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Vanity Fair (2004)
DVD (1 discs
)
Blu-ray (1 discs
)
Digital ✓
Genre: Drama
Aspect Ratio: Wide
Sound: DD 5.1
Synopsis
The corsets and high waists of the 19th century meet the lush colors and visual splendor of India in Vanity Fair, a classic novel translated into modern celluloid by Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding). The very contemporary Reese Witherspoon (Legally Blonde, Election) at first seems to hit the wrong note as Becky Sharp, an orphaned girl who rises to the heights of society using her quick wits and feminine wiles. But as Vanity Fair unfolds, the movie's tone embraces both period decor and modern attitudes, searching for a bridge that will carry us more deeply into a different time. It isn't wholly successful--the movie's end wraps things up awkwardly--but some scenes achieve a surprising and vivid immediacy, in particular one in which Becky's gambler husband (elegant James Purefoy) catalogues his worth for her before going off to the Napoleonic battlefields; love and pragmatism fuse with heartbreaking results.
Cast
Jonathan Rhys Meyers
Jim Broadbent
Reese Witherspoon
Gabriel Byrne
Bob Hoskins
Rhys Ifans
Eileen Atkins
Romola Garai
James Purefoy
Director
Mira Nair
Awards & Nominations
- None
Keywords
Book-To-Film
Drama
Technical Specifications
Audio Languages
English, French
Subtitle Languages
French, Spanish
Special Features
- Audio commentary
- Deleted/extended scenes
- Featurettes/Behind-The-Scenes/Documentaries
- The Women Behind Vanity Fair (The predominantly female cast and crew reveal how they flawlessly portrayed women of the time in London)
- Director's Commentary (Mira Nair shares her unique vision and personal inspiration in this insightful discussion)
- Welcome To Vanity Fair (A behind the scenes look at bringing this timeless story to the big screen)