Updated: 21 June 1997

SENSE AND SENSIBILITY

Note: although this film stars one of my favorite actresses of all time, I swear I am not biased in any way when I say that, ultimately, this is the movie that should have won the Academy Award.

The Director, Ang Lee, and the screenwriter, the incredible Emma, are both masters of detail and nuance. The combination is astounding. I'm surprised, actually, by the things that just made me sit back in my seat out of sheer comfort--that feeling that comes when you know you're in true artists' hands. You don't have to worry about when something will happen that will make you wince. It won't.

These small things ranged from slightly spilt coffee sloshing around in a saucer, to the simple perfection of setting for--I mean this--every scene. A party in London is lit so that the light is framed by shadows--accenting the action in the scene. In another party, earlier in the film, Emma Thompson is pulled from the main--and again warmly-lit--group, into the shadows by someone with secrets to tell.

There were shots in this film that told the story eloquently. I haven't seen that in a film for years. One of my favorite shots flows from a happy couple, to the reaction of a mother, to the reaction of a wife/sister-in-law. And no one missed the point.

Then the acting.

By the end of this film, I am once again left in awe of Emma Thompson. She has the talent of the prodigy, and the skill of the master, and applies both in this film. Appropriately restrained throughout the bulk of the film, and yet completely honest. Very hard to do, and pulled off flawlessly. This lays the groundwork, of course, for the moment when her reserve falls away and the depth of feeling she possesses bursts forth in tears that will completely level any audience with a heart.

And the rest of the crew isn't too bad, either. Kate Winslet is perfect in a role that has you wanting her mother to beat some sense into her half the time, and yet feeling the sincerity of her pain the rest. Alan Rickman is fantastic. His part rewards his abilities. Both his and Emma's are hard roles--those quiet types that must convey a nobility of spirit and strength of character without falling into one-dimensional blots. It is to their credit that both remain interesting characters and, much to my surprise, very unpredictable. I really like that.

Finally, the story is a wonderful romance, that passes through both passion and doubt. I watched people leaving the theater after this film, and again loved the movies. A group of strangers walk into a room, and leave two hours later having all gone through a whole range of emotions together (Sounds like a support group). Stories, well-told, have the power to bring people together like that. This film leaves you wanting to turn to the person next to you and say "wasn't that great?!" Not a wrong note.