The Clandestine Marriage

The Clandestine Marriage is definitely not Hawthorne's best work (Madness of King George) but it is quite fun and he does do a great job as the old, odd Lord Oglesby. The rest of the cast is fairly good too, especially Tom Hollander as Sir John and Timothy Spall as Sterling. Joan Collins was over-the-top and, in her English accent with a German twist, was kind of difficult to understand. Overall, I thought this a very entertaining, well-acted movie.

Not bad at all – a movie starring Joan Collins always has the possibility of being a dicey affair, and she may have produced and starred in this one, but that doesn't stop it from being a charming, mannered comedy of errors. Collins has some big IL' surprises up her sleeve for us – for her first trick, she does not play Alexis Carrington, or any variation on her, in this movie. And, as if that weren't earth-shattering enough, she – I kid you not – plays a woman approximately her own age, who also looks her age. That's right, no black eyeliner and no raven tresses. It is amazing. Don't get me wrong, though – we're still dealing with Joan Collins here, so she's still pretty glam, in her own way, and certainly her character is as over-the-top as any Joan Collins character is supposed to be – but she actually acts as part of an ensemble in which she is not center stage at all times. Set in a spectacular 17th century country estate, Stanway House, with all the requisite gorgeous accoutrement, the film does exceptionally well on what was obviously not an enormous budget. The costumes, hair and makeup are beautiful, and though the story gets somewhat messy in the middle of the film, the cinematography and art direction keep the eye glued to the screen. The supporting cast also serves the film well, with a variety of skilled actors who make the best out of minor roles. It is a fun movie to watch and it looks like the kind of movie that the cast and crew had a great deal of fun making. This is a valuable quality that is imparted in the finished product, and makes it easy to overlook any weaknesses.

The costumes are just amazing! The dialog is wonderfully witty! The wigs are inspirational! The makeup is perfect! The locations are breath-taking! The acting is superb! If you like period films you'll need to add this lovely piece to your collection. An excellent ensemble cast who portray tangible characters. This feature must have fallen through the cracks of non-advertising land, because I don't remember it being in theaters. I find myself watching it about three or four times a year - it will really make you smile. It is indeed a film of "Quaalitaay." I'll have to hire Paul Nicholls for one of my films; would like to see more of him.

Garrick and Coleman's play on which this is based really isn't all that good, but it's a harmless enough bit of period fun and so making this film wasn't a bad idea in itself. Making it like this however, displays very little of anything regarding talent in either its director or writer. The original doesn't have any sparkling lines and the screenwriter also appears too lazy to insert any. The shooting is similarly undistinguished and the soundtrack, over-intrusive and devoid of anything resembling a good idea.

The poor cast struggle manfully to keep the viewer interested, with particularly charismatic performances from Timothy Spall, the late great Sir Nigel Hawthorne and even the often disappointing Tom Hollander and Paul Nicholls clown and smoulder respectively. Joan Collins just struggles. There is little any of them can do, however, with this pretty dire succession of period drama cliches and falling-over gags. This film would be just about watchable if it wasn't such a waste of talent.

The costumes and locations are pretty though.

Pure entertainment. I would recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys films from this time period. Nigel Hawthorn's acting makes this film a sheer delight. I was equally surprised with Joan Collins who plays a snobby rich woman most convincingly. The plot is based on two rich families trying to get their children to marry. It turns out that one of the daughters is already married secretly. Everything gets hilariously all mixed up. A movie to relax by.

Watch for the scene when Nigel Hawthorn is applying make-up to his aging face. An amazing and unique actor.