Film Review of Being Julia
Year: 2004 Reviewer: Chris Docker
Lyrical adaptation of a Somerset Maugham novella set in London's swinging '30s. We watch Annette Bening as a famous stage actress, her loves, her life, and finding her identity. If all the world is a stage, what does that make the stage? Bringing the emotions from off-stage drama into the play sometimes works and sometimes doesn't - and if we learn the perfect responses to every situation then how much is left of the real person? The film is far from perfect but it has a certain integrity to it. Bening's performance is a little patchy, but the highs and lows of her acting and 'acting the actress' serve ultimately to underline the themes of the story and its stunning ending. Intellectually stimulating without being too demanding, with wonderful music and costumes.
Rating: 7/10
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