Review of The Draughtsman's Contract (1982) by Jonathan B — 14 Dec 2010
The perfect Restoration murder mystery with grotesque characters, outrageous wigs, labyrinthine plot and gorgeous language. Anthony Higgins plays the draughtsman of the title who undertakes a commission to draw the estate of a philandering and callous husband on behalf of Janet Suzman, the long suffering wife. As part of his payment for this task, he enjoys private meetings with Suzman where she is to comply with his pleasures. What he doesn't realise is that he is being manipulated by minds far more devious than his own and gradually he becomes the artist of his own rather dramatic downfall as he is implicated in a murderous plot.
The Draughtsman's Contract is unlike any other movie in its styling and spectacle and was the first film by Peter Greenaway to gain widespread acclaim and deservedly so.
The opulence of the setting and the costumes are the perfect foil for the florid language and stylised posturing of the characters while the constrained manners and etiquette of the era are wonderfully at odds with the excesses and degradation of the situation. This was a period in history when the landed gentry were far from genteel and this is the spirit of the movie, a dark and subversive comedy that is a visual treat.
This review of The Draughtsman's Contract (1982) was written by Jonathan B on 14 Dec 2010.
The Draughtsman's Contract has generally received very positive reviews.
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