Friday 6th November until Thursday 3rd December 2009 @ Watershed, Bristol

As Abbie Cornish’s Fanny waits in vain to find her old happiness and humour, so do the audience of Bright Star.

A film presuming to use Keats, one of the greatest English poets of all time, as its main character invites criticism out of principle; how could any director do justice to an individual of such enigmatic genius? Jane Campion’s method of negotiating the arrows of scorn from literaphiles is, sadly, to skirt the issue of the poetry itself and focus instead on the stormy relationship Keats perpetuated with his muse, Fanny Brawne. Cornish pouts and struts her way around the screen with a fantastic ‘fashionista’ presence yet she is one of many characters whose constant melancholy is not punctuated by enough pace to save our eyes drooping slightly. Having said this, it is exactly what Campion had been aiming for. The film is pitched as a slow-burner and it succeeds in unravelling the tribulations of Keats’ agonised countryside life with the right sense of unfulfilment and frustration with the bounds of society and bank accounts.

Perhaps the problem, then, is that this was not ideal film material. Romanticism is concerned with what lies beyond appearances and the poetic mind’s superior knowledge of the real world. It’s difficult to convey any of this in film. After all, the appearance of things to the eyes and ears is what matters most in a movie and we were treated to some beautiful costume, scenery and acting by the director of The Piano and Emmy Award-winner Ben Whinshaw. This aside, Campion did not achieve sufficient insight into what Keats himself was really about; there were few connections established between his poetry and the events of the drama. Sadly this proved to be the missing link.

The music became rather irritating after the first hour of tense musings from string instruments and a horribly over-produced boy soprano but was befitting of the emotional tension which Campion clearly tried to evoke. The period costumes were beautifully recreated but rather too spotless throughout muddy walks. Even the oh-so-polite clipped accents of contrived Englishness made the opening too stiff for comfort.

Somehow, the strength of the acting on display and the sheer saturation of Romantic cinematography, poetic voiceovers and smoking glances saves Bright Star. As a tale of love it works well thanks to the chemistry between Winshaw and Cornish. They are two very sensual actors who are surely (pardon the pun) stars of the future and should not be type-cast as romantic youths ala Kiera Knightly. Their teasing rapport has, Winshaw assures us, been much-rehearsed in preparation, to good effect. This chemistry is forced to remain stifled by the fact that the two hours simply feel too long.

This film, then, is not likely to thrill the audience going after the true John Keats or for poets seeking to understand his inspiration.  It works well for those who love their BBC adaptations of Austen and Bronte; love affairs, handsome faces, roses and crisp linen sheets are aplenty. But of course, that’s all been done before.

www.watershed.co.uk

Katy Austin