Hey folks Harry here... While I was in Prague last year, THE AFFAIR OF THE NECKLACE was actually shooting, and I kept missing connections with the filmmakers, so never got a chance to check out the shoot... which if the picture at the bottom of the review is any evidence of.... then the film was a rather lush production. The original location of the pic comes from The LA TIMES Calendar Gallery and their Sneak Preview At 2001 with tons of pics!!! Meanwhile, this film isn't scheduled to hit screens till Fall/Holiday season about Thanksgiving... BEWARE OF SPOILERS
Harry,
T-man here. Thought I might put together a few thoughts on "The Affair of the Necklace" for ya. Seattle is apparently the first place to be seeing this film, which isn't scheduled for release until late November. This was my first test screening, so I thought it was really cool, even though we had to stand around for close to an hour and a half before start time. Anyway..
"Affair of the Necklace" is a lavish costume drama, starring Hillary about-as-far-from-Brandon-Teena-as-we'll-ever-see Swank. I wasn't sure what to expect of her, after she left little to no impression in "The Gift", but the girl's got talent. She has a damn good handling of her character's dialect, here -- not to mention that she's drop-dead gorgeous. The film, overall, is very well lit and photographed (wish I could refer to the cinematographer by name, but we weren't provided with info on the crew). Hillary Swank in particular, though, just looks plain... luminous! Couldn't take my eyes off her. She plays Jeanne de la Motte-Valois who was orphaned as a child because her father was "openly critical of The Monarchy". She gets adopted at random into The Bastille, grows up there, and eventually schemes to restore her family's good name. She stirs up a scandal, played out amongst herself, her estranged husband (Adrien Brody), her lover Retaux and a womanizing Cardinal Rohan (the great Jonathan Pryce). Oh, and Queen Marie Antoinette (Joely Richardson.. sexy as ever). Goes like this: the Cardinal had a thing with Her Majesty Antoinette once, but pissed her off somehow, and now he's looking to become Prime Minister but the Queen won't allow it; it's personal. Jeanne -- who intends to advance herself up the ranks of royalty and, by doing so, bring honor to her name -- tries to approach the Queen and get in her good graces, but Jeanne gets dissed. Also, also.. I should mention there's this 2,800K necklace designed by the Queen's personal jewelers, but she didn't commission it, so the jewelers are stuck with it. Jeanne, then, starts forging love letters back and forth between the Cardinal and the Queen, and convinces Cardinal to purchase the necklace for the Queen. Jeanne would keep the money for herself, and achieve her personal victory, while whatever happens with Antoinette and Cardinal Rohan happens, but things go wrong. She is found out and suffers the repercussions.
Whew.. hope all that was followable. I had to scribble on paper madly in the dark to sort it all out. I found the story to be intriguing. The dialogue is poetic, and full of coy humor. There are some great wide-screen shots, and the soundtrack - temporary, from other films (including "Aliens", if you can believe it), so obviously there will be a different score by time the movie is officially released - was fitting. Acting is good, all around; except Christopher Walken, with a pointy mustache and one god awful German accent. Swank rules this thing. Her character is mischievous and playful and ambitious, but also kind of deceitful, what with her hidden agenda; she plays with fire, and gets burned. And Swank never misses a beat, although it did seem like she was being too reserved - even in context with the period - and holding back a bit. Still, she passed my Marisa Tomei test for actresses: I'll watch her in anything, now.
I did think the ending was a wee bit confusing; if Jeanne wasn't beheaded, then why show it? And, from what I gathered, the film was trying to say at the very last moment that Marie Antoinette was actually Jeanne's mother, or something.
I would give it a solid three-stars. The film should get a PG-13 rating, if and when the scene with Swank walking around nude, wearing only a necklace, is shortened. I know Hollywood has a tradition of releasing Oscar contenders near the end of the year, but I don't think this one will quite make the cut.
T-MAN
