4 reviews

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Kathryn February 27, 2007

To see or not to see, that is the question, whether it is nobler to watch a film after reading the book or to take the decision to stay away. Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished (sorry Will).
A Judi Dench film is always going to be worth seeing, I thought, and Cate Blanchett is usually good value for money, so I swallowed my doubts and bought the ticket. Judi Dench did not disappoint; what makes her such a great actor is that she becomes a character in a way that few actors are able to do. She becomes, in this case, a devious spinster who tries to manipulate other women and she really is sinister, but also vulnerable. Cate, too, floats around wispily and appealingly as the naïve new teacher.

Why then did they have to change the ending? In the book, the Judi Dench character wins out and the web she spins round Sheba (Cate Blanchett) slowly closes until Sheba cannot escape. In the film Sheba escapes.

But go and see the film – especially if you have not read the book. The acting is magnificent and you will not be sorry you went.

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Ben February 6, 2007

A good film, but probably not worth the hype, not all of it anyway. Judi Dench is excellently unrecognisable in her role as a long-serving history teacher. Cate Blanchett's performance as the new, attractive art teacher is also good, as is Bill Nighy's, who plays her husband.

What the film lacks is a sense of causality: the event of Blanchett's affair with one of her pupils occurs early in the film and there is seemingly little reason for it. Yes, Blanchett isn't 'too' happy in her marriage, but is that enough of a reason for her to sleep with the fifteen year-old? There is no real sense of attraction (on her part) and this is certainly not a power display, either.

This central weakness aside, the film is worth watching, if just for Judi Dench's wonderful performance as a lonely, manipulative spinster, eager to make friends (and more) with Blanchett. As becomes evident throughout the film, Dench has tormented others through her obsessiveness, and as the final scene shows her introducing herself to another forlorn woman, she will continue to do so.

In all, a good film, enjoyable and worth seeing.

The Teaching System fucks you up.
It may not mean to but it does.
It drives you mad with loneliness,
The rumours spread, in comes the fuzz.

The Teaching System does not work:
For talented pupils banned from art,
For teachers emotionally over-stretched,
without support - Miss Sheba Hart.

For Barbara the battle-axe
Who cattle prods the kids and gets
Results, but wants to keep her friends
To own, and stroke, like they're her pets.

Judi Dench is great, of course,
Funny, scary, sad and slick,
And accurate and unsettling:
If you're in teaching get out quick!

Larkin-esque 5 Feb 2007

Excellent performances from both Cate Blanchett and Dame Judi Dench but overall a little disappointing for all the hype. As can be the case when novels are made into movies, this was lacking in a number of areas. The translation to celluloid was not totally fulfilling, as the novel was superior and much of what made the novel an excellent read was lost on the silver screen. Although only a few points (the turbulent mother - daughter relationship, how the affair came to light, the extent of Sheba's delusion - think Mary Kay LeTourneau, the husband's reaction and subsequent actions, and the ending) were changed, they were major changes and the storyline suffered because of it. Go see the movie but definitely read the book.

4 Feb 2007