FILM REVIEW: The Favourite

By Dylan B Jones

RATING: *****

The surprise last minute contender for ALL the Oscars and ALL the awards won’t be everyone’s favourite. Certainly not Glenn Close’s or Lady Gaga’s, feverishly filing their nails as Olivia Colman smugly eats a crème egg. It’s also proved jarring for some audiences, who went down their local Odeon expecting a laugh-a-minute Monty Python-esque comedy and got something very different.

If you somehow haven’t heard of the most hyped film of the last few months, here’s a quick rundown; it’s directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, known for his surreal, lingering and at times chilling style. His 2013 dystopian dramedy The Lobster sent shockwaves through critical film circles, and now he’s back with The Favourite, an absurd British period drama/comedy, with lesbians and rabbits. We’re guessing Lanthimos is LGBT because he’s way too talented not to be, but we’re not sure so don’t quote us.

Something that makes it so unforgettable is risks he takes with the shooting of it. We’re used to a very classic style in British period drama. Usually the camera stays drably and traditionally in place. But Lanthimos sends his shots skittering across fields and over parquet flooring, fish-eye lense tableaus swinging madly into glossy, modern action shots of horse riding.

The other thing that makes it unforgettable is Olivia Colman. She’s been a scene stealer ever since the early days when she popped up with bit parts in Channel 4 sitcoms like Green Wing and Peep Show, and it’s wonderful to finally see her able to blossom. She portrays her character Queen Anne with hideous, hilarious reality – it’s fascinating, and it’s something audiences have never seen. Kings are sometimes portrayed as grotesque, but queens never, ever are. They’re often two-dimensional caricatures, any semblance of identifyability hidden behind crowns and corsets. Colman somehow manages to capture both haughty queenliness, and the same kind of vulnerability and scattiness you might see in a friend’s mum. The results are electrifying.

The rest of the cast is great too, Emma Stone perfecting the most convincing British accent since Renée Zellweger as Bridget. She handles her manipulative character Abigail with a satisfyingly camp dead-eyed flair. The always amazing Rachel Weisz is powerful and sexy as the Queen’s lover, Sarah. Even the boys are good, Nicholas Hoult as a hilariously pompous Earl and Joe Alwyn (Taylor Swift’s bf!) as a wide-eyed buffoon.

Go see The Favourite if you like being challenged, fascinated, titillated, inspired and taken out of your comfort zone. If you don’t like any of those things, bye! We don’t like you!

The Favourite is out now.

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