Longe Deste Insensato Mundo

I've never read the novel on which this is based but decided to give the film a try seeing as it featured the always very watchable Carey Mulligan and a screenplay by David Nicholls (One Day).

It may not please everyone but I think the director has managed to create a strong love story that allows the central character to develop throughout the two hour run. Mulligan captures every aspect of the character well and despite her making lots of bad choices we still stick by her.

Michael Sheen does well in his role and there are plenty of twists that kept me on the edge of my seat.

In this age of franchises and big blockbuster superhero nonsense it is refreshing that this film manages to tell a good story with a wonderful cast and hopefully will be enjoyed by many.

Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan) is an independent Victorian woman. Her neighbor sheep-herder Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts) abruptly asks Bathsheba's hand in marriage and she politely declines. His herd falls off a cliff. Her uncle dies leaving his large failing farm to her. She hires Oak as her shepherd/manager. She impetuously plays a Valentine joke on her neighbor William Boldwood (Michael Sheen) and he asks to marry her. She rejects him and embarrasses him. Fanny Robbin (Juno Temple) worked for Bathsheba's uncle but ran away to marry Sergeant Francis Troy (Tom Sturridge). She mistakenly goes to the wrong church leaving Troy heartbroken. Bathsheba falls for the dashing soldier and marries him but soon finds that she has made a mistake.

Carey Mulligan delivers a brilliant performance as the nearly modern woman in a world still ruled by men. She's a complicated heroine and could be derided for her uncertain love life. The three men deliver the needed personality. Michael Sheen is probably the least like his distant socially awkward character. I would have liked the movie to concentrate more on Oak but that wouldn't be the story. This is a lovely addition to the classic.

Far from the Madding Crowd, a well respected novel with an adaptation already to its name, hasn't got much new ground to cover. This 2015 film, starring Carey Mulligan, upholds the book's reputation. Bathsheba (Mulligan) is a headstrong farm owner who meets three possible suiters in a short space of time; Gabriel the farmer, William the nobleman and Frank the soldier. All bear distinctive qualities. All wish Bathsheba to marry them the moment they lay eyes on her. FftMC favours one man over the rest. We're smitten before even given the chance to decide. Mulligan's the charismatic, leading lady, making decisions that come at a price. Schoenaerts, Sturridge and Sheen add flavour to this period drama, their personalities and dialogue capturing what action cannot.

This film, by the Danish director Thomas Vinterberg, is the first cinematic adaptation of Thomas Hardy's "Far from the Madding Crowd" since John Schlesinger's famous version in 1967. The story is too well- known for me to set out the plot at any length, but it revolves around the adventures of Bathsheba Everdene, a young female landowner in Victorian Dorset, and the three men who love her. These are Gabriel Oak, a humble shepherd, William Boldwood, a neighbouring farmer, and Frank Troy, a sergeant in a cavalry regiment.

Vinterberg has set himself a difficult task. Schlesinger's film was a landmark of British cinema, marking the beginning of what I have come to think of the "heritage cinema" style of film-making. In my eyes at least, and I suspect in the eyes of many others, it has become the definitive version; I cannot re-read the novel- it is a favourite of mine and I have read it several times- without picturing Bathsheba as Julie Christie, Gabriel as Alan Bates, Troy as Terence Stamp or Boldwood as Peter Finch.

Like Schlesinger, Vinterberg sticks fairly closely to Hardy's story, although of necessity some minor episodes have had to be omitted. There were one or two touches I didn't really care for, such as the scene where Troy grabs Bathsheba by the crotch. In the novel Hardy describes Troy's seduction of the young woman with great delicacy. This is not just a question of Victorian prudery, but also of psychological realism. A girl as independent and determined as Bathsheba would have resented such a crude approach; had Troy attempted it he would doubtless have got his face slapped for his pains. I also felt that this version rather inflated the social status of both Bathsheba and Boldwood. In the novel both are prosperous farmers, but nothing more. Here they live in the sort of style which would suggest she is the Lady of the Manor and he a wealthy aristocrat.

Hardy's novel is, among other things, a celebration of the English countryside, and this aspect is brought out well here. Like Schlesinger's, the film is visually attractive with some striking photography of the rural landscapes, often seen bathed in a soft, golden glow. On the acting side I was most impressed by Matthias Schoenaerts as Gabriel. His interpretation is rather different from Bates's, making his character perhaps more genteel and less rough-hewn, but still a man of great sensitivity and integrity. The Belgian-born Schoenaerts speaks flawless English with no hint of a foreign inflection, although it is noticeable that, unlike Bates, he does not attempt a West Country accent. Possibly wisely- English regional accents can be notoriously difficult for foreign-born actors.

On the other hand, I was less impressed by Tom Sturridge who makes an unmemorable Troy, lacking the roguishness and devil-may-care charm which Stamp brought to the role. Michael Sheen is better as Boldwood, but never quite matches Finch's desperate, nervous intensity. The difference, perhaps, is that Sheen's Boldwood is obsessed by Bathsheba whereas Finch's is almost literally possessed by her. Carey Mulligan has plenty of experience in films of this type, having inherited the crown formerly worn by Helena Bonham-Carter and Keira Knightley, that of Reigning Queen of Period Drama. She has been praised for her performance here, but personally I preferred Christie's rather more imperious and headstrong interpretation. Vinterberg's film is a generally solid, well- made piece of period drama, but for me it will not replace Schlesinger's as the definitive version. 7/10

Based on Thomas Hardy's classic novel (which I much shamefully admit I have never read), Far From the Madding Crowd tells the tale of Bathsheba Everdene's rags-to-riches rise to become a farm-owner in rural Dorset in the 1870's, the title coming from the fact that Dorset is a long way from the hustle and bustle of London "200 miles away" as the opening title incorrectly declares - the longest direct driving route I could find was 155 miles!

Bathsheba is a magnet to men with her feisty and independent behaviour, and the film documents the "love square" between her and three men in her life: Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts), the hunk of a farm manager; William Boldwood (Michael Sheen), the wealthy neighbouring landowner; and Sergeant Troy (Tom Sturridge), a dashing Han-Solo style rogue, flash-as-you-like in his scarlet army uniform.

In reviewing this film I need to declare a couple of loves.

Firstly, Dorset. Of all the English counties, this has to be one of the most glorious. Green rolling hills, dramatic coastline such as that at Golden Cap (featured in the film), quaint villages and – most importantly in this context – gorgeously photogenic. Hopefully, this might tempt more visitors to stop there rather than 'driving on through' to Devon and Cornwall for their holidays.

Secondly, and with apologies to the wife, Carey Mulligan. To be clear, this is not a sordid sexually-motivated affair (although there was THAT shower-scene in "Shame") but a deep love of her acting talents and screen presence. This is a love affair long in the making, beginning ten years ago with her startling presence in Bleak House at the age of 20 (looking much, much younger); her stunning minx-like Dr Who performance as Sally Sparrow in "Blink"; and on through her breakout movie performance in "An Education" in 2009.

Where Mulligan excels is in roles where she can play a strong, confident and independent woman, so the role of Bathsheba is perfect for her. She is utterly believable as the 1870's landowner holding her own against the men-folk, and even pulling off the somewhat out-of-character plot twist half-way through the film.

The supporting cast is also excellent. The ever-reliable Sheen ("The Queen"; "Frost/Nixon") delivers a heart-breaking performance as the love-lorn Boldwood; Schoenaerts (recently in "Suite Française") is manly enough with a scythe to no doubt set female hearts a flutter; and Sturridge is deliciously unpleasant in his powerful role.

Above all, this is just a crackingly good story, through David ("One Day") Nicholls's tight screenplay. If you decide to avoid this film because it is "old stuff", think again. The roller-coaster ride of the plot gives UK and US 'soaps' a good run for their money in the drama stakes, and the denouement is both surprising and satisfying.

Direction is by the relatively unknown (to me at least) Thomas Vinterberg ("The Hunt"), but big kudos needs to go to Vinterburg's collaborator Charlotte Bruus Christensen for the stunning cinematography: some of the scenes (notably the harvesting scene towards the end of the movie) are bucolically gorgeous.

Also worth noting is the soundtrack by the brilliant but sparingly used Craig Armstrong ("Love Actually", "The Great Gatsby") which is luscious and suits the film to a tee. The woodland rendezvous scene makes your hair stand on end and this is largely down to the music combined with Claire Simpson's excellent editing.

I struggle to find aspects to criticise. I was gripped, and suitably shocked at the right moments, which is just what you want for a good night out at the movies. Having already praised the cinematography, one gripe I would have is with the lens flare at the end of the film (natural this time, rather than of the JJ Abrams variety) which was annoyingly distracting to me in the closing scene: but I recognise this is a personal complaint that I might be alone in.

Just a word of warning as well for animal lovers: that despite it being a UK 12A certificate, there are some pretty torrid scenes with sheep and a dog that might upset sensitive viewers - perhaps it should have been given a "Ewe" certificate (that joke will only work for UK readers!).

In summary, this is a treat for a more elderly audience, but should be a must see for audiences of all ages as a rollicking good tale, well told and beautifully shot.

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