Mary Bryant

Romantic entanglements, distant voyages, and surprisingly harsh scenes from the unpleasant times of the past? The script cannot decide which path to take and thus ends up cutting off the branch it is sitting on. Romola Garai certainly carries even the more realistic Angelique, and both of her admirers are long-time first-class actors for me, but even after three hours, I couldn't get under the characters' skin. What doesn't sit well with me is that they are constantly faced with obstacles without any accompanying emotions, and instead of being moved by their multiple hardships, it only made me feel annoyed. The last few minutes do work well, but it is already too late to save the whole story. (16/10/2011)