Review of The Beguiled (2017) by Frank P — 05 Jul 2017

*** SQUEEKY-CLEAN SOFT PORN, COSTUME PSYCHO-THRILLER***.

I'm assuming the Civil War had a profound effect on most people's lives in the Confederate South, since the war began in April 1861, ending in May 1865. [What do I know? I only know what little I've read since high school, magazines and watching Ken Burns' Civil War series on PBS]. Except for The Beguiled's movie set(s), a locked iron gate, overgrown vegetation surrounding an old antebellum mansion [girl's boarding school], the interior movie sets/decorations/costumes did not seem to account for the effects of the Civil War [1864]... Behind the front doors of the mansion, for example, there were plentiful furnishings, beautiful clothes for every person and every occasion, chandeliers, candelabras, tall candles, abundant food and wines; everything one would need in case of a natural disaster... This seemed to be slightly unrealistic and unfathomable for 1864, but so was the depiction of the Confederate South in the movie, Gone With The Wind [so they say]. In any event, my common sense tells me that The Beguiled is no less than a sterile, overly-starched "costume" drama. What my movie ticket really bought was, a 21st-century kaleidoscope gaze at Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst and Colin Farrell in Civil War couture... I got to see how well the actors "looked" and how well they have aged over the last decade; perfect hair, perfect make-up, etc... Their acting abilities were FINE, but The Beguiled is not one of those films one would particularly recommend to a friend, nor own, nor see again. It's obvious that this film is only a showcase for the principal actors, especially for Dunst and Farrell, whom we haven't seen in films, lately. Overall, it's a calling card for Kidman, Dunst and Farrell... It will help them get better jobs and roles in future movies, that's all... One of the things I noticed about this film was, there were so many costume changes. No doubt this was a plan to further the career of the film's costume designer and/or provide Project Runway fans with a Civil War-era fashion show, sans runway... As well, in 95 percent of the movie scenes, the costume garments appeared to be too new [never-been-worn] freshly laundered and, starched up the wazoo... Also, except for a tiny little wound and some bleeding, the characters in The Beguiled rarely had a smudge, nor an ounce of dirt or sweat on them. Come on! Not even when Colin Farrell does a little gardening and tree pruning do we see dirt on his perfectly-ironed man-costume... I'm not looking for clichés of the Civil War, nor am I wanting to see a cast of little match girls or individuals from the Dust Bowl... I just want a little realism, okay? This is a big-budgeted Hollywood-style movie, no doubt.