By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
Starring: Carolyn Saint-Pé | Emma Stone | James Smith | Mark Gatiss | Nicholas Hoult | Olivia Colman | Rachel Weisz | William Dalby
Country: ireland, united_kingdom, united_states
Year: 2018
Running time: 120
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5083738/reference
Thom says: “In nine short years Greek director Lanthimos has vaulted to my TOP 10 Living Directors. I’ve been unable to find his first two features MY BEST FRIEND and KINETTA, but his five films that followed have all received my highest rating: DOGTOOTH, ALPS, THELOBSTER, THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER, & now THE FAVOURITE (love the English spelling). Both DOGTOOTH (2009) & THE KILLING OFA SACRED DEER (2017) received my FILM-OF-THE-YEAR coveted award. And what I’ll always remember DOGTOOTH for is that it was also FILM-OF-THE-YEAR for my dear past friend Bruce Kingsley, one of three films that achieved that distinction, the others: HAPPINESS (1998) & MOONLIGHT (2016). So you might well imagine my approach towards Lanthimos’ latest gem. I went with 3 dear friends who also highly enjoyed it. This brilliant film though is completely different from all his earlier 4stunners. And all that more remarkable due to this being a biopic; albeit, one that is wacky, vicious, & imagined. His earlier films all envisioned a world in an alternate universe. His characters all did things that people on this Earth simply wouldn’t or couldn’t do. In DOGTOOTH it was the isolated, insane family; in ALPS there was the group that impersonated dead people to soothe the bereaved; THE LOBSTER had people turn into animals if they couldn’t find a suitable partner & last year’s THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER, featured an evil teen who could damage a family physically & mentally from his nefarious machinations.
“THE FAVOURITE takes place in 18th century England with a frail Queen Anne (a spellbinding performance by the irrepressible Olivia Colman) holding the power while controlled by her confidante and possible lover the scheming Lady Sarah (Weisz in a performance that defines bitchiness). Into court the bedraggled Abigail arrives, a down-on-her-luck cousin of the connected Sarah and she lands a lowly job. Emma Stone is far superior here than in her overrated Oscar winning turn in LA LA LAND. Abigail has no intention of staying a lowly servant at court and she uses every means at her disposable to finally achieve the role of the Queen’s ‘favourite’, even going so far as”putting her tongue in her”. The repartee here is above reproach, delightfully colloquial and filled with black humor and gaining an outburst of laughter. Yes, Lanthimos has his usual abundance of quirky scenes, like the pelting orgy, or the scandalous whorehouse, or the shooting matches, but he certainly sticks to his story. One of the best things about the film is the representation of the men as all overdressed, over-made-up, powerless fops, that isn’t to say fey, but useless. It’s a great conceit. Kudos all around to this delightful, mean-spirited romp. 5 cats“