The Danish Girl (2015)
Director: Tom Hooper.
Synopsis
A fictitious love story inspired by the lives of Danish artists Lili Elbe (Eddie Redmayne) and Gerda Wegener (Alicia Vikander). Lili and Gerda’s marriage and work evolve as they navigate Lili’s groundbreaking journey as a transgender pioneer by being the first person to undergo sex reassignment surgery to make her a woman.
Review by Jason Day.
2015 was the year when ‘trans’ became more than just a buzz term (or a casual, passing insult depending on one's standing on the subject) and the progress made in helping to break down prejudice and ignorance about transgender and transsexual people looks set to continue with as much vigour and commitment.
It has been a tricky subject to get into a productive, mainstream discussion so any cinematic offering needed to be treated with a subtle hand.
This delicate, almost fragrant film benefits from the sure, unprejudiced hands of a number of spirited personnel, including producer/director Hooper (The King's Speech, Les Miserables), writer Lucinda Coxon and, or course, the principal three cast members.
Redmayne has been generating Oscar-nod buzz for his emotionally skilful turn as a woman seen with today's eyes as a pioneer but in her own day as a pervert or psychotic, much like he did last year when he won the statuette for playing Stephen Hawking in The Theory Of Everything.
He may well snare another this year as this is actually a better, but less showy, turn. It would be a huge oversight if Vikander, in an equally wrought performance as his wife who must see her man 'die' to be replaced by a woman she admires but also resents, wasn't nominated alongside him.
Special mention to the camera, sets and costume teams for the arrestingly muted, plain beauty of the production design.
For full review: http://ow.ly/WxEFG
For listings of this film, and others, at Cineworld Milton Keynes: http://www1.cineworld.co.uk/cinemas/milton-keynes
Cast & credits
Producers: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Anne Harrison, Tom Hooper, Gail Mutrux. Writer: Lucinda Coxon. Camera: Danny Cohen. Music: Alexandre Desplat. Sets: Eve Stewart.
Eddie Redmayne, Alicia Vikander, Matthias Schoenaerts, Ben Wishaw, Sebastian Koch, Amber Heard, Emerald Fennell, Adrian Schiller.
