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The Best of What is Out There...


This adaptation reminds me of a Winston Churchill quote:

"...democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time."

This, in essence means that it's the only one that works, which is how it is often misquoted: "Democracy is the worst form of government, but the only one that works".

I've seen most of the adaptations, and this is the best, but it's nothing compared to the novel(s) of which there are three. That being said, this production is very good and such a joy to watch.

Sean Bean IS Mellors, that much is very true. He surely inhabits this character. Some people deride Joely's performance and I think they are absurd. She does a fantastic job dealing with the complexities of the role. She makes the most profound transformation, whereas Mellors is basically himself throughout. I'm sure it wasn't easy for this young woman to do so much nude work and for either of them to have to be sexual in front of a camera and crew. I know that Ken Russell could be a real pill to work with, it can't have been easy to do this movie. I suppose the difficulty was mitigated a little because Ken Russell has said he did all the camera work himself, reducing the crew in the room at least by one. Still, she is fearless in this and doesn't hold back even a little. The scene where they dance in the rain is beautiful and Joely handles the difficult segment with real charm and abandon. Sean Bean also does a great job, showing us a joyous, carefree side to the usually melancholy and pained Mellors, particularly afterwards in the hut when they adorn each other with flowers.

As far as I'm concerned Joely did a fantastic job, she is unbelievably beautiful and I totally believed her as Lady Chatterley. She accomplishes in this adaptation what NO other actress has been able to do, and that is to help us understand what is going on in the mind of Constance. For example, the new French adaptation with Marina Hands. I have no idea what Hands is thinking, there is no insight into why she is with Mellors (who is called Parkin in this version).

Joely is absolutely luminous in this (as she is in most things) very believable as an aristocratic lady, which heightens the excitement when she begins her affair with Oliver. It was this production that caused me to really appreciate her talent, which is considerable. Her beauty is almost unreal, which adds to the fairy tale quality of the work. I just can't say enough about her, or the fantastic Sean Bean in this work. If you haven't seen it, you owe it to yourself to do so, now.


"...nothing is left of me, each time I see her..." - Catullus

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