The Libertine
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Movie Reviews of The Libertine
Movie Review: Exquisite
Summary: 5 Stars
It is very easy to become immersed in the exquisite performance turned in by Johnny Depp as John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester in "The Libertine". And make no mistake. It is, in this writer's opinion the best of Depp's career. To portray an utterly irredeemable, repulsive and unapologetic character yet still manage not to alienate the audience requires nothing less than pure acting genius. John Wilmot is indeed irredeemable, repulsive and unapologetic. He is these things and more (or less depending on your perspective). He is utterly and shamelessly addicted to sex, drink, perversion and all things dastardly. He is also openly contemptuous of the monarchy to which he belongs and the charade of hypocrisy that it represents. Perhaps we are drawn to Depp's character because he embraces these behaviors and their consequences rather than indulging in them with secrecy, embarrassment and shame. What we feel for the Earl is very complex. Not quite hatred, not quite pity. But something mercurial that exists in between the two.
However, The Libertine is so much more than just a vehicle for the tremendous acting mastery that Depp possesses. It is in fact, endowed with several unique and compelling character studies. There is the besmurched yet sentimental and tolerant King Charles II of England played by John Malkovich who, despite repeated insults and disappointments at the hands of his Earl, continues to give John Wilmot reprieves in the hopes that the Earl might finally produce some endearing body of literary work that would favor the King's administration.
There is the maddeningly devoted wife of the Earl, Elizabeth, who continues to stand by her husband not simply out of duty as was expected in that era, but also out of genuine and unflinching love, despite the many ways in which he humiliates tortures and scorns her.
Then there is the Earl's muse, the poor, plain but supremely talented stage actress Livvie Berry, who is at once repelled by and drawn to the Earl, despite her misgivings about his notorious repuation and obvious infatuation with her. While Livvie is very far from the most sultry of vixens in which the Earl has indulged, he finds himself infatuated with her intelligence, her overwhelmingly defiant personality and the singular purpose with which the actress comports herself in achieving her one desire. That is to be the most adored actress in England. She is intelligent, strong and to the Earl's pleasant surprise, not simply another shallow conquest of the flesh. Livvie Berry is perhaps the most intriquing character in the entire film. Her's is one that indeed warrants a film all her own.
The Libertine is a film that will go largely unappreciated by the mainstream viewing public because of it's period setting and graphic subject matter. This however does not diminish the fact that it is a tremendous accomplishment in film. Combined with the fact that it is also blessed with complex and uncommon characters who are portrayed exquisitely by an exceedingly talented cast, the film will 10 years from now still be viewed as a relevant commentary on several fronts whether sexual, moral, political or romantic.
Movie Review: Johnny Depp as a credible actor? Who knew!
Summary: 5 Stars
I list this movie as a 5 star review because it surprised me so much. Specifically, Johnny Depp's acting quality in this movie is far beyond that of any of his other performances so far.
As a former actor, I regularly am drawn toward movies whose actors have powerful performances. This is certainly one of them. Johnny Depp's range is just astonishing as he moves from a man of cynical egoism to humble humanitarian, all the while resisting the transformation, dying of syphilis, and dealing with the ails of alcoholism.
What is so astonishing is that Johnny incorporates these qualities, and there are many, so flawlessly, there are many moments you forget it is Johnny Depp but some unnamed talented british actor. (The accent by the way is nearly flawless as well.) These are the performances that are great, you are so drawn in by the character you forget who is playing. Johnny Depp has achieved a performance that would rival Olivier and I do not use that comparison often.
The movie opens with Depp giving this brilliant monologue that has the feel of an Iago (villain in Shakespeare's Othello) type of character. You feel he is egotistical, intelligent, and up to no good, yet still charismatic. He is a lavish womanizer, popular statesman, and both loved and hated by his peers. Depp really brings out his own awareness of his situation and plays all the right notes, perfectly hitting the difficult British wit that so many times is above an American actor's head.
As his situation degenerates, we find weakness in the seemly untouchable character; Depp embraces regret, shame, and self-destruction in only the way an alcoholic could understand it. A feeling of uniqueness and loneliness that is covered by an over-compensating facade of selfishness. It is amazing to see that when Depp compares himself to Jesus Christ, you totally understand why he thinks that way, desperately grasping for meaning in his life as grand as Jesus's.
Then as we see his last attempt to do good, which works out well in his favor, he is able to die. He no longer has the contempt of the world on his shoulders and even as he hobbles away, so badly afflicted with syphilis he can't even walk straight, he is even able to make peace with his wife in his dying breath and discover a sense of dignity he never had before.
The closing monologue, as powerful as the opening one, returns to him commenting on his own life, trying to retain his facade of disinterest, but this time we see a crack of humanity as he repeats the last line of the movie over and over in a quite desperation.
Unlike Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Ed Wood, where he played parodies of the characters he portrayed, this is the real stuff. This is acting at its finest. The fact he is not mentioned for an Academy Award for this performance makes me weep. If you enjoy watching movies to see great quality acting and believable performance, this will be at the top of your list.
Movie Review: The Darker, Far More Interesting Side of Restoration England
Summary: 5 Stars
THE LIBERTINE is one of the most atmospherically captured stories/biographies/tales on film. Based on the highly regarded play of the same name by Stephen Jeffreys who thankfully transferred his poetry to the screen in a brilliant screenplay, THE LIBERTINE glows with a sense of history, of social conscience, of the tawdry court of King Charles II in England, and relates the brief but scandalous yet ultimately poetic life of John Wilmot, the second Earl of Rochester (1647 - 1680). Laurence Dunmore directs with a pace that is rapid and sure and a feeling for the story that is uncannily real. The film may bit a bit heavy for some viewers, but for those who cherish the English language written and spoken like Shakespearean poetry this film is a brilliant work.
Johnny Depp as the Earl of Rochester delivers a dazzling portrayal complete with utter debauchery, incessant drinking, crude antics, razor sharp observations about life and the senses that marked the 33-year life of his character. From the open monologue about why he does not want to be liked to the closing recapitulation, Depp is immersed in this character, delivering a bravura performance bathed in Depp's gift to say as much with his eyes and his body language as with his delivery of lines. As King Charles II John Malkovich gives his finest role to date, stepping down from his original habitation in the role of John Wilmot he created on the Steppenwolf stage to offer a King riddled with problems of a kingdom at odds with history and rampant with social disease. Rosamund Pike is radiant as Wilmot's frustrated and neglected wife and Samantha Morton brings the actress Lizzie Barry to life as the only woman Wilmot seemed to love - or was it really the theater he loved, the venue where he could allow his true motivations to be experienced instead of being trapped in the body ruled by libido in which he lived, eventually dying of the Great Pox (syphilis) in a wretchedly distorted body yet able in his last days to support the monarchy in an unexpected, highly dramatic appearance before Parliament.
The large and impressive supporting cast includes cameos by Paul Ritter, Stanley Townsend, Francesca Annis, Tom Hollander, Johnny Vegas, Richard Coyle, Hugh Sachs, Tom Burke, Rupert Friend, Billy Downs, Kelly Reilly, Trudi Jackson, and Claire Higgins. The costumes and scenery, lighting and camera work are some of the finest we've seen in period pieces. And the musical score by Michael Nyman is superb, worth owning as a CD if it becomes available.
There is an added feature on the DVD about the making of the film and watching it, with all the energy and love from the entire crew. Seeing this kind of banter form a group committed to making a fine independent film only serves to whet the appetite to immediately watch this excellent movie again. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! Grady Harp, July 06
Movie Review: Through a glass darkly
Summary: 5 Stars
Depp is a fine actor at almost anything, but so are many of the others in this film, e.g. the great John Malkovich. You'll either hate it or love it. In that sense, and only that sense, it is akin to Moulin Rouge. No one was lukewarm about it. Depp is developing of range that exceeds even his early promise.
What makes this film difficult is that the film begins darkly and it never lets up. Depp's character warns you at the beginning, but is he serious? Yes. The sun doesn't shine every day. Wilmot/Rochester WAS a real libertine, a nihilist who had difficulty understanding what anything meant and understanding it all too well. He was unhappy when he got what he wanted and frustrated because in the end he got almost nothing of what he wanted.
His sexual appetites were voracious in the extreme - women, men and probably anything else that stopped long enough for him to charm for the moment or seize by force.
FWIW, I also admired Restoration. Downey shares with Depp the ability to pull almost anything off. And the period is a rich area to mine. Diffferent films. This is definitely not a comedy.
You can see a stage play as its bones if you choose, but it is a script of the mind rather than of place. As to how closely it follows Wilmot's actual life, it may take liberties, but thematically not many, whether the abduction of his wife or his speaking for Charles II in something of a noble act near the end of it.
Did this lifelong atheist renounce atheism on his deathbed? No one knows (or cares) but his mother harassed him as did the bishop who needed a trophy soul. But there are athiest in foxholes and Wilmot most likely died that as one.
The Restoration was among other thjings a turn against the religious extremism of the Dissenters, AKA Puritans, Parliamentarians. But Wilmot's mother was by family a Puritan and parliamentarian; his father was a Royalist and military commander who spent much of he last years of his life out of the country. Was Rochester a great writer or a hack? Probably some of both. He wrote in a period that does not readily carry over to a popular audience. Shakespeare was as great as they come, but no ones queues up to see films of his plays.
There is in any event, no place in the film where you are likely to find Depp's character appealing, except that Depp has the ability to extend himself such that you can glimpse the charm and wit of Rochester. His life makes all the more remarkable and appealing, for a moment, his courageous speaking for his friend and king.
Was it wise in the end? Perhaps not. But it was wise for Wilmot himself. To do what you think right is never a bad thing, when you have spent your life living as though there is nlothing bad in doing whatever your wish.
Again, not for everyone. Don'tt be depressed when you see it. Don't take a shrieker.
Movie Review: The Sowing, The Reaping
Summary: 5 Stars
With each new Johnny Depp film, whether in main lead or a secondary role (even in these, he somehow manages to become the main attraction), I am ever more impressed. This is an actor with astounding range and creativity. His willingness to take on the most challenging (if not, one might think, by Hollywood standards, downright undesirable parts, then making them so) roles, making each one uniquely his own, has earned my respect.
The Libertine, with Depp playing the part of John Wilmot, the Earl of Rochester, in 17th century England, brings us into the life and psyche of a man who devoted himself to debauchery. He was not ashamed of it. Indeed, he seemingly thrived on his own dark reputation, relishing the sensation (word play intended) he caused.
The movie, directed by Laurence Dunmore, opens on a dark screen, with Depp - John Wilmot - emerging momentarily from the shadows to announce to his viewers in a kind of stunning intimacy: "You will not like me. The gentlemen will be envious and the ladies will be repelled." At least in speaking for the ladies, if I may, he's right. Wilmot is the ultimate con-artist, the ladies' man who breaks hearts, uses women for his pleasure, then leaves them behind once he has gotten his. To him, women exist only to provide him all sensual pleasures.
To live such a life, however, in whatever century, and despite a man's every effort to deny to himself his own greater humanity, leads to depression, and Wilmot is no exception. When he isn't doing "the act," he is finding himself in the bottle. His one redeeming quality is his writing talent. For this, he is hired by King Charles II, played by John Malkovich, to produce theatre to gain popularity for the King.
Even a libertine such as Wilmot, however, has a heart buried in there somewhere, and his is brought to surface by an actress named Lizzy Barry. She is far from a beauty, but, ironically, in this woman it is not her physical attractiveness that wins Wilmot's heart; it is her fiery personality, her independent spirit, and perhaps even her unwillingness to be taken in by Wilmot's charms.
If there is any measure of an awakening in the character of Wilmot, it is squashed by his self-destruction, finally appearing in the form of syphillis, leaving him horribly disfigured and crippled. Depp plays brilliantly a scene in which Wilmot seems to wish to make things right with the King, although even in this he is self-serving, seeking only his own redemption.
A stunning, if at times deeply disturbing, movie. Not for those who are easily offended, although if any storyline proves what one sows, one reaps, surely this one does. It is worthwhile if only to witness one of Depp's most remarkable performances to date.