Mubi Monday: Tamara Drewe (2010)

As is mentioned in almost every discussion of Tamara Drewe, it is a film based on a graphic novel (by Posy Simmonds) that is itself loosely, although not too loosely, based on "Far From The Madding Crowd", by Thomas Hardy. The Hardy novel is namechecked just a minute or two into the film, just in case people weren't aware of the connection, and I am sure that fans of his work will have extra fun spotting the similarities in this modernised riff on his work.

I must confess that my knowledge of Hardy extends to knowing of his name and seeing a couple of movies based on his works. I have not, as yet, ever made my way through one of his novels, and the chance of me changing that situation soon looks very unlikely, as my "to watch" and "to read" piles grow in inverse relation to the spare time I have available. I don't say this in an attempt to boast of my ignorance, because I really do wish that I had the time to get through more classic literature, but am rather hoping to acknowledge that others may enjoy Tamara Drewe more than I did.

This film just didn't work for me, which is surprising when you consider the wonderful cast. Gemma Arterton, Luke Evans, Dominic Cooper, Tamsin Greig, John Allam, and Bill Camp all give good performances, and they are all people I have enjoyed in other roles, but they just can't do enough to overcome the biggest problem; it's hard to care about most of the main characters.

Arterton is Tamara Drewe, a young woman who returns to the small village she grew up in, aiming to renovate the family home and sell it. She's blossomed during her time away, and also had a nose job. The main people taking interest in her return are a farmhand who used to be in love with here (Luke Evans), and maybe still is, a philandering writer (Roger Allam), the long-suffering wife of the philandering writer (Tamsin Greig), and a couple of young girls who spend their time being generally nosey and up to mischief. There's also a rock band playing nearby, which leads to Tamara getting involved with the drummer (Dominic Cooper), who is on the rebound after a very recent and public separation from his partner.

Director Stephen Frears has given us some great films over the years, including at least one personal favourite of mine (The Grifters), so I was pleased to see his name attached to this, along with that great cast. I'm not sure what went wrong here, and maybe other people would argue that nothing at all went wrong anyway, but it feels like he doesn't have a good handle on the material. The script, by Moira Buffini, doesn't help at all, and I am not sure if that is mostly her fault or a fault with the source material, but it creates a number of situations that could have been played out in a number of different ways and then, for me, picks the worst possible variant. The drama doesn't work because of the characters being largely impossible to care about, the comedy doesn't work because it's just not funny enough to make up for the more serious elements, it's not an enjoyable romance, and there aren't even any major consequences for MOST of the main players.

It looks nice enough throughout, the lovely rural setting helps to make this a comfortable vewing experience, it's technically all well and good, and the cast all do what's asked of them, but this is a disappointing film that could have worked better as a 6-part BBC series, in my opinion.

4/10

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Byzantium (2012)

Director Neil Jordan is no stranger to the vampire movie. He did, quite famously, bring Interview With The Vampire to the big screen, somehow managing to craft a brilliant film despite the death of one of the original cast members (River Phoenix), criticism from author Anne Rice (who eventually recanted when she saw the final result), and ridicule from everyone who thought Tom Cruise incapable of effectively portraying the vampire Lestat. Well, Byzantium may not be quite the achievement that Interview With The Vampire is/was, but it's another very good film from a director who provides viewers with consistently interesting works, barring one or two mis-steps.

Gemma Arterton and Saoirse Ronan are the two young women being a bit vampiric. They seem to be able to walk about in daylight, and don't sleep in coffins or anything, but when it comes time to label their characters . . . . . . . . . vampire is the most suitable title. Struggling to make ends meet and avoid scrutiny from the authorities, the two seem stuck in a vicious cycle, with Arterton's character using sex to make money and help her look after the youngster. But things are complicated by a young man (Caleb Landry Jones) who takes more than a passing interest in Ronan's character. As things build up to a climax, viewers are also told more and more of the main backstory to the characters, a tale that allows Jordan to once again refresh and play with the mythology of vampirism.

Not quite as interesting or thought-provoking as it could be, Byzantium is nevertheless a solid entry into the vampire movie subgenre. Written by Moira Buffini, adapting from her own play (and, admirably, the film never feels stagey at any time), there are some very interesting ideas toyed with, including a theory about vampirism being quite a "men only" club, but not enough time given to any of them.

Jordan does his usual great work as director, but his work here is often downplaying anything that would make the story too pretty or evocative of past horror work. This is the life of a vampire shown in all of its mundanity. Sitting between the fangs-out fun of films such as The Lost Boys, and Vamp, and the grimy, downbeat likes of Martin and The Addiction, Byzantium shows just how boring eternal life can be when it means always having to move along every few years and never being able to get close to anyone.

Arterton and Ronan are both fantastic in the lead roles, with the former really making it easy to believe how men could be won over by her, and the latter doing a great job of being an old head on young shoulders. Caleb Landry Jones overdoes the strangeness of his character, and his accent/mumbling doesn't help, but there are better supporting turns from Daniel Mays, as a very sweet man who becomes smitten, Sam Riley, Uri Gavriel, Tom Hollander, Maria Doyle Kennedy, and Jonny Lee Miller, having great fun as a complete bastard.

Although this is the weakest of the recent crop of vampire movies from the past few years (fans of fangs will most certainly want to check out We Are The Night and Kiss Of The Damned), it's still well worth a watch thanks to most of the main performances, a few great visual moments, and a thoughtful script.

7/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Byzantium-Blu-ray-Gemma-Arterton/dp/B00BJ0RLMK/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1390686045&sr=1-1&keywords=byzantium+blu