Filmworld
'Mr. Turner' - brilliant performances in picturesque frames (Movie Review)
By
By Troy Ribeiro Film: "Mr. Turner"; Cast: Timothy Spall, Dorothy Atkinson, Marion
Bailey, Paul Jesson, Lesley Manville, Martin Savage, Ruth Sheen, David
Horovitch and Ruth Sheen; Director: Mike Leigh; Rating: ***1/2
Written
and directed by Mike Leigh, "Mr. Turner" is a slow languid film
depicting series of moments in the life of the eminent British romantic
artist J.M.W. Turner, who was considered as the only artist who could
amost stirringly and truthfully measure the moods of Nature.
The
narration meanders aimlessly giving an insight to; Mr. Turner's
personality, the scenic English countryside and the art era especially
its transition from Romanticism to Impressionism.
"Mr. Turner" is
not a full-fledged biopic as it focuses only on the last quarter of the
artist's life. When we first meet him on the river bank in Holland, he
is a 50-something, grumpy man engrossed in capturing nature in his
sketches.
And with minimal dialogue expositions, while he
travels, paints and stays in the countryside, the film exposes the
idiosyncrasies, moods and eccentricities of the artist. It reveals his
relationship with his father; estranged mother of his two daughters; his
faithful maid Hannah Danby whom he occasionally exploits sexually; Mrs.
Booth, his second lover a twice widowed landlady; and his peers at the
Royal Academy of Arts.
"Mr. Turner" is solely Timothy Spall's
canvas. With his disheveled and clumsy figure, he creates a strong
physical presence. And, with his vast vocabulary of grunts he makes up
his own distinctive language. He is a bundle of contradictions and
appetites. He is also worldly and calculating, tender and cold. His
performance is truly a class apart.
Paul Jesson as his loving and
supportive father matches him in style. Ruth Sheen, as Turner's ex-wife
breathes fire into the handful of explosive scenes as a woman, who
cannot stand the man any longer, and Marion Bailey, as the genial and
caring Mrs. Booth is charming.
But it is Dorothy Atkinson among
the supporting cast who is most impressive as Hanna Danby, Turner's
timid and long-suffering housemaid. She steals the show with her passive
and physically eroding appearance. Her presence gets etched into your
memory and she remains with you much after you have left the theatre.
The rest of the artists are theatrical in their dialogue delivery and blocking, making the scenes appear pretentious and staged.
The
plot does not progress through any causality and effect momentum as
there is hardly anything dramatic by way of narrative eventfulness in
the film, but the director basks in the moments, and provides glimpses
of what it takes to be an artist, literally and figuratively.
Visually,
the film is atmospheric with golden hues. Each frame is picture perfect
with pastel shades, capturing the impressions of the period, the moods
of the artist and the era. Due credit goes to the cinematographer Dick
Pope and production designer Suzie Davies for assisting the Director in
achieving what he visualised.
The film is neither tedious nor inert. It just painfully crawls, depicting the animal instinct in the genius.
Despite its flaws, this film is worth a watch for the brilliant performances and picturesque frames.