The Favourite (2018)

“Some wounds do not close; I have many such.” – Queen Anne

Number of Times Seen – 1 (3 Jan 2019)

Brief Synopsis – Due to her own frailties, Queen Anne allows her close friend Sarah to make decisions of state, but things change when the Queen takes a liking to a new servant and wishes to spend more time with her than with Sarah.

My Take on it – This is a film that has had so much hype surrounding it for months and I’m glad that I finally got the opportunity to see what it was all about.

The premise itself is quite interesting and unique and they do an intriguing job of showing how women during the 18th Century could also have ambitions for power and politics and how they would do just about anything to achieve their own goals at the expense of everyone else.

The cast of this film shines and Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone are all superb in these roles even if things sometimes go a bit too over the top along the way.

The story is presented too much as a comedy instead of as a drama and that takes away so much from being able to take the events that happen seriously like it probably should.

Personally, I’ve never been the biggest fan of Yorgos Lanthimos’ previous films and its too easy to see how he uses his own unique stye in this film which IMHO takes away so much from the enjoyment of this kind of period piece.

Bottom Line – Very interesting and unique idea to show how politics and power could affect women in the 18th Century. The power plays by these characters work very well and they all try to find ways to outdo the others in order to keep as much control as they can on the matters of state. The cast is great and Colman, Weisz and Stone are all great here, but the story is told too much like a comedy and that takes away from being able t take things very serious like it should. I’ve never been the biggest fan of Lanthimos and his hand is much too apparent in many of the things done in this film which takes away from enjoying it even more. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Rachel Weisz’s character, Sarah Churchill, the Duchess of Marlborough, is the direct ancestor of both Sir Winston Churchill and Princess Diana (born Diana Spencer). The former was actually born in the Spencer-Churchill family’s Blenheim Palace, which is mentioned as being still unfinished in the film, and was named after Sarah Churchill’s father-in-law, the first Sir Winston Churchill. Before becoming prime minister, he wrote a biography of Sarah Churchill’s husband, the first Duke Of Marlborough (Mark Gatiss). (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (7/10)