This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
Secrets
Plot Overview
The final
party of the 1930 season in Amalti, Italy, playground of the
rich, is the twenty-first birthday bash for newlywed Megan
Windermere (Scarlett Johansson) whose guardian angel's picture
is secreted inside her locket, later to be shown to American gold
digger (“a notorious Jezebel”) Mrs. Erlynne (Helen
Hunt.) At Erlynne's suggestion wealthy investor Lord Robert
Windermere (Mark Umbers) has gifted his wife of a year (“It's
an eternity!”) an embellished fan of a kind once used by
gentlewomen to convey sub rosa messages, which was coyly demonstrated
to him in the boutique by Mrs. Erlynne. She'd recently arrived
by boat from Depression era New York with her eye to a news release
featuring the Windermeres, concerning which we note paupers receive
not so much press. Meg having discovered undeclared moneys in her
new husband's ledger going to the other missus will get back at him
through wearing a shockingly revealing dress (“Plain girls cry;
pretty girls go shopping”) to the party. Life gets interesting
on the yacht of playboy Lord Darlington (Stephen Campbell
Moore)—with his roving eye—when the fellows drunk from
after the party come aboard while female stowaways are lurking
in the galley. The gossip around town has been speculating the worst,
but what gets sorted out is another matter altogether.
Ideology
Through folly or design, people have been keeping piddling secrets that turn out to be consequential. Individually they have the option to come clean (“I'm going to tell him the truth,”) but that might not be in the best interests of the parties affected. The wisdom of age has it that, “What you did is your mistake. Your sack of bricks. You carry it. You don't confess and hand it off to someone who loves you.” The good book does tell us, (Prov. 30:32) “If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth.”
Production Values
“” (2004) was directed by Mike Barker. The screenplay was written by Howard Himelstein, pirated from Oscar Wilde's play, “Lady Windermere's Fan” set in an earlier decade and Anglo country. It stars Helen Hunt, Scarlett Johansson and Tom Wilkinson. Hunt exudes modernity making it difficult to see her in this historical setting. Johansson is a veritable drama queen and pretty to boot. The rest of the cast is well worthy of the script.
MPAA rated it PG for thematic material, sensuality and language. The movie progresses like a stage play at modest tempo in beautiful surroundings with handsomely dressed characters. History takes second seat and accents a third. It has a runtime of 1½ hours. Noteworthy is the historical airliner flown at the end, a De Havilland Dragon Rapide biplane. Shortly after the start of the end-credits, there's a short scene on a boat where men are still trying to figure out women.
Review Conclusion w/a Christian's Recommendation
AGW is a feast of witticisms and innuendo. However,
I'd liken it to a potluck where the various dishes aren't well coordinated
with each other. Changing the play's time and place to make it into
this movie necessitated filler material not natural to the dialogue,
evidently borrowed from the playwright's other works. Good stuff but
hard to stomach here. It's okay as a play come to the big screen but
it doesn't make up for lost ground.
Movie Ratings
Action Factor: Weak action scenes. Suitability for children: Suitable for children with guidance. Special effects: Well, at least you can't see the strings. Video Occasion: Good Date Movie. Suspense: Keeps you on the edge of your seat. Overall movie rating: Four stars out of five.
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