Being Julia
Filed Under: Film, Reviews | Article Tags : DVD review
By: Erik Swift
April 2005
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Guys, beware of “Being Julia.” This one is truly for the ladies – you know, the ones that stay home on Friday nights and wonder why. However, if you’re open to watching good acting, Annette Bening’s performance is worth a view.
Bening plays the title character, one that has the London theater world under her thumb in 1938. Despite the heights she’s scaled professionally, nothing is rosy for Julia personally. Everyone she encounters – from her lifeless marriage of convenience to her husband Michael (Jeremy Irons) to energetic younger competitor Avice Crichton (Lucy Punch) to her absent but experimental son Roger (Tom Sturridge) to the young American fan Tom Fennel she has an affair with (Shaun Evans) – bores her.
Her whole existence is an act, and Julia does it non-stop from one stage to the next, playing each role to the hilt despite her dresser Evie (Juliet Stevenson) being the only one who listens to her. As if impending menopause wasn’t enough, she sees dead people. Just kidding, Haley. Yes, her dead acting teacher Jimmie (Michael Gambon) appears in visions to coach Julia through life. Tiring of dealing with a patronizing inner circle, she takes a massive preventative measure to insure that no one will screw with her again. After a climax any actor would cheer, going out for hot wings and dollar drafts is a solid plan to ward off any estrogen overload.
“Being Julia” is an uneven film but the acting is first-rate. Bening may have lost out on another Oscar this year, but she glows radiantly throughout “Being Julia.” Knowing that Tom has dropped her for Avice, Julia compliments the rookie’s performance as a sight-impaired woman with venom: “You’re so good at being blind.” Irons is in typical sleazy but elegant chap mode and Stevenson provides much-needed comic relief.
Istvan Szabo directs the strong cast well, but his smooth style can catch viewers off-guard: watch as the film cuts from Julia and Tom’s dance to a couple in bed. “Being Julia” speaks volumes without any words at times, its best feature. The script by Ronald Harwood (based on the novella ‘Theater’ by W. Somerset Maugham) is both a tart and nasty pleasure, but did the art department need the work? There really is no reason why it’s set in 1938. The beautiful wardrobes, ornate sets and automobiles are trotted out in full display but come on. Barely any mention is made of the political goings-on, especially that of Nazi Germany. The film’s bright weather underscores the dark underbelly of pre-WWII England. This could have easily been set at any time in history before Xanex or Ben & Jerry’s. For example, 1968 would be perfect: swinging London with everybody hallucinating on acid. Now THEN Julia’s visions of Jimmie might make more sense. Instead they only serve to illustrate how Julia has lost her grip and as a weird reminder that her past had greater glories than her present. “Theater is the only reality,” Jimmie instructs. Uh-huh. Pass the blue cheese dressing, dude.
The DVD from Columbia Tristar Entertainment is surprisingly mediocre. The audio levels dip frequently, which is a bummer since every note of Mychael Danna’s gorgeous score should be listened to. Bad copy? Not sure, but when a film is full of British accents it’s annoying to repeatedly crank the volume to hear what is said. Twenty minutes of extras are heavy on fluff but the best is a well-lit deleted scene from a restaurant. Julia’s looking babealicious and scans the place, making eye contact with each man there – all of them willing to throw themselves at her feet while she could just ignore them. Most are startled and look away…except for one. Smiling, he rises and walks towards her…only to say what a big fan his wife is, asking for an autograph. (Sigh) Being Julia must suck, but “Being Julia” is better than your average rental. Just don’t watch this after any March Madness games…unless, however, you’re watching the women’s tournament.
Reviewer’s Opinion: BORROW IT!!
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