Beguiling indeed

A female-centric reinterpretation of the 1971 Clint Eastwood/Don Siegel psychosexual Civil War oddity, Sofia Coppola's poetic and dreamlike version of Thomas P. Cullinan's 1966 novel A Painted Devil is both a marvellously empathetic and subtly humorous dig at the male species.

The Beguiled

Director: Sofia Coppola
Cast: Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, Elle Fanning, Oona Laurence, Angourie Rice
Rating: (M) ★★★★

Suave Irishman Colin Farrell gets the Clint role here, playing an injured Yankee deserter discovered hiding in the Virginia woods by mushroom-picking youngster Amy (Oona Laurence) in a bravura opening sequence of moodiness and wordplay.

Taking pity on the blue-belly, she takes him to her home, a near-deserted mansion steeped in Gothic mist and Spanish moss. It's the last remnant of an all-girls' school, a haven from the outside world, presided over by Nicole Kidman's unwelcoming Miss Marsha Farnsworth. Only five students, and their teacher Edwina (Kirsten Dunst), remain.

Coppola's direction is amazing. Every shot is imbued with the resonance of a great painting, every subtle glance and sly observation is wrought with deep significance. There's tension in that you're never quite sure if you're watching merely a bawdy farce or a cutting expose of humanity's baser instincts.

The sheer, melodramatic nuttiness of the third act confirms this as pulp fiction attempting to break out into the realm of high art. Although it's not entirely successful in merging the extremes, it benefits from a smothering Southern atmosphere, some great performances, and perhaps most importantly, a generously swift running time.

 - Jeremy Quinn

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