I haven't seen Julian Mitchell's play but it would seem he's opened it up nicely into real locations populated by the bunch of bastards that are / were Britain's elite. Not Eton - actually shot around Brasenose College and the Bodleian in Oxford, with interiors at Althorp in Northamptonshire, richly caught by Peter Biziou (though my usual complaint of overlit night scenes applies here in spades - the cuddled boat scenes between Rupert Everett and eyelash-flutterer Cary Elwes look positively floodlit - hardly a discreet setting for a late night tryst).
Somewhat confusingly, both Everett and Firth (and Daniel Day-Lewis) played the lead figure Bennett (clearly modelled on Guy Burgess) in the original play, with Branagh as Judd. The latter was unavailable (Henry V) when filming began, thus Firth got the job. It's a shame really that neither of them subsequently had much of a career.
Guy Henry as the head boy is familiar from all sorts of things such as the Harry Potters, and Adrian Ross Magenty is rather good as the junior 'fag' whose face captures the fear and reverence whilst the camera shows their slave-like service.
Just like in If.... the masters rarely get a look-in - the 'Gods' and fancy-waistcoated Prefects are in charge.
It was rather good.
No comments:
Post a Comment