Far From the Madding Crowd Mini-Review

Far From the Madding Crowd Mini-Review

Carey Mulligan shines in the latest adaptation of Thomas Hardy's classic romance novel. She plays the impossibly atrractive Bathsheba Everdene, a fiercely independent farm owner being courted by three very different (yet equally passionate) men. Belgian actor Matthias Schoenaerts is Gabriel Oak, the impossibly attractive shepherd with a heart of gold. Tom Sturridge hams up to portray the impossibly attractive Sergeant Troy, a bitter man using Bathsheba to cope with his previous love life. Michael Sheen, however, out-performs everyone as the impossibly attractive (and equally pathetic) William Boldwood, a lonely soul desperate for some company. Danish filmmaker Thomas Vinterberg makes his English-language debut in his  most restrained movie to date, departing from his typical social realism for an old-fashioned love story bordering on the quaint. Charlotte Bruus Christensen's soaringly beautiful cinematography, along with Craig Armstrong's virtuoso score, lend the film an ethereal quality to contrast the film's earthly settings. A surprisingly funny (courtesy of David Nicholls' excellent screenplay) and feminist retelling of a beloved classic, Far From the Madding Crowd is impeccably made and well-acted  counter-programming if Avenging isn't quite your thing...

Five-Word Verdict: Your English A-Level in brief

Score: 4/5