A biting mix of historical drama and period film satire, The Favourite also boasts exceptional performances in what must be director Yorgos Lanthimos’ best and most accessible movie yet.
Period films – especially those that deal with royalty – can be very stuffy, repetitive affairs. Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster) has proven to be anything but stuffy and repetitive. Only suitable then that his take on the Royal period drama not only be an outlier in the sub-genre, but also one that keeps you on your toes with its biting dialogue and no compromising storytelling.
Set in early 18th century England, The Favourite combines historical retelling with rumour and innuendo. The film centres on a power triangle between Queen Anne (Olivia Coleman), her close confidant Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz), and Sarah’s commoner cousin Abigail (Emma Stone). With Queen Anne becoming more emotionally fragile and physically weak as time passes, Sarah and Abigail embark in a bitter war for the Queen’s favour.
To say that The Favourite goes to many unexpected places in an understatement. Writers Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara (The Rage in Placid Lake) provide a screenplay that is engrossing in its viciousness, including an innovative use of the C-bomb that startles as much as it hits its comedic black targets. It is the perfect fodder for Lanthimos to mould into his own unique vision of a period movie, where all matter of convention is flipped on its head. Even a Royal Ball sequence is given the Lanthimos touch, as a boring waltz is suddenly transformed into a hip-hop dance sequence that would fit into an episode of Soul Train. Moments of stunning violence sit comfortably with political haggling. No scene is not without an agenda. No proclamation of love is made without a sinister ultimatum attached.
An excellent cast all deliver fine performances. Colman, Weisz, and Stone deliver some of their finest work yet, proving to be more than game with whatever Lanthimos throws at them. With their characters so intertwined it is hard to think of a more formidable trio to grace the screen with such skill and bravery this year. There are scenes in The Favourite that some actors might wince at, yet Colman, Weisz, and Stone gobble up the decadence, deceit and daring of their characters, and spit out a fire that scorches the screen. Also quite excellent is Nicholas Hoult as Robert Harley, a Tory Member of Parliament who is as vicious as he is intelligent.
A rather strange ending mars one of the year’s best films from becoming a downright classic. Surely such great work was worthy of a much better send off? Regardless, The Favourite proves itself as a film without equal or compromise. A film not for the faint of heart, but then again that is one of the many things that is so great about it.
