The Favourite – Movie Reviews by Ry!

The Favourite – A Royal Piece of Art

The heart of any film is its story.  From great characters to elaborate visuals, the story provides the glue for the journey.  What makes me smile (in any film) is that the story was worth seeing till the end.  Indie film, period peace and a slight parody, The Favourite is one that brings together these elements within a great story.  With an intriguing look at royal life, this is one of the best films of the year.

The film focuses on the latter years of Queen Anne of England.  At this period of her rule, a handful of people in the royal court vie for her adoration and support that deal with the country’s affairs at home and abroad.  Being a period piece, you have your typical look at this specific era (18^th century).  The aesthetics are amazing to the eye, but it is only the tip of the iceberg.  The engrossing detail comes in the form of a well written script, where it is an intuitive blend of conflicting ideas, smart dialogue and captivating characters.  The film has a wide range of actors/actresses, but the stand outs are:

Olivia Coleman as Queen Anne

Rachel Weisz as Lady Sarah

Emma Stone as Abigail

Nicholas Hoult as Harley

Beyond vying for the Queens attention, the dynamic between the three (Lady Sarah, Abigail and Harley) creates a string of raw humanistic detail within the royal court.  Going against the grain, the director pushes contemporary interactions that break the common tropes of a standard period piece.  The heart of the story is these characters, as each invoke a sense of personal gain that represent England (as whole) within their purpose.  The strong dialogue gives detail to each person’s true intent, creating a place where absurd personalities and odd interactions lead to unpredictable outcomes.  You never know what each person will do, causing a layering of comical and dramatic tension that lead to real consequences.  There is no sense of a literal outcome, creating a genuine take on the cleverness of the script.

As the film lifts layers of awe and intrigue, the story begins to shed light on the struggle of power between Lady Sarah, Abigail and Harley within the court.  There is a hearty compliment of dark satire within a parody lens on the royal setting, revealing a flawed dynamic when people are pushed to decisions with emotions.  This is further laced with subtle dialogue, giving a slick look that diverts into twists and turns you don’t see coming.  By the time the final scenes bring everything to light, it revels in the foolery that highlights the outcome of blind ambition.  The Favourite highlights the endeavors of what a story can be when writing, directing, acting and visuals come together through a creative vison.  Complimenting multiple genres to create an intriguing journey of a historical setting, the relevancy of the story will have you thinking after the credits roll.  This is one I recommend to film fans alike.  It is a masterpiece of its own kind.

Final Score – 5 out of 5 (Legendary)