Review by Allan Hunter
Bright Star (PG)
6 Nov 2009 in Film
Abbie Cornish and Ben Whishaw in 'Bright Star' (Apparition, 2009)
THE PIANO has been a tough act to follow for New Zealand filmmaker Jane Campion. It is sixteen years since the haunting intensity of that Oscar-winning tale and none of Campion’s subsequent films, from The Portrait Of A Lady to In The Cut, have managed to match its artistry or depth of emotion. Until now.
Bright Star tells of the love affair between John Keats and Fanny Brawne, and is told with a combination of craftsmanship, poise and tenderness that is completely spellbinding.
In the London of 1818, penniless 23-year-old John Keats (Ben Whishaw) has devoted himself to a life of poetry. He shares quarters with his devoted friend Mr Brown (Paul Schneider).
It is Keats who becomes an object of fascination for his neighbour Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish), an 18-year-old whose own creativity is expressed in the bold clothes she designs and creates. A relationship that begins in playful banter gradually deepens into something that will overwhelm both of them.
Bright Star is an incredibly beautiful film that captures the English countryside in glowing daffodil fields and snow-dusted winter woods. It avoids the starchy, stilted quality of lesser period dramas by creating a completely believe portrait of a vanished world in which costumes, attitudes and dialogue all ring true.
The performances are also exceptional, with Ben Whishaw’s Keats a very unassuming and vulnerable figure, while Abbie Cornish captures all the youthful impetuosity of a woman torn apart by all the fresh emotions and new sensations that are flooding into her life.
Bright Star offers an immensely moving story told with admirable restraint. It is a film to savour.
Director: Jane Campion
Cast: Abbie Cornish, Ben Whishaw, Paul Schneider, Thomas Sangster, Samuel Barnett, Kerry Fox
Screenwriter: Jane Campion with research from the biography “Keats” by Andrew Motion
Certificate: PG
Running time: 119 mins
Country: UK/Australia/France
Year: 2009
© Allan Hunter, 2009
