Themes: Social Climbing, Haunted By the Past, Rags To Riches
Main Cast: Geraldine McEwan, Reese Witherspoon, Romola Garai, James Purefoy, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Rhys Ifans, Gabriel Byrne, Jim Broadbent, Bob Hoskins, Ruth Sheen
Release Year: 2004
Country: US
Run Time: 140 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
William Makepeace Thackeray's witty assessment of the British class system, as seen through the experiences of one young woman, is brought to the screen with some serious star power in this period comedy drama. Becky Sharp (Reese Witherspoon) is a bright and ambitious girl born to a poor British family. Becky is determined to make something of herself however she can, and after accepting a job as a nanny for the children of the powerful and aristocratic Sir Pitt Crawley (Bob Hoskins), she wastes no time ingratiating herself with the family. Pretty Becky catches the eye of Crawley's handsome and eligible son Rawdon (James Purefoy), and becomes chummy with sharp-tongued Aunt Matilda (Eileen Atkins). Between the two of them, Becky is introduced to London's most exclusive social circle, where she becomes re-acquainted with Amelia Sedley (Romola Garai), a former school chum who is amused by Becky's efforts to scale the ladder of social influence. Becky weds Rawdon, but following initial happiness, the social and economic stability she dreamed of begins to collapse when he begins drowning his troubles in gambling and drink, and soon she turns to the powerful Marquess of Steyne (Gabriel Byrne) for support. Meanwhile, Amelia's fortunes fall even harder following the death of her husband. Vanity Fair was directed by Mira Nair, who enjoyed a surprise international success with 2002's Monsoon Wedding. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
In the past, Mira Nair's films were notable for their fine grasp of character, as the filmmaker drew out the pulsing humanity of even minor or would-be villainous characters, immersing viewers in a rich, believable world. In adapting William Makepeace Thackeray's classic novel, Vanity Fair, this gift has failed her to some extent. Beautifully shot by Declan Quinn, the film has a colorful sumptuousness and a visual exactitude that suits Nair's offbeat, Indian-inflected take on the material. Reese Witherspoon has proven in such films as Freeway and Election that she can play characters who aren't cute and lovable. But perhaps her status as a movie star now makes it difficult for her to risk audience sympathy. In any case, this is a much sweeter, more wholesome version of Becky Sharp than the one featured in the novel. This adaptation downplays Sharp's cunning ruthlessness, softening the story's wit, and throws her relationships with the other characters off balance. We end up with a story about a spunky, put-upon heroine and the hypocritical snobs who impede her fairly reasonable hopes and dreams. This wouldn't be so bad if the filmmakers weren't forced to condense Thackeray's mocking epic into feature length, resulting in some confusing ellipses. Her fate should be recognizable as the product of Becky's mercenary behavior, but in Nair's film, it all seems to happen for no good reason, and the dismal outcome of the two major relationships of her life is brushed aside with a couple of throwaway lines of dialogue. Vanity Fair is an enjoyable counterpoint to the Masterpiece Theatre treatment of such material, but it sells short Thackeray's comic vision. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
Eileen Atkins - Miss Matilda Crawley; Timothy Bentinck - German Official; Trevor Cooper - General Tufto; Deborah Findlay - Mrs. Sedley; John Franklyn-Robbins - Mr. Sedley; Douglas Hodge - Pitt Crawley; Nicholas Jones - Lord Darlington; Barbara Leigh-Hunt - Lady Bareacres; Gabrielle Lloyd - Nursemaid; Geraldine McEwan - Lady Southdown; Niall O'Brien - Mr. Moss; Brian Pettifer - Mr. Raggles; Tim Preece - Horrocks; Tim Seely - Doctor; David Sterne - Queen's Crawley Mail Coach Driver; John Woodvine - Lord Bareacres; Sian Thomas - Lady Darlington; Kelly Hunter - Lady Steyne; Veerendra Saxena - Coventry Island Man; Sean McKenzie - Auctioneer; Roger Lloyd Pack - Francis Sharp; Stephanie McMillan - Dancer; Richard McCabe - King; Natasha Little - Lady Jane Sheepshanks; Lillete Dubey - Ms. Green; Andrew Shepard Price - Casino Stranger; Camilla Rutherford - Lady Gaunt; Kate Fleetwood - Miss Pinkerton's Crone; Helen Coker - Firkin; Steven Elder - Curzon Street Footman; Alexandra Staden - Lady George; Tony Maudsley - Joseph Sedley; Jonny Phillips - Mr. Wenham; Charlie Beall - Gambler; Angelica Mandy - Young Becky; Paul Bazely - Biju; Georgina Edmonds - Young Rose Crawley; Emilie Richardson - Young Celia Crawley; Sophie Hunter - Maria Osborne; Paul Bentall - Coalman; Kathryn Drysdale - Rhoda Swartz; William Melling - Rawdy; Daniel Hay - Georgy; Anu Gopalakrishnan - Desert Beauty; Tom Beard - Officer; Roma Edmonds - Rose Crawley; Gledis Cimque - Celia Crawley; Thomas Grant - Little Pitt; Bruce Mackinnon - Casino Boy; Mathew Horne - Casino Boy; Tom Sturridge - Young Georgy; Chloe Treend - Dancer; Stefane Sauer - Dancer; Nicole Forbes - Dancer; Amanda Courtney Davies - Dancer; Louise Weekley - Dancer; Lene Langgaard - Dancer; Sarah Mogg - Dancer; Tracey Lushington - Dancer; Sandy Borne - Dancer; Suzanne Thomas - Dancer; Mari Baade - Dancer; K. Knight - Dancer; Sylvano Clarke - Dancer; Megan Owen - Lady Crawley
Credit
Sam Stokes - Art Director, Lucinda Thomson - Art Director, Nick Palmer - Supervising Art Director, Dinaz Stafford - Associate Producer, Ray Angelic - Associate Producer, Mark Skeet - Associate Producer, Matthew Faulk - Associate Producer, Ashraf Khan - Boom Operator, Katherine Morath - Boom Operator, Mary Selway - Casting, Loveleen Tandan - Casting, Jack Murphy - Choreography, Farah Khan - Choreography, Nicolas Dodd - Conductor, Jane Frazer - Co-producer, Beatrix Aruna Pasztor - Costume Designer, Max Keene - First Assistant Director, Stuart Renfrew - First Assistant Director, Mira Nair - Director, Allyson C. Johnson - Editor, Jonathan Lynn - Executive Producer, Pippa Cross - Executive Producer, Howard Cohen - Executive Producer, Jenny Shircore - Hair Styles, Loulia Sheppard - Hair Styles, Frances Needham - Hair Styles, David Pinnington - Location Manager, Steve Hart - Location Manager, Feroze Alameer - Line Producer, Mychael Danna - Composer (Music Score), Mychael Danna - Musical Arrangement, Nicolas Dodd - Musical Arrangement, Jenny Shircore - Makeup, Anita Burger - Makeup, Annabel Hill - Makeup, Blanka Dudas - Makeup, Rebecca Lafford - Makeup, Frances Needham - Makeup, Klemens Becker - Camera Operator, Maria Djurkovic - Production Designer, Declan Quinn - Cinematographer, Lydia Dean Pilcher - Producer, Donna Gigliotti - Producer, Janette Day - Producer, Drew Kunin - Sound Mixer, Andrew Bradford - Stunts Coordinator, Nrinder Dhudwar - Stunts Coordinator, Mark Holt - Special Effects Supervisor, David Seaton - Unit Production Manager, Pramod Singh - Unit Production Manager, Julian Fellowes - Screenwriter, Mark Skeet - Screenwriter, Matthew Faulk - Screenwriter, Jay J. Odedra - Second Unit Director Of Photography, Saakshi Biswas - Production Assistant, Sonia Sisodia - Production Assistant, Mary Ellen Porto - Sound Effects Editor, Almost Human - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Animals Galore - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Debbie Kaye - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Cindy Newman - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Pam Weaver - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Claudia Kalindjian - Unit Publicist, Heather Norton - First Assistant Camera, David Cozens - First Assistant Camera, G Monic Kumar - First Assistant Camera, Mulchand Dedhia - Gaffer, Ian Franklin - Gaffer, Jimmy Wilson - Gaffer, Richard Broome - Grip, John Arnold - Grip, James Waters - Grip, David Cadwallader - Grip, Ronan Murphy - Grip, Arjun Burji - Key Grip, Jennifer Dunnington - Music Editor, V. Selvaganesh - Musical Performer, David Mcguinness - Musical Performer, Philharmonia Orchestra - Musical Performer, Jennifer Freed - Post Production Supervisor, Hermione Ninnim - Production Coordinator, Christian Brockey - Production Coordinator, Yasmine Stafford - Production Coordinator, Rupert Ryle-Hodges - Production Supervisor, Sunil Chhabra - Properties Master, Chris Cull - Properties Master, Roberto Fernandez - Re-Recording Mixer, Dominick Tavella - Re-Recording Mixer, Sally Jones - Script Supervisor, Robyn Aronstam - Script Supervisor, Reema Kagti - Second Assistant Director, Matt Baker - Second Assistant Director, Candy Marlowe - Second Assistant Director, Milan Moudgill - Still Photographer, Frank Connor - Still Photographer, Warren Shaw - Supervising Sound Editor, Tony Martinez - Supervising Sound Editor, Merissa Littlefield - ADR Editor, Peter Gleaves - ADR Mixer, Hattie Storey - Art Department Assistant, Sarah Stuart - Assistant Art Director, Divya Anand - Assistant Costumer Designer, Joaquin Ballabriga - Assistant Costumer Designer, Aliza James - Assistant Location Manager, Kevin Early - Assistant Location Manager, Richard Lindsay - Assistant Location Manager, Suzanne Vennard - Assistant Location Manager, Virginia Holmes - Assistant Makeup, Miranda Marks - Assistant Production Coordinator, Stephen Schwartz - Assistant Sound Editor, Eric Strausser - Assistant Sound Editor, Eric Mcallister - Assistant Sound Editor, Lucy Bevan - Casting Assistant, Giles Gale - Costumes Assistant, Marie Anne Ross - Costumes Assistant, Amanda Keable - Costumes Supervisor, Urmila Lal Motwani - Costumes Supervisor, Dan Korintus - Dialogue Editor, Jeffrey Stern - Dialogue Editor, Jim Wall - Electrician, Steve Anthony - Electrician, Anthony Burnes - Electrician, Dennis Holliday - Electrician, Lee Jones - Electrician, Rob Rabson - Electrician, Brian Sullivan - Electrician, Marko Constanzo - Foley Artist, William Sweeney - Foley Editor, Dan Edelstein - Foley Editor, Anu Gopalakrishnan - Personal Assistant, Hannah Collett - Personal Assistant, Heather Dixon - Personal Assistant, Simrun Kalra - Personal Assistant, Adelaide Scardino - Personal Assistant, Brett Tyne - Personal Assistant, Yana Collins Lehman - Post Production Assistant, John Adefarasin - Second Assistant Camera, Richard Ackland - Second Assistant Camera, Ben Battersby - Second Assistant Camera, Ed Nessen - Second Assistant Camera, Tatiana Macdonald - Set Decorator, Robin Thomas - Set Decorator, William Makepeace Thackeray - Book Author, Louis Elman - ADR Voice Casting, Abigail Barbier - ADR Voice Casting, Geeta Kapoor - Assistant Choreographer, Sameer Khan - Cable Person, Umesh Bhimalu - Clapper Loader, George A. Lara - Foley Mixer, Steve Cussell - Generator Operator, Edmund Broad - Runner, Mike Clark-Hall - Runner, Amy Hollaway - Runner, Jason Jalloul - Runner, Stephan Norinder - Runner, Gipsy Ringham - Runner, Laura Ware - Runner, Hugh Goodbody - Special Effects Technician, Danny McGrath - Third Assistant Director, Akshay Roy - Third Assistant Director, Emily Lutyens - Graphic Design, David A. Smith - Assistant Editor, Gary Fisher - Carpenter, Len Day - Carpenter, Micky Fisher - Carpenter, John Heayn - Carpenter, Ned Kelly - Carpenter, Terry Law - Carpenter, Glynn Evans - Painter, Kevin Hopkins - Painter, John Malham - Painter, Belinda Cusmano - Assistant Set Decorator, Kalpa Dave - Assistant Set Decorator, Raghu Bharadwaj - Assistant Unit Manager, Stephanie Carroll - Visual Consultant
I had thought her a mere social climber; I see now she's a mountaineer.
”
— Mrs. Sedley
The ambitious Becky Sharp rises from humble beginnings as an orphan using her wit, beauty, and no small amount of spirit.
Reception
Critics gave the film mixed reviews. Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 53 out of 100, based on 41 reviews.[1]
Stephen Hunter of The Washington Post gave positive review, calling the movie "Mira Nair's fine movie version of the 1848 book, in all its glory and scope and wit."[2] In the Charlotte Observer, Lawrence Toppman commented that "The filmmakers have wisely retained the main structure of the book" and that "The cast is uniformly good, even when dealing with sudden mood changes forced by the screenwriters' need to move forward."[3] Meanwhile, Lisa Schwarzbaum, in her review in Entertainment Weekly, rated the film a B-, and added that the film "borders on perky — a duller, safer tonal choice for the story of a conniving go-getter whose fall is as precipitous as her rise."[4]
Jama Masjid Street Journal (1979) • So Far from India (1982) • India Cabaret (1985) • Children of a Desired Sex (1987) • The Day the Mercedes Became a Hat (1993) • My Own Country (1998) • The Laughing Club of India (1999)
Productions
Still, the Children Are Here (2004) • Blood Brothers (2007)
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