Sylvia
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Movie Reviews of Sylvia
Movie Review: Totally off-track but worth the effort
Summary: 3 Stars
When you examine the life of someone such as Sylvia Plath, her spirit alone somehow makes you obsessed. I can't explain it but all I did was take one glance at her photo in a school literature book a year ago and haven't stopped being fascinated by every aspect of her life. Naturally I wanted to see this film but was unable to because it was released as far as I know only in New York and L.A.. I said screw it until the DVD came along and I bought it. As Yoda would put it, "Very disappointed I was". Any Plath fanatic worth their salt would totally dismiss the movie because to this day it would be hard to cast an actress who could properly embody Plath and her uniqueness, the way she looked, the way she spoke, etc; but the closest they were able to get was with Gwenyth Paltrow, whose performance was admirable nonetheless. Ted Hughes was played by Daniel Craig, the love interest of Angelina Jolie's "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider", but yet again if you compared the two you would see no physical or even spoken similarities. I will give the movie credit however for condensing a massive tale of darkness and passion to 2 hours without making it look like a mess, but I still thought a lot of integral moments were left out. In fact I know there are some deleted scenes floating about somewhere because in the trailer it shows brief clips of Sylvia and Ted playing darts (?), and Sylvia in a rain storm saying, "Never leave me." In retrospect, this isn't for hardcore Plath-ites, but for someone wanting a fairly decent education on one of the 20th century's greatest poets, rent it.Movie Review: Not what you think...
Summary: 3 Stars
The title of this film should have been 'Sylvia and Ted.' The film documented Slyvia's life in Cambridge and her meeting and marriage to poet, Ted Hughes. It doesn't document much of her life, pre-Ted. For example, we never learn about her father ( a huge subject in much of Plath's poetry); his death contributed greatly to Sylvia's depression (shame on all of you who think it was all Ted)--I don't think she ever really got over his death, she was admitted and received electroshock during her college years at Smith college. The film never really explains itself, we just glimpse Sylvia breaking down. If I watched this movie without all ready knowing a little of Slyvia's biography, I would have guessed that this woman was going psycotic from her husband's many infidelities. We never learn of, Sylvia the poet, the genius...the movie protrayed her more as a frail, psychotic nut. And the 'Bell Jar'....They never even mention the Bell Jar, maybe one or two references to it, where Sylvia mentions she's working on a book. If you want to know more about Slyvia, I recommend sticking to her journals.Movie Review: Paltrow is totally believeable and is fantastic
Summary: 3 Stars
Gwyneth Paltrow (The Talented Mr. Ripley, A View From The Top) portrays 50's and 60's poet Sylvia Plath who fell in love with British poet Edward "Ted" Hughes, played by Daniel Craig (The Trench). Their marraige starts off good but she becomes jealous of him thinking he's seeing women behind her back, which he is and she's jealous that he can come up with a poem faster then she can. Not supposed to be a feel good movie but the poetry mixed with the acting is fantastic. Paltrow shines and is totally believable and fantastic and Craig is demanding in his role as Teddy Hughes. Once again, in a movie, Blythe Danner (Cruel Doubt, No Looking Back), Paltrows real mother, plays yet her mother again. Also starring Jared Harris (The Eternal: Kiss Of The Mummy, Igby Goes Down) and the wonderful Michael Gambon (Harry Potter and The Prisoner Of Azkaban, Gosford Park). The end result is tradgic since its sad how Slyvia Plath took her own life but her presence still remains in her poetry and writings. Her most best and honored work would be "Aerial" the stuff she wrote before she took her own life.Movie Review: The Bell Jar Girl
Summary: 3 Stars
I caught this movie on HBO a few nights ago. I had heard about it, and wanted to see it. I knew Gwyneth Paltrow and her real-life mother, Blythe Danner, were playing Sylvia Plath and her mother. I expected the movie to be a downer, since it is a true story, and Sylvia Plath committed suicide in February 1963, during an especially bitterly cold winter, even by England standards - and I was not wrong. This movie left me feeling down, very down.
This movie seems to take for granted that everyone knows HOW Sylvia Plath committed suicide. They show everything that I have read about her last hours on earth, except how she killed herself. She really did take bread and milk, and put it by her children's beds. She did close their door and seal it with tape and put a towel at the bottom, so as to protect them from the gas of the oven.
I would not recommend this movie to anyone who has, or is, suffering from depression, or going through an especially dark, stressful period in their life. I thought it was informative, very low-key and very depressing.
Movie Review: good pictures, bad plot
Summary: 3 Stars
I gave this film three stars because it is visually pretty stunning. It recreates 50's England beautifully, and captures the isolation of young motherhood very well. I disagree with most reviewers, however, as regards Gwyneth Paltrow's acting. I just don't see her doing any. She is simply being Gwyneth Paltrow, a little strung out. Her Sylvia is glamorous, willowy, beautiful in a contemporary way that the real Plath was not. The film constantly changes facts slightly to support this portrayal. In real life, for instance, Plath and her children were staying with friends until the night before her suicide. The film shows her calling people frantically asking if she can come around and visit and being turned down. I guess the image of lovely Gwyneth crying in a phone booth is more arresting than that of Sylvia Plath surrounded by concerned friends, which she was. Read a biography if you want to know about her.