish. SEE THIS MOVIE ! It is so beautiful and the soundtrack is moving, almost haunting. The governess is definitely on my list of favorite films of all time !

Another great movie with Minnie ! It's sad that she had a meteoric career because she really stood out.

Here, she plays a surprising Jew girl in Britain at Victorian time. Even if her family is wealthy, the death of her father leads her to search for work. She gets it as a governess of a spoiled young girl leaving in a isolated island. During her stay, she would find love and participate in the invention of photography.

Thus, there are a lot of ideas, emotions, feelings here that makes a fast, gripping movie.

I think that this lonely place helps to maximize the tension, all above that the sets and costume are beautiful and for modern eyes of cities settlers, it looks fairy!

As it's about leaving home, making a trip and dividing faiths, it's funny to notice that human always carry a luggage that is weightless and is the ultimate glue for people: the libido! Unaware of it, even when Minnie is locked in a tiny island for working and inventing photography, this pulsing has accompanied her, lurking and waiting for the perfect time to get out: it's not really surprising that the first takes are nude composition and having lost her dear father, Minnie falls in love with the only mature man.

As her story is told with a lot of heart, fragility and truth, it leaves a warmly memory!

This movie had an excellent premise, and could have been a fascinating look at racism, attitudes to women at work and male female relations in England early last century. However, it simply turned into a soppy love story. But what was worse, is that the love story was totally unbelievable. The acting was for the most part poor, the direction confusing, but most of all the screenplay and the story were non-existent. The only thing I liked about the film was how dark it must have been before electric lighting. I really got a sense of just how little light one candle puts out.

Gorgeous, stunning film! Minnie Driver shines in this film, as do several of her co-stars. Fascinating, unusual story as well. Most of these period films end in tragedy; no if, and, or buts about it. The "rise and fall" of the protagonist is the norm, as many Merchant-Ivory films portray. However, one of the pleasing aspects of this film was that the ending was mixed, and not as simple as "heroine tries for the moon; fails and is punished". In addition, I can't remember the last time I saw Sephardic Jews portrayed in a film. The vast majority of time, only Ashkenaz Jews are pictured (Jews from northern Europe and Russia). Quite refreshing to see something new. A beautiful film overall!

Hmm. What to say? I liked it, overall. It's a nice little picture. It moves kind of slow, is the main problem. Minnie Driver, despite being a slightly odd choice for the lead, is quite good, showing just the right combination of determination, petulance, and romantic obsession. Tom Wilkinson is great, too. Torn between his desire for the governess and his fear that she will devour him, his agony is palpable. The mother and daughter roles are small, but very well done. Jonathan Rhys-Meyers character is a little batty. Henry's a freak about half the time, and swooning in unrequited love the other half, which strangely enough does seem to evoke the reckless passion of an emotionally immature boy looking for a reason to be. (Plus we get to see Rhys-Meyers get his kit off. A decent movie, quite good in fact. Not for everyone, surely. Good performances all around, and a unique look at the time and place. It didn't quite get deep enough, and some of it seems superficial, but it functions well as a character study.