Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Latest
    • Thank You
    • 4000. Scenes From A Marriage (1973)
    • 3999. The Pianist (2002)
    • 3998. Philadelphia (1993)
    • 3997. Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)
    • 3996. The Green Mile (1999)
    • 3995. Doctor Zhivago (1965)
    • 3994. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
    The Mad Movie Man
    • Home
    • Blog
      • All Posts
      • Best Of The Year
        • Best Of 2015
        • Best Of 2016
        • Best Of 2017
        • Best Of 2018
        • Best Of 2019
        • Best Of 2020
        • Best Of 2021
        • Best Of 2022
      • The Decade In Review
      • Box Office Analysis
      • James Bond
      • Oscars
      • RANKED
      • Star Wars
      • The Big Questions
      • Top 10
      • World Cinema
    • Ratings
      • Top 250
      • Top 100 Foreign Films
      • Bottom 50
      • 0 – 1.9
      • 2 – 3.9
      • 4 – 5.9
      • 6 – 7.9
      • 8 – 10
    • Genres
      • Action
      • Anthology
      • Animation
      • Christmas
      • Comedy
      • Crime
      • Documentary
      • Drama
      • Fantasy
      • Film-Noir
      • History
      • Horror
      • Kids’
      • Musical
      • Psychological
      • Romance
      • Sci-Fi
      • Short
      • Silent
      • Sport
      • Superhero
      • Survival
      • Thriller
      • Western
    • Release Year
      • 2020s
      • 2010s
      • 2000s
      • 1990s
      • 1980s
      • 1970s
      • 1960s
      • 1950s
      • 1940s
      • 1930s
      • 1920s
    • Country
      • Afghanistan
      • Argentina
      • Australia
      • Austria
      • Belgium
      • Brazil
      • Cambodia
      • Canada
      • Chile
      • China
      • Colombia
      • Costa Rica
      • Czechoslovakia
      • Czech Republic
      • Denmark
      • East Timor
      • Faroe Islands
      • Finland
      • France
      • Germany
      • Georgia
      • Greece
      • Hong Kong
      • Hungary
      • Iceland
      • India
      • Indonesia
      • Iran
      • Iraq
      • Ireland
      • Israel
      • Italy
      • Japan
      • Latvia
      • Lebanon
      • Laos
      • Malaysia
      • Mexico
      • New Zealand
      • Nigeria
      • North Korea
      • Norway
      • Paraguay
      • Peru
      • Philippines
      • Poland
      • Romania
      • Russia
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Singapore
      • South Korea
      • South Africa
      • Soviet Union
      • Spain
      • Sweden
      • Switzerland
      • Syria
      • Taiwan
      • Thailand
      • Turkey
      • Uganda
      • United Kingdom
      • United States
      • Uruguay
      • Vietnam
      • Zambia
    • About
    The Mad Movie Man
    You are at:Home»Review»1377. Love & Friendship (2016)

    1377. Love & Friendship (2016)

    0
    By The Mad Movie Man on June 9, 2016 2016, 6 - 7.9, 90-99 mins, Comedy, Ireland, Jun 16, Movies Of 2016, Review, Romance
    7.6 Great fun
    • Acting 7.8
    • Directing 7.6
    • Story 7.5
    • User Ratings (0 Votes) 0

    Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Chloë Sevigny, Xavier Samuel 

    Director: Whit Stillman

    Running Time: 92 mins


    Love & Friendship is an Irish film following Lady Susan Vernon as she spends time at her in-laws’ residence attempting to find a suitor for her daughter, whilst getting up to her own devilish plans for her benefit.

    First off, I need to clarify that I know absolutely nothing about Jane Austen. I’ve never read any of her books, and have only seen Pride And Prejudice, so I went into this film completely blind. That said, I really enjoyed Love & Friendship. It’s an upbeat, clever and consistently witty film that, although a little muddled for those unfamiliar with Austen, had me smiling right the way through.

    If you’re a real fan of Jane Austen, I’m confident that this will be a perfect film, but even for those of us who know nothing about her stories, this film is still a great watch. I may not have understood all of the subtleties of the characters and humour throughout (and there are definitely a lot), but the great thing about Love & Friendship is that it’s such a quick-witted and consistently funny film that there’s plenty of jokes about for everyone.

    If you were to understand every single little detail, this would be a properly hilarious film, but I found myself chuckling a lot, even with the occasional big laugh, at various jokes throughout. For a film to make me actually find Jane Austen properly funny and enjoyable is no mean feat, and that’s by far the biggest praise that I can give the film: that it’s a hugely fun watch for all.

    Beyond the great comedy, however, I’ve really got to praise the performances. With quite a large ensemble cast, it’s often the case that good performances get lost behind the central characters, but in Love & Friendship, everybody has their moment to shine, and they all do it fantastically well.

    However, it still remains that Kate Beckinsale is the stand-out. In the lead role as the cunning and flirtatious Lady Susan, she’s absolutely fantastic to watch right the way through. She has a lot of fun putting on the show of this woman who’s ten times smarter than anyone around her, and works some brilliant comedic magic showing us all of Lady Susan’s manipulations to all those she knows.

    Finally, the film looks absolutely great. The costume and production design is absolutely wonderful, and rather than going too overboard with showy period drama sets, the production stays in line with the film’s more relaxed atmosphere by largely showing a few rooms, and makes most of its lavish imagery through the countless flamboyant outfits that the characters wear.

    Overall, I really liked Love & Friendship. As a non-Austen fan, I felt a little out of my depth going into the film, but I was very soon just as entertained as any die-hard follower, thanks to this film’s hugely entertaining comedy and performances, along with its delightful production design, and that’s why Love & Friendship gets a 7.6 from me.

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    The Mad Movie Man
    • Website
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    The Mad Movie Man, AKA Anthony Cullen, writes articles and reviews about movies and the world of cinema. From January 1st, 2013 to December 31st, 2022, he watched and reviewed a movie every day. This is the blog dedicated to the project: www.madmovieman.com

    Related Posts

    8.2

    4000. Scenes From A Marriage (1973)

    7.8

    3999. The Pianist (2002)

    8.2

    3998. Philadelphia (1993)

    Follow Me Online!
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Tumblr
    New Releases
    8.2
    December 25, 2022

    3994. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

    5.6
    December 10, 2022

    3969. Falling For Christmas (2022)

    6.9
    December 4, 2022

    3956. The People We Hate At The Wedding (2022)

    5.4
    December 3, 2022

    3954. Disenchanted (2022)

    7.4
    December 3, 2022

    3953. Meet Cute (2022)

    7.6
    November 23, 2022

    3934. Do Revenge (2022)

    7.0
    November 18, 2022

    3929. The Wonder (2022)

    6.7
    November 13, 2022

    3924. See How They Run (2022)

    Recommended Movies
    8.3
    Review
    December 25, 20140

    794. Die Hard (1988)

    8.2
    Review
    May 10, 20160

    1346. The Fugitive (1993)

    8.9
    Review
    October 1, 20180

    2300. Rain Man (1988)

    8.4
    Review
    February 24, 20130

    65. Dogma (1999)

    8.1
    Review
    March 1, 20160

    1271. What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

    Popular Posts
    December 31, 2022

    Thank You

    8.2
    December 31, 2022

    4000. Scenes From A Marriage (1973)

    7.8
    December 30, 2022

    3999. The Pianist (2002)

    8.2
    December 29, 2022

    3998. Philadelphia (1993)

    7.5
    December 28, 2022

    3997. Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)

    9.1
    December 27, 2022

    3996. The Green Mile (1999)

    7.6
    December 26, 2022

    3995. Doctor Zhivago (1965)

    © 2023 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.