AMMONITE REVIEW

 *MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan are, undoubtedly, two of the most talented actors working today, with the former winning her first Oscar at the 81st Academy Awards for her performance in Stephen Daldry’s film, The Reader, and the latter being nominated four times, most recently in both of Greta Gerwig’s films, including her adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel, Little Women, and her original film, Lady Bird. Both Winslet and Ronan star in Francis Lee’s latest film, Ammonite, which is loosely inspired by the life of British palaeontologist, Mary Anning (Winslet) and focuses on a speculative relationship between Anning and Charlotte Murchison (Ronan). 

Although Ammonite focuses on two real life individuals, the story that details their developing romantic relationship is fictional and written by Lee. Following the success of his previous film, God’s Own Country, which was released in 2017, which was critically acclaimed, Lee continues to impress with his skills as a storyteller and, with Ammonite, he has created a engrossing drama. A lot of romantic relationships in films feel forced and rushed, fortunately, that isn’t the case with Ammonite. Lee makes sure to develop the characters and allows the viewers to get to know them before developing their relationship. In the beginning, Mary is a serious and antisocial palaeontologist whose only interest is in rocks and spends most of her time at the beach looking for and studying them. However, her life is changed by the arrival of Charlotte, who is sent by her husband to convalesce by the sea. Despite the chasm between their social spheres and personalities, Mary and Charlotte discover that they can each offer what the other has been searching for: the realisation that they’re not alone. This leads to them having a passionate love affair that defies all social bounds and alter the course of both lives irrevocably. I can’t imagine those who enjoyed God’s Own Country being disappointed with what Lee has created with Ammonite as both are compelling romantic dramas.

The strength of Ammonite, unsurprisingly, lie in the committed performance delivered by Winslet and Ronan. As Mary Anning, Winslet captures her character’s serious personality. Although she isn’t the most likeable of individuals, Mary is fascinating to watch. Winslet meticulously transformed herself in order to portray Mary, even altering the way she walked. Because of this, when she arrived on set out of character, Lee didn’t recognise her. Although Ronan has delivered better performances, as Charlotte, she leaves a lasting impression. Her personality is a complete contrast to Mary’s as she is lively and more charismatic. At first,  because Mary is enjoying her own company, she isn’t interested in Charlotte, however, she quickly warms to her. Both Winslet and Ronan share chemistry and capture their characters’ passionate feelings for one another. Their sex scene is explicit with both actress not shying away from revealing their naked bodies. While a lot of sex scenes feel awkward and cringe worthy, the sequence that focuses on Mary and Charlotte making love for the first time is powerful and effectively the intimacy between the couple. 

Because Ammonite is a period drama that focuses on a homosexual relationship between two women, it is frequently compared to Céline Sciamma‘s Portrait of a Lady on Fire, which was released in 2019. Those expecting Ammonite to be just as powerful as Portrait will be disappointed. I think it’s best not to compare the two as both Lee and Sciamma are filmmakers with different intentions. Portrait is a fascinating character study whereas Ammonite is more of a fictional love story between two real life individuals. Because I hadn’t seen Portrait when I first watched Ammonite last year, I wasn’t thinking of the former whilst watching the latter. However, after watching Portrait, the similarities between the two films are obvious. 

Although I found Ammonite to be a compelling drama for the majority of its 112 minute runtime with passionate performances by Winslet and Ronan, when I first watched it at the London Film Festival, I was left disappointed as it wasn’t as great as it could have been. The pacing issues made it a struggle to watch, especially in the beginning and towards the end. Prior to watching it, I thought that Ammonite could potentially be nominated at this year’s Academy Awards. Unfortunately, it was overlooked. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s a bad film. Ammonite is still entirely worth watching for Winslet and Ronan and for those who enjoy romantic dramas.

7/10

MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS REVIEW

*MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

Prior to its release, Mary Queen Of Scots was expected to be a major contender at this years Academy Awards, unfortunately, after a mixed reception from critics, it was overlooked but still received two nominations for Best Makeup & Hairstyling and Best Costume. I was very surprised by the critical reception as I thought that, judging from its trailers, Mary Queen Of Scots looked quite good and better than your average historical dramas. I mainly wanted to watch the film as it featured Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie as they're both talented actors and I thought that they were interesting choices to portray Mary Stuart and Queen Elizabeth I.

Mary Queen Of Scots explores the turbulent life of the charismatic Mary Stuart (Ronan). Queen of France at 16 and widowed at 18, Mary defies pressure to remarry. Instead, she returns to her native Scotland to reclaim her rightful throne. But Scotland and England fall under the rule of the compelling Elizabeth I (Robbie). Each young Queen beholds her "sister" in fear and fascination. Rivals in power and in love, and female regents in a masculine world, the two must decide how to play the game of marriage versus independence. Determined to rule as much more than a figurehead, Mary asserts her claim to the English throne, threatening Elizabeth's sovereignty. Betrayal, rebellion, and conspiracies within each court imperil both thrones - and change the course of history.

While I can understand why a lot of people were disappointed, I still enjoyed Mary Queen Of Scots. Most feature films based on historical events can feel like a history lesson and are boring, however, I didn't think that this was the case for Mary Queen Of Scots. I think that the main reason why people were disappointed was that it wasn't 100% historically accurate. Many historians will know that Mary and Queen Elizabeth I never actually met in real life and will probably be irritated by a scene featuring both characters where they meet face to face. The reason why director, Josie Rourke, wanted to include this scene was because it was based on the 10th century Friedich Schiller play, Maria Stuart, in which Mary and Elizabeth talk face to face on stage. She stated that she "really wanted to have our version of the scene, with these two women looking at each other and being confronted with their choices". In my opinion, this was one of the best scenes in Mary Queen Of Scots as it was interesting to see both Mary and Elizabeth meet for the first time. I also think that Ronan and Robbie were at their best here, in terms of their performances. Those looking for a film that is 100% historically accurate are better off looking elsewhere, however, I think for the most part, I think it's remained mostly faithful to its source material which is John Guy's book, 'Queen of Scots: The True Life of Mary Stuart". The story covers Mary's marriages to Lord Darnley (Jack Lowden), the father of her son, Edward, and the Earl of Bothwell (Martin Compston) and ends with her execution. The majority of the film focuses on Mary's life and her decisions and cuts to Elizabeth's reactions. While I'm not the biggest history fan, I was pleasantly surprised and found Mary Queen Of Scots to be a compelling watch. 

The strongest aspect of Mary Queen Of Scots are Ronan and Robbie's performances. Despite being overlooked at the Academy Awards, Robbie has been recognised for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I with nominations for Best Supporting Actress at the BAFTAs. Recently, Robbie has proven herself to be a versatile actor after giving impressive performances as Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad and as Tonya Harding in I, Tonya, the latter of which earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Leading Actress. She continues to impress with her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I, however, I was surprised by how little screen time she has, due to Mary Queen Of Scots focusing on its titular character. Like Robbie, Ronan has also given strong performances in the past and her portrayal of Mary Stuart doesn't disappoint. Being Irish, it was hard to pull off a Scottish accent convincingly, however, Ronan succeeds.

Rourke, making her directorial debut, makes a very assured move from the theatre to the cinema screen. She manages to recreate history and, with the help of impressive makeup, hairstyling and costume design, she does so convincingly. With help from her two leading ladies, Rourke also succeeds in making Mary Stuart and Queen Elizabeth I interesting characters who aren't afraid to speak up for themselves and shows audiences why they're iconic figures in history.

Mary Queen Of Scots may not be the 100% historically accurate feature people were hoping for, however, it's worth watching for the impressive performances of both Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie.

7/10

LADY BIRD REVIEW

*MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

Greta Gerwig is known for her acting and appearing in films such as Frances Ha, 20th Century Women and Jackie. However, with Lady Bird, she makes her directorial debut and it's an impressive one at that. It was released in the United States towards the end of last year and it proved to be incredibly successful, both with critics and audiences. On the review aggregation website, Rotten Tomatoes, it received a perfect 100% score, which means all critics gave it a positive review. They praised Saoirse Ronan's acting and Gerwig's writing and direction. Because of this, Lady Bird quickly became one of my most anticipated films of 2018. 

Christine 'Lady Bird' McPherson (Ronan) fights against but is exactly like her wildly loving, deeply opinionated and strong-willed mom, Marion (Laurie Metcalf), a nurse working tirelessly to keep her family afloat after Lady Bird's father, Larry (Tracy Letts) loses his job. Set in Sacramento, California in 2002, amidst a rapidly shifting American economic landscape, Lady Bird is an affecting look at the relationships that shape us, the beliefs that define us, and the unmatched beauty of a place called home.

Despite the high expectations I had for Lady Bird, it didn't disappoint. It is a thoroughly engaging motion picture that perfectly captures that of a woman who is too young to be considered an adult but too old to be a child. She's at the stage in her life where she's trying to make all the important decisions in her life including deciding which college she wants to go to after she finishes school. Lady Bird wants to go to a college in New York City, however, her mother wants her to remain in Sacramento. This leads to a conflict in their relationship. I think that a lot of younger audience members will be able to relate to Lady Bird and her relationship with her mother and wanting to be more independent. The first scene shows Lady Bird and her mother driving home and it's not long before an argument soon develops, leading to Lady Bird throwing herself out of the car. She doesn't sustain any serious injuries but wears a cast on her arm for most of the film. The relationship between Lady Bird and her mother shows that Gerwig understands how important the relationship between a mother and daughter is, however, she also knows that it has its ups and downs.

I can clearly see that Lady Bird means a lot to Gerwig as she spent several years writing the screenplay. The original draft ran at 350 pages, which is equivalent to a six hour long feature, and the first title was Mothers and Daughters. It wasn't until 2015 that Gerwig and her team secured financing from IAC Films, who produced the film alongside Scott Rudin Productions. Although Lady Bird has been described as semi-autobiographical, Gerwig has said that "nothing in the movie literally happened in my life, but it has a core of truth that resonates with what I know". To prepare the cast and crew, Gerwig gave them her old high-school yearbooks, photos, and journals and took them on a tour of her hometown. Although Noah Baumbach offered to direct, Gerwig turned him down, however, it's not hard to see that she took inspiration from him after appearing in two of his features including Frances Ha and Mistress America. Her films have a similar tone to Baumbach's features, however, it's not hard to see that Gerwig has added her own personal touch. If Lady Bird had been directed by someone other than Gerwig, I don't think it would've been as successful. Gerwig understands her characters and wants to tell the story in her own way so I can understand why she chose to direct.

At the time of writing this, Lady Bird is currently nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Motion Picture Of The Year, Best Actress in a Leading Role for Ronan, Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Metcalf, Best Achievement in Directing and Best Original Screenplay for Gerwig. I think that it thoroughly deserves to be nominated and I would like to see Lady Bird take home a few awards, however, it's incredibly tough competition this year, with Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and The Shape Of Water looking to become the big winners of the night. However, this doesn't take away how great the film is. Since making her debut feature film appearance in I Could Never Be Your Woman in 2007, Ronan has continued to impress. In her third feature, she received her first Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in Joe Wright's Atonement when she was only 12. She continued to give memorable performances in films such as The Lovely Bones, Hanna and Brooklyn, with her performance in the latter film earning her another Academy Award nomination. As the titular character, Ronan further proves why she's one of the best actresses working today. She understands Lady Bird and inhabits her fierce and rebellious attitude. The entirety of Lady Bird is worth watching just for her performance alone. I was unsure about Metcalf, at first, as, since it began in 2007, she has made recurring appearances on the sitcom, The Big Bang Theory, where she plays a similar role as Sheldon Cooper's mother, Mary. However, I couldn't have been more wrong about Metcalf. She proves she's capable of handling dramatic roles and earns her current Oscar nomination. Supporting roles come from Lucas Hedges (making his second appearance in an Oscar nominated feature, the other being Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri), Timothée Chalamet (who, like Hedges, appears in two Oscar nominated films, the other being Call Me By Your Name for which he is nominated for Best Leading Actor), Beanie Feldstein and Odeya Rush. These supporting roles all play a big part in Lady Bird's life and contribute to her story effectively.

Of the Oscar nominated films, that I've seen, Lady Bird is definitely the most enjoyable to watch. I think that this is because, in some aspects, I could relate to Lady Bird and understand her point of view. I think that a lot of viewers, who are the same age as Lady Bird, will enjoy this film. Greta Gerwig makes an impressive directorial debut and Saoirse Ronan gives one of her best performances yet. 

9/10

BROOKLYN REVIEW

*MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

In her strongest performance yet, Saoirse Ronan stars as Eilis Lacey, a young Irish woman who moves from a small town in Ireland to the big city, Brooklyn, in New York. There she hopes to make a living by having a job and finding love. Fortunately, she succeeds in both and develops a relationship with Italian-American, Tony (Emory Cohen). Unfortunately, tragedy strikes and Eilis has to return to Ireland where she meets Jim (Domhnall Gleeson) and must make the biggest decision of her life. 

Saoirse Ronan was nominated for a total of 51 awards for her performance as Eilis, all of which she deserved. In the beginning, we perceive Eilis as an incredibly shy and awkward woman but, after meeting Tony, she transitions into a confident and happy woman. Brooklyn is worth watching simply for Saoirse's performance.

It wouldn't be a successful romantic drama if there wasn't any chemistry between the two love interests. Fortunately, Emory Cohen is likeable and charismatic as Tony. He falls for Eilis and she soon develops feelings for him. We never doubt their love for each other.
Dohmnall Gleeson has limited screen-time and he doesn't make an appearance until late in the film. His character, Jim, is simply there to make Eilis question her feelings for Tony and make the ultimate decision: does she stay in Ireland with her mother and start a new relationship with Tony or does she return to Brooklyn to be with Tony?  

This film also features solid performances from two of Britain's well-loved actors: Julie Walters as Mrs. Kehoe, the woman who owns the house that Euclidean stays in and likes to gossip and Jim Broadbent as Father Flood, the caring priest who gives Eilise her job.

Most romantic dramas are all the same and are full of cliches but Brooklyn is unlike any other film I've seen. The film takes its time developing Eilis' character instead of rushing her story. Although the majority of the film is uplifting, it doesn't come without its lows, including a shocking tragedy. It's because of this that we feel sympathy for Eilis and she begins to feel unsure about where her true home lies.
Director John Crowley divided this film into three distinct acts by altering his visual approach in a subtle way. The first act, which happens in Ireland prior to Eilis' emigration, has a darker and more sober look and tone. The second act occurs when she arrives in Brooklyn and features more richer colours and contains elements of nostalgia. The third and final act which is when Eilis returns to Ireland revisits many of the same places as the first but with brighter lighting and there's no evidence of colour desaturation from the beginning of the film.

Overall, this is a beautifully told romantic drama with a strong performance from Saoirse Ronan.

8/10