6/20/2023 0 Comments Cast of effie gray![]() Cloaked in reds and purples, crushed velvets and tweeds to the point where the characters almost meld into the bracken, Effie Gray wears its colour palette on its sleeve. Yet the characters can seem under-written, from Effie herself to the distant Ruskin, as the $15m production flits between Venice, Ealing Studios and the Scottish highlands. Thompson herself, playing Effie’s advocate Lady Eastlake, is a welcome warm presence in her own film, as is young Tom Sturridge as Millais – he’s fresh and unforced and alive in the little air he is given. Wise, meanwhile, labours away on Ruskin as a slightly pantomime repressed British aesthete without any shred of self-defence, instead jumping to his feet to declaim: “What is the purpose of art?” or “I detest parties!” Yet while there is some reference to Effie being dosed with laudanum by Ruskin’s swivel-eyed, over-protective mother (played with relish by Julie Waters), that still doesn’t quite explain the inertia away. Speaking with an English accent, which is not entirely effortless, Fanning is guided towards a more subtle performance by first-time director Richard Laxton (TV’s Burton And Taylor, Him and Her). ![]() ![]() By all accounts, Gray was a sparky, vivacious character, who went on to lead a vital life as Millais’s wife and mother of his eight children. Much has been written on the subject, and Thompson’s screenplay plays heavily on the chilly Ruskin’s dubious history with Gray – they met when she was a child, and at least part of the reason she married him was for money. One thing we know didn’t happen, however, was sex during annulment proceedings it was insinuated that Ruskin was offended by the sight of Gray’s pubic hair and thus failed to consummate the six-year marriage. Nobody knows what actually took place in the bedroom between Effie (Fanning), aged 19 at the time of her marriage and Ruskin, aged 29 (rather improbably played by the 48-year-old mutton-chopped Greg Wise). Effie Gray seems to lack any sense of urgency, though it’s blandly reminiscent of everything from Wings of A Dove to Portrait of a Lady, Bright Star to last year’s Invisible Woman, without ever really finding its own signature brush-stroke. Effie’s drama fanned the fires of Victorian righteousness with its beautiful, scandalous society beauty, a critic with a penchant for underage girls, an unconsummated marriage, public affair, and ensuing scandal. Thompson has selected a story of severe sexual repression for her first original screenplay. Turner - limbers up for an awards season campaign. Filmed in 2012 but delayed due to sequential lawsuits, Effie Gray is finally making a muted appearance in cinemas shortly before the year’s heavyweight film about a Victorian painter- Mr. Written and co-starring Emma Thompson, Effie Gray also features an amazing ensemble cast including screen legends Claudia Cardinale and Julie Walters.Dakota Fanning’s almost hypnotically-blank performance eventually becomes a dulling drag on Effie Gray, Emma Thompson’s long-awaited screenplay about the infamous 1848 marriage of art critic and aesthete John Ruskin to Euphemia (Effie) Gray, who left him for the pre-Raphaelite artist John Everett Millais. ![]() ![]() Yearning for affection, she soon falls for the charms of the charismatic John Everett Millais, Desperate to be freed from John, Effie embarks on a life-changing journey to become one of the first women in history to seek a divorce from her husband. The story follows Effie, married at the tender age of 19 and who quickly realizes her marriage is a lie when Ruskin refuses to consummate it. When Effie Gray becomes the wife of distinguished writer John Ruskin, it soon becomes apparent that Ruskin regards her as a muse rather than a wife, and the stifling atmosphere of their home soon takes a toll on Effie's health.īased on the real-life scandal that shocked Victorian-era England, ‘Effie Gray’ is a sumptuous historical drama set against a luscious backdrop which explores the scandalous love triangle between Victorian art critic John Ruskin (Greg Wise), his teenage bride Effie Gray (Dakota Fanning) and Pre-Raphaelite painter John Everett Millais (Tom Sturridge). QUAD Player brings you the opportunity to stream the acclaimed drama Effie Gray (12), available now priced at £7.99 for a 3 day rental period. ![]()
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