Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

VividSimon Simply Perfect

Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.

Matho The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

ddlacree-991-615259 What makes this tale pathetic and even horrifying is that it is true. If the characters central to this saga truly lived their lives in such wretched repression, compulsion, pretension, evasion, subterfuge, denial, longing, jealousy, confusion, suppression, depression, altruism, platonic hypocrisy and lack of courage - then God help them! If their entrapment was a reflection of the age they lived in, then they acquiesced to societal norms and were not the creative, artistic free spirits they pretended or aspired to be. If their ennui was a result of their own inability to live in truth, then their pose was a pretense. There is nothing to admire in this story. Carrington was a coward, Lytton a poseur, and their circle a bunch on namby pamby weaklings. To suicide for a love that never satisfied is the ultimate statement of low self-esteem.If you are a depressive, you may enjoy this movie. Those who live in joy may do better to skip it. Not just skip it, but run, screaming, very fast, in the opposite direction.

L. Denis Brown Biography and history are not well represented among great film productions, one can sense that most film makers prefer to allow their imaginations free rein and avoid any factual constraints. But I always enjoy good biographies, whether in the form of books or films, and for me Carrington is a delightful film to be both savoured and treasured.However London was home to the so-called Bloomsbury group so they became best known in the U.K., and this film would be more readily appreciated there than in North America. The group consisted mainly of the leisured and fairly well to do junior offspring of aristocratic families who were able to spend almost all their time actively participating in the worlds of literature, drama or the arts. Its members were unusual in being very contemptuous of the contemporary moral code, whilst still having strong moral scruples that essentially governed all their actions. World War 1 occurred during the period when they had their greatest influence on British society, and many members of the group became infamous for being conscientious objectors to participating in the war on ethical rather than religious grounds. Sexually they had very progressive attitudes, and generalizing to perhaps a dangerous extent, they viewed personal commitments which had to be preserved as all important, but believed these commitments were made between the individuals concerned and were no business of either the Church or the State.Featured in this film are Emily Carrington and Lytton Strachey. She was a very well regarded artist who seemed to have some repugnance about exhibiting or selling her works in the usual way. He was essentially an essayist who achieved both fame and success with the publication of "Eminent Victorians" - a book of condensed biographies, many only a few paragraphs long but all showing considerable ability to pick out the key character traits that ultimately contributed most to the public image of the individuals concerned. Both are played (by Emma Thompson and Jonathan Pryce) with remarkable depth and sincerity.These brief comments may help anyone who has read little of the characters involved to understand why the film is of real interest to so many older viewers; they can do nothing to convey the charm and yet knife sharp precision it shows in displaying the activities of its principal protagonists. I find it hard to assess how far their activities might become of interest to younger viewers who have no familiarity with the period, purely on the strength of this film. I can however assure those who do not share my background that I found the film not only truly fascinating but also an immensely satisfying viewing experience. Usually, if a film biography causes me to look out for the book on which it was based, this is an indication that the film did not really succeed,; but not so on this occasion when I just felt the urge to enjoy more of the fascinating story.I rate this film at eight stars on the IMDb scale - if I had felt it would have a more universal appeal this would have probably been nine. In what they attempted to do its makers have shown near genius, and both the cinematography and acting are almost above reproach. Today I suspect that some will find it boring, but I believe they will be far fewer than might be expected from the subject matter - this is a prime example of one of the very few outstanding film biographies where a viewer almost feels he or she has got to know the actual characters being portrayed..

galensaysyes This is a film for emos--middle-aged, malelike emos, with their brains stuffed full of cotton like a Quay brothers puppet. 'tis ever so dainty and genteel, to be sure; ever trembling at the verge; but the verge is one of farce, not tragedy. The subjects are a pair of silly-ass Edwardians--one of them Lytton Strachey--who couldn't...I mean to say, they couldn't possibly...could they?...but they do. At one point the woman sets about cutting off the man's big, bushy, Edward Lear beard, just to serve him right, but as the first snicker is about to be sneed, her hand is stayed by the onset of adoration. As they lounging in a meadow together, she confides that she would jolly well like him to kiss her, whereupon he, much struck by the novelty of the idea, exclaims, "D'ye know, I think I should like to!" The material cries out for an Alan Ayckbourn to exploit its absurdity, but here is instead is treated with the greatest doe-eyed tremulousness, eggshell-walking, and tea-party delicacy. It's like a trail left by an animal with the minutest frame of reference possible. That animal is probably a snail. Scene after scene inches its way along to a tiny little line of dialogue, of the d'ye-know-I-have-a-notion variety, which promises to set the drama going. Then the scene fades out and that's it, that little line was all it was building to: nothing comes of nothing. Ms. Thompson whines and mopes her way through her part in her patented way, which has much in common with Monty Python's invisible man. Seldom does the film, in its great daintiness, allow her or Mr. Pryce or anyone else to suggest any genuine interaction that was ever had between any genuine people. Except for the actors, I can't imagine any reason why anyone would want to go to see this. My reason was that I was catching up on the film work of Penelope Wilton, who plays Strachey's mother. Allowed half a chance, she and the character could have given the film a good boot in the arse, which it deserved, and would have profited by; but all they had a chance for was a little pinch on the arm. More than that would have disturbed the doilies.

fred-houpt I had no previous knowledge of Dora Carrington before I found this film. I had learned about the Bloomsbury artists so many years ago I had forgotten their place in history. To say that this story is odd is a gentle understatement. Carrington was someone you would more likely place in the hippie era of the 1960's rather than England of pre World War One. On the other hand, the bohemian artists in Europe had the luxury of acting out some pretty odd relationships; they had fine examples of large living in the previous century - think Lord Byron and a bit later Oscar Wilde and you'll understand.I ended up so smitten by this film that I bought a bio on Carrington and it was worth the effort because the film leaves out so much of what made up her psyche. I'd even argue that the film as good as it is can be confusing because we don't know why she is the woman she is. Carrington carried two distinct imbalanced relationships up to the moment she met Lytton Strachey. She loathed and hated her mother and adored and clung to her father. Electra complex, anyone? Leaving Freud aside (and there is a deep irony in this comment: Lytton's brother became a well known Freudian analyst) Carrington was unprepared for the rush of emotions that Strachey caused in her heart. As an openly gay, brilliant intellectual and important writer, he would have been the last on her list of attractive men. But, love deals odd darts to the heart. After nearly clipping his beard off in his sleep as a planned retribution to his impulsive kiss, she paused, stared down at his placid face and fell madly and deeply in "love". The rest of the movie completes their extremely odd relationship. The important fact is that she never lost any of the intense love for this gentle spirit. She accepted that Lyton was more interested in men, shared lovers with him, opened her heart to anything except separation from him. We can argue that she had transferred her father love to Strachey but of course it becomes a label that in the end will not satisfy the mystery of her heart. There is much to be said about this film. Emma Thompson completely embodied Carrington as totally as an actor can. Aside her was Jonathan Pryce who portrayed Strachey so perfectly that it left those who knew Strachey amazed. The ambiance and rapport between the main actors kept the passion of their evolving love always front and center. We get glimpses of Carrington's torment over Strachey but we never really know the ultimate motivations. What is so overwhelming about this film is that when Lyton finally succumbs the heart break to Carrington was too much for her to carry. It removed her will to live without him to love. I have rarely been so moved by a love affair like this. The music by Michael Nyman is so perfectly evocative of the waves of Carrington's love that the soundtrack seems completely meshed with the story. In the end, watching Carrington make her final choice we are as devastated as she was at her loss of Strachey. As a love story it is intense, very complicated and twisted, as a relationship between man and woman it is as odd as they come. In the end we decide that love at this level is a connection of heart and emotion and commitment that is blind to shape and form and opinions of others. It is a link that is mysterious but tangible. One can only weep in acknowledgment that if we had loved someone that deeply we too would have wanted the escape she chose. An astoundingly profound meditation on love. Phenomenal supporting actors. Superb but heart rending.