Reel History: That Hamilton Woman
I am not a great film buff, cinema going is consigned to life bc (before children) and I am very lazy about watching dvds. However I do enjoy reading film reviews, and the more sarcastic the better. So I am a huge fan of the Guardian's Reel History column which grades films for historical accuracy and entertainment value. (The review of 300 is particularly scathing and funny. Any column that coins the phrase "blinged out battle rhino" gets my vote ;) Anyway, this week it's That Hamilton Woman with Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh playing Horatio Nelson and Emma Hamilton. I haven't seen this film but I got it for esmerelda_t for Christmas and am eagerly awaiting her review.
Reel History award the film C+ for entertainment and C for historical accuracy. Nelson's eyepatch comes in for particular disdain:
So I'm sorry about this, but: Nelson didn't wear an eyepatch. He may have worn a less glamorous eye shade on his hat when it was sunny on deck. In fact, this film is largely responsible for spreading the myth that he wore a pirate-style patch.
On the plus side the reconstruction of trafalgar is "spirited and technically impressive". However the main criticism is the way that the film glosses over Ms Hamilton's character:
In real life, Nelson and the Hamiltons all lived together in a menage a trois. In the film, Nelson has to wait for Sir William to die before he can shack up with the lady. Worst of all, Emma's performance career is almost entirely ripped out and replaced with dreary domesticity. Not only is watching Vivien Leigh play goody-goody wifelet a lot less fun than watching her play crazy freewheeling nympho, it's also wrong. The real Emma's devotion to Nelson was notoriously flamboyant.
Notoriously flamboyant?! That's one way to describe it! And the final verdict?
A good watch for the first half at least, but its 1940s agenda really cramps Lady Hamilton's style.
We'll see what esmerelda_t has to say...