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"Some wounds do not close; I have many such."
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Just close your eyes and picture this: orphans roaming the streets, smallpox, dysentery, typhoid, some ailment called "griping in the guts," rampant prostitution, sheep-theft-caused capital punishment, widespread lack of personal hygiene...
Are your eyes still closed? Open them. You just took a tour through England in the year 1700. Beautiful, huh? How would you like an all-inclusive trip (including four free diseases.) through this wonderful time and place? Don't forget your stiff-bodiced mantua lest you be caught unfashionable.
It was a time of extreme class separation. It was a time of uncertain employment and malnourishment. The rich lived in luxurious country estates while the poor fought plagues in crowded, destitute cities.
Politically, England was in a state of unease. It was at war with France and Spain, using vast resources to that end. The Tory and Whig parties were vying for internal-power, using manipulation and force to achieve it. Although Great Britain was expanding, now including Scotland, it was a time of friction and unrest.
And there sat Anne: shortsighted, shy, uneducated, obese, and chronically ill. She was the second daughter to King James II but was persuaded to side with her sister Mary (and Mary's husband William) as they overthrew their father. Once Queen Mary and William died, it was officially Anne's turn on the throne. Although headstrong to be independent and rule justly, she lacked the abilities -- she relied heavily on others for her decision-making and direction. Instead of political people, though, she looked to friends. That trust was poison for position and power; poor Queen Anne was controlled from every direction.
"The Favourite" picks up right there. Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) is on the throne, feigning power, mistaking flattery for fervor. She is led by her oldest friend Sarah Churchill, the duchess of Marlborough (Rachel Weisz). Sarah has earned the queen's undying confidence and uses it for her own gain. Although very bright and determined, her motives are questionable. Sarah not only fulfills the queen's social and political needs; she also fulfills the queen's physical needs, as well. The queen, now a disabled widow, has a weakness for attention and affection. Sarah has cozied so close to the queen that she rules the ruler.
In comes Abigail (Emma Stone), Sarah's cousin who is recently downtrodden and disgraced. Abigail was once a proper lady but has lost it all due to her father's bankruptcy. With a favor from Sarah, Abigail finds herself in the employ of the crown, trying to salvage any semblance of stability. As Abigail watches the happenings of the palace, though, she begins to have ideas. With a little well-placed TLC, she too could have her every-whim taken care of. Instead of getting scolded and scalded as a scullery maid, she could get fancy and fed as a friend of the queen.
With Abigail's newly-found esteem with Anne, Sarah becomes bitterly jealous. Each girl has a different political allegiance, a different side to benefit. The closer Abigail becomes, the further Sarah gets from the throne. It is an epic struggle for the ear of the queen. It is a spot as valuable as the coronation chair itself: the chair beside the chair.
Queen Anne is such an interesting character to me. It isn't so much what she did or what she had... it's what she had left. She had lived a life of loss. She had watched a husband suffer for years and die; she had watched as 17 pregnancies ended in miscarriage; she had watched as one single child (out of 18.) survived only to die at age 11. Now, in her later years, she had watched her love be abused and exploited. She was a product of extreme and consistent loss.
It is no surprise that she had a weakness for stable devotion. It is no surprise that she had a weakness for adoration (whether honest or devious). Time spent with the queen was the surest way to her heart. Hours logged. Games played. Stories shared. She had been abandoned so many times that she yearned to simply reach out and hold on. To clinch so as to not let get away. No more loss. It must truly be lonely to be the queen as you watch your rook, your knight, your bishop, your pawns, and, eventually, your king be stolen.
I wish I had some wonderful words for those of you who have loved and lost, for those of you who have fervently begged but still found yourself robbed. I am, admittedly, not an expert at loss. In my limited experience with suffering, I have felt mere twinges and shadows of what some of you have felt/are feeling. At this point in my life, though, I am certain, with absolute resolution, that I know what love is. Because that is true, I can approach loss with sensitivity and sincere sympathy.
My only advice for someone like Queen Anne is this: there is and will always be a worthy recipient for your valid and valuable love. Heir to the throne or no, someone desperately needs what you have. Divine Right or regular old dude, love granted has more power than any Sovereign Scepter or St. Edward's Crown ever had. It isn't easy to love and lose, but the fact that love never runs dry inspires me.
I have been watching the career of director Yorgos Lanthimos very closely now for four years. His breakout movie "The Lobster" had me extremely interested. His next movie "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" had me enthralled. His latest movie has been my most anticipated movie of the year. It did not disappoint. It was fresh, innovative, risky, hilarious, poignant, and unforgettable. Lanthimos has earned his spot as one of my favorite directors in just three movies. His vision is quirky yet approachable. His story-telling is dark yet inspiring. His sense of humor is so zany and deadpan that it has me laughing constantly. Best of all: he is unafraid to be different. To be unique. To be separate. To make art for the sake of art and not praise.
The acting in this movie rises to Lanthimos's exceptional talent; each performance is breathtaking. Olivia Colman has found a role of a lifetime; she embodies Queen Anne with a careful and critical ease. Her emotions are so real that you forget this is an actress on a movie set. Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone are equals in their tenacity and slightly buried vulnerability. They each support Colman perfectly. This movie is a true master-class in acting.
Another thing that stands out is the cinematography. The camera's movement is methodical yet sudden, smooth yet jarring. Lanthimos and cinematographer Robbie Ryan use interesting and unorthodox angles, including a fish-eye lens, to capture and explore this textured and ornately-grand world.
"The Favourite" will not be everyone's cup of tea (which seems appropriate because we are speaking of Mother England). It is rash, brash, and bizarre...but that is my favorite kind of tea. The rash, brash, bizarre kind... with a hint of cinnamon.
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REPORT CARD: "The Favourite"
Grade: A+
Comment: Taking the period-piece to a new and needed place