TOP-TEN BRITISH COSTUME DRAMAS
Dec 21 '05
The Bottom Line Enjoy a good costume drama? Nobody does them better than the British! Here's ten excellent ones and another eighteen for a second helping.
The British are known for their costumes dramas, what with the likes of David Lean, The Archers, and Merchant-Ivory. Even though films made in the 1950's now often look like costume dramas, in a sense, I'm excluding from this list any film set later than the reign of George V, which ended in 1936. The film must be listed in the IMDB as a production of the U.K. (regardless of where the actual filming took place). The film must feature elaborate costumes and sets. It may be either historical or fictional, may or may not be related to war, and may or may not have comic elements, provided that the comedy is subordinate to the drama. The screenplay may or may not adapt a play or novel.
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TOP-TEN BRITISH COSTUME DRAMAS:
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#1. Pride and Prejudice (1996) Director Simon Langton Rating: * * * * *
The credit for this film triumph has to be distributed broadly. The settings are magnificent, utilizing mansions throughout England. Dinah Collins created beautiful and authentic costumes and Carl Davis provided a magnificent score. What viewers typically most relish, however, is the casting for the two leads, Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth Bennet and Colin Firth as Fitzwilliam Darcy. Firth is virtually perfect as Darcy. Ehle's performance is right-on as well, though she should be both younger and slimmer to match the description of the character in the novel. The casting for many of the supporting roles is excellent as well, including Benjamin Whitrow as Mr. Bennet, Tim Wylton and Joanna David as the Gardiners, Adrian Lukis as Wickham, Emilia Fox as Georgiana Darcy, Crispin Bonham-Carter as Bingham, David Bamber as Mr. Collins, and Lucy Scott as Charlotte Lucas. The high degree of faithfulness to the spirit of the novel combined with stellar production values make this film one of the finest costume dramas ever made.
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#2. Lawrence of Arabia (1962) Director David Lean Rating: * * * * *
This stirring biography of the enigmatic T.E. Lawrence features Peter O'Toole's great portrayal of the Englishman who incited Arab tribesmen of the desert to battle the Ottoman Turks during World War I. Alec Guinness stars as Prince Feisal and Omar Sherif as Sherif Ali. The unforgettable shots of the barren desert terrain together with the stirring soundtrack helped make this film a classic. It won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Color Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Art Direction, Best Original Score, and Best Sound.
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#3. Oliver Twist (1948) Director David Lean Rating: * * * * *
Alec Guinness plays Fagin, Anthony Newley is the Artful Dodger, and John Howard Davies portrays Oliver Twist in this skillfully compressed version of Dickens's sprawling novel. The sets by John Bryan are outstanding as is the cinematography by Guy Green, both of whom won Oscars. Many critics prefer Lean's later Dickens's adaptation, Great Expectations, by I give the edge to this one.
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#4. The Red Shoes (1948) Director Michael Powell; Emeric Pressburger Rating: * * * * *
There's sheer magic on the celluloid for this glorious story about the backstage work, sacrifices, and intrigues that go into the staging of world-class ballet performances. Anton Walbrook plays Boris Lermontov, a ballet impresario obviously modeled after Serge Diaghilev, who led the Bolshoi Ballet to the pinnacle of the ballet world. Two young and ambitious newcomers join the company: talented ballerina Victoria Page (Moira Shearer) and young composer Julian Craster (Marius Goring). When both reveal their promise, Walbrook gives Craster an opportunity to compose a new ballet that will star Victoria. The film's highlight is a 20-minute surrealistic staging of the resultant ballet, called "The Red Shoes." When Julian and Victoria fall in love, they run afoul of Lermontov, who believes that great artists must subordinate their personal lives to their artistic ambitions.
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#5. Great Expectations (1946) Director David Lean Rating: * * * * *
Lean's second masterful adaptation of a Dickens's novel finds Anthony Wager as the young Pip Pirrip and John Mills in the adult role. The young Pip befriends an escaped convict, Abel Magwitch (Finlay Currie), and later rises from blacksmith apprentice to young gentleman by the intercession of an unknown benefactor. Magnificent atmospheric images highlight this film, which won Oscars for Best Black-and-White Cinematography and Best Art Direction.
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#6. Doctor Zhivago (1965) Director David Lean Rating: * * * * *
Gorgeous art and set direction (by John Box), great costume design (Phyllis Dalton), and a dramatic score (Maurice Jarre), all of which took Oscars, is what most holds together this sprawling adaptation of an epic Russian novel by Pasternak. Omar Sharif plays Yuri Zhivago who marries his childhood companion, Tonya Gromeko (Geraldine Chaplin), but falls in love with the intriguing Lara Guishar (Julie Christie). This ill-starred romantic triangle plays out against the dramatic historical backdrop of the Bolshevik revolution and Russian Civil War.
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#7. Persuasion (1995) Director Howard Baker Rating: * * * * *
Though lacking glamour and star appeal, this fine adaptation of a novel by Jane Austen is true to the spirit of the story and realistic in its treatment of history and context. Amanda Root is superb as Austen's second most perfect female character (after Elizabeth Bennet), Anne Elliot. Ciaran is excellent as the reticent love interest, Captain Wentworth. Watch for a stellar character performance by Sophie Thompson (sister of Emma Thompson), as the hypochondriac sister, Mary Elliot.
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#8. Henry V (1944) Director Laurence Olivier Rating: * * * * *
Olivier was commissioned to make this film during the height of the London Blitz in order to lift the sagging spirits of the British public. More than a mere propaganda piece, the film that Olivier delivered was a dazzling adaptation of a Shakespearean historical epic about a British monarch who triumphed by force of will against daunting odds. Olivier plays the title role while also directing and provided a highly innovative structure that begins and ends as a faithful reenactment of a 17th-century staging of the play at the Globe Theater, but opens up for the film's dramatic centerpiece, the Battle of Agincourt. The project was considered so important that Olivier was mustered out of the navy to spearhead the film.
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#9. Howards End (1992) Director James Ivory Rating: * * * * *
This adaptation of a Forster novel from 1910 finds the Merchant-Ivory-Prawer trio teaming up once again. Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson provide compelling star power with Thompson earning an Oscar as Best Actress. When Ruth Wilcox (Vanessa Redgrave) passes away, she leaves a note indicating her wish that her family home be left to the friend who brightened her last days, Margaret Schlegel (Emma Thompson), but the husband and children choose to discard the paper that declares Ruth's intentions. Later, however, Ruth's widower, Henry (Anthony Hopkins), finds himself falling in love with Margaret. This film won Oscars for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Art and Set Direction.
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#10. A Man for All Seasons (1966) Director Fred Zinnemann Rating: * * * * *
Paul Scofield carries this film as Sir Thomas More, who stands up to relentless pressure from a king to violate his religious beliefs to give blessing to the king's divorce and remarriage. Henry VIII (Robert Shaw) is in no mood to countenance opposition, however subtly it might be framed, so More ends up paying for his obstinate conscience with his life. The film won Oscars for its inventive camerawork (Best Cinematography) and well-crafted screenplay, in addition to Best Film, Best Actor, and Best Director.
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Eighteen More for a Second-Helping: (listed alphabetically)
Anna Karenina (2000) Director David Blair Rating: * * * *
Black Narcissus (1947) Director Michael Powell; Emeric Pressburger Rating: * * *
Chariots of Fire (1981) Director Hugh Hudson Rating: * * * * *
The Draughtsman's Contract (1982) Director Peter Greenaway Rating: * * * *
Elizabeth (1998) Director Shekhar Kapur Rating: * * * *
Emma (1996) Director Diarmuid Lawrence Rating: * * * * *
The Four Feathers (1939) Director Zoltan Korda Rating: * * * * *
The Go-Between (1970) Director Joseph Losey Rating: * * * *
Goodbye Mr. Chips (1939) Director Sam Wood Rating: * * * *
Gosford Park (2001) Director Robert Altman Rating: * * * *
Hamlet (1948) Director Laurence Olivier Rating: * * * * *
The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943) Director Michael Powell; Emeric Pressburger Rating: * * * * *
The Madness of King George (1994) Director Nicholas Hytner Rating: * * * *
Moulin Rouge (1952) Director John Huston Rating: * * * *
The Railway Children (1970) Director Lionel Jeffries Rating: * * * * *
The Remains of the Day (1993) Director James Ivory Rating: * * * * *
Shakespeare in Love (1998) Director John Madden Rating: * * * * *
Zulu (1964) Director Cy Endfield Rating: * * * *
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You may also enjoy my other lists relating to British films:
All One-hundred and Six BAFTA Award-Winning Films
London Critics' Circle Awards for Best Foreign Film
British Films Selected by the London Critics' Circle as Best Film or Best British Film
The British Film Institute's Top-100 British Films All-Time
Top-Ten English-Language ~Horror~ Films from Outside the USA
Top Ten British Comedies
Top Ten British War Films
Top Ten British Thrillers
Top Bond Films and Other British Spy Movies
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