Review of Notes on a Scandal (2006) by Gregory G — 30 May 2015

Inspired by the case of Mary Kay Letourneau, a schoolteacher who was imprisoned for having sex with one of her students, which is the basis for the book by Zoe Heller. This kind of sensational material has been exploited repeatedly into TV movie soap opera.

In this British chamber drama about obsessive and possessive love, the story is told from the point of view of a spinster schoolteacher close to retirement (Judi Dench), who befriends the new art teacher (Cate Blanchett), and when she discovers the art teacher is having sex with a 15-year-old student, she manipulates the situation to her advantage.

The always authoritative Dench is masterful here as a lonely, slightly delusional, narcissistic woman, who earns our sympathy without turning piteous. Dench gives a sensitive performance that shows this woman's bitterness, jealousy, and vindictiveness without making her into a monster.

Blanchett, who towers over Dench, is very beautiful here and she expresses the conflicting emotions, desire, and vulnerability that help us to understand her actions. Patrick Marber's script includes an ironic narration, reading from Dench's diaries, that suggests a black comedy, but the film doesn't follow through.

Directed by Richard Eyre, the tone is very uneven and it doesn't have the humor to be taken as a satire. It plays as a standard melodrama. The performances by Dench and Blanchett transcend the mediocre material - this is as good as acting gets.

Phillip Glass's score hypes up several scenes that diminish the emotions. Cinematography is by Chris Menges. With Bill Nighy and Andrew Simpson.