Ammonite (B or 3/4 stars)
'Ammonite' (written/directed by Francis Lee) is my kind of misery porn - a morose, stormy English period piece about repression & desire. This brooding romantic saga will not appeal to mainstream audiences, but despite its slow burn narrative & dour tone, I'm grateful it exists. Little is known about the subject of this film, Mary Anning, played superbly by Kate Winslet. Anning was a self-taught paleontologist from the seaside town of Lyme in the early 1800s. Though respected, because of her gender, she was marginalized & never officially recognized for her work in fossil discovery; Ammonites are fossils, usually of octopi & squid that date back 419 million years ago. Mary was amazingly adept at finding Ammonites & cataloguing them.
When the film begins, it is 1840 or so and Mary is diligently searching the rocky coastline in Southwest England for fossils to sell to wealthy tourists. She barely supports her widowed, ailing mother, Molly (Gemma Jones), and herself with their tiny shop, so she is no position to refuse a wealthy fossil researcher, Roderick Murchison (James McArdle), who requests that she look after his frail, depressed wife Charlotte (Saoirse Ronan) while he is away on an expedition; she is in mourning over a stillborn child and is unfit to join him during his travels. The relationship btwn. the women starts frosty; Mary could be described as asocial. But what begins as a real hardship for both women turns into a simmering-then-passionate love affair that neither expected.
Despite the low-octane story & the dearth of dialogue in the script, Winslet & Ronan quietly rivet. Winslet's non-verbal acting represents one of her strongest portrayals in some time. In her relationship with Ronan, much is left unsaid, but so much is communicated through expressions & glances. It is fascinating to watch Winslet's body language & emotions trickle across her face as her Mary copes with unfamiliar feelings like love, loss & even some perceived betrayal. For most of the film, Mary is tightly-coiled & controlled ... but during the explicit sex scenes, she is finally able to let go. Gemma Jones provides support as Mary's sick mum. And Fiona Shaw {best known from the Harry Potter films} plays the enigmatic role of Elizabeth Philpott.
Cinematographer Stephane Fontaine is responsible for the magnificent look of this film. For me, the photography is another main character along with Mary & Charlotte - it's THAT good. From the cold, blustery scenes on the shoreline to the spare exteriors of the town to Mary's almost prison cell-like bedroom, Fontaine's camera & color palette {steely grays, muted blues, caustic beiges} gives breadth & depth to Mary's cruel existence & unique surroundings. Francis Lee imparts a subtle, reflective work of art featuring an accomplished cast & crew. Now, while I admire so much of 'Ammonite', it definitely lacks a pulse. There's something intangible missing in the depicted love and, it all ends on an ambiguous note; so, as mentioned above, it's not a crowd-pleaser, ha. But for those cinephiles who treasure great performances & films that evoke a distinct mood, it's not to be missed.
When the film begins, it is 1840 or so and Mary is diligently searching the rocky coastline in Southwest England for fossils to sell to wealthy tourists. She barely supports her widowed, ailing mother, Molly (Gemma Jones), and herself with their tiny shop, so she is no position to refuse a wealthy fossil researcher, Roderick Murchison (James McArdle), who requests that she look after his frail, depressed wife Charlotte (Saoirse Ronan) while he is away on an expedition; she is in mourning over a stillborn child and is unfit to join him during his travels. The relationship btwn. the women starts frosty; Mary could be described as asocial. But what begins as a real hardship for both women turns into a simmering-then-passionate love affair that neither expected.
Despite the low-octane story & the dearth of dialogue in the script, Winslet & Ronan quietly rivet. Winslet's non-verbal acting represents one of her strongest portrayals in some time. In her relationship with Ronan, much is left unsaid, but so much is communicated through expressions & glances. It is fascinating to watch Winslet's body language & emotions trickle across her face as her Mary copes with unfamiliar feelings like love, loss & even some perceived betrayal. For most of the film, Mary is tightly-coiled & controlled ... but during the explicit sex scenes, she is finally able to let go. Gemma Jones provides support as Mary's sick mum. And Fiona Shaw {best known from the Harry Potter films} plays the enigmatic role of Elizabeth Philpott.
Cinematographer Stephane Fontaine is responsible for the magnificent look of this film. For me, the photography is another main character along with Mary & Charlotte - it's THAT good. From the cold, blustery scenes on the shoreline to the spare exteriors of the town to Mary's almost prison cell-like bedroom, Fontaine's camera & color palette {steely grays, muted blues, caustic beiges} gives breadth & depth to Mary's cruel existence & unique surroundings. Francis Lee imparts a subtle, reflective work of art featuring an accomplished cast & crew. Now, while I admire so much of 'Ammonite', it definitely lacks a pulse. There's something intangible missing in the depicted love and, it all ends on an ambiguous note; so, as mentioned above, it's not a crowd-pleaser, ha. But for those cinephiles who treasure great performances & films that evoke a distinct mood, it's not to be missed.