Far From the Madding Crowd,
directed by Thomas Vinterberg
(PG-13, 119 minutes)
Danish director Thomas Vinterberg's version of Thomas Hardy's 1874 novel Far From the Madding Crowd may be set in rural 19th-century England, but there's nothing quaint about the film. The source material remains, brought to the screen in a lean, intimate matter.
Those longing to hear ornate speeches by overdressed characters will be disappointed. The film relies on a talented cast, and Charlotte Bruus Christensen's gorgeous rugged cinematography of landscape and lifestyle to do most of the storytelling.
Carey Mulligan is captivating as Bathsheba Everdene, who, unlike most young women in Victorian England, can take care of herself, thanks to an inheritance of a large farm from her elderly uncle; she doesn't need a husband to get by financially.
So she can carefully select among her smitten suitors, if she wants them at all. There's awkward, intensely loyal shepherd Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts). William Boldwood (Michael Sheen) is older, somewhat (but not much) more sophisticated than Gabriel, and seems to think that his cash can make up for his lack of charisma. And finally there's dashing Sgt. Francis Troy (Tom Sturridge), who looks studly in a military uniform and exudes brash confidence that belies his dim future outside of the military.
Vinterberg approaches the tale with a sense of urgency. He and Christensen might go overboard with the handheld camerawork, but Far From the Madding Crowd never plays as if it were being recited by a bored teacher who has forgotten why anyone ever cared for the story in the first place.
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MovieStyle on 08/07/2015