STAGE BEAUTY.

This film somehow managed to escape under the radar and considering the amount of quality actors involved in this (Billy Crudup, Claire Danes and Tom Wilkinson, to namebut a few). It’s a wonder this didn’t become a massive hit of “Shakespeare in Love” proportions.

The story follows Ned Kynaston (Crudup), one of the leading lights of Elizabethan theatre and his aid, Maria (Danes), throughout the highlights (and lowlights) of his career.Crudup, along with Wilkinson, are actors in a theatre that abides to the law which decrees that no woman shall be permitted to act in any form on the stage. Due to this, men take all the available roles, with Kynaston the most celebrated.

Maria, however, throws the whole theatrical community into disarray, by playing “Desdemona”, (the very role that has made Kynaston famous), in an underground version of “Othello”, and in doing so, throws hers and Kynaston’s relationship into a whirlwind of turmoil of mass proportions and unpredictable destruction.

Sounds dramatic? Well, so is this film. It twists and turns, then gobbles you up and spits you out the other side.I won’t go into too many details, but this is an expertly crafted film, that demonstrates just how much of a wealth of talent we have in this country. Ranging from Tom Wilkinson most recently seen in the Michel Gondry classic “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”) to Ben Chaplin (“Murder by Numbers”) to Rupert Everett (“To Kill a King”). This trio is superb. Director, Richard Eyre (“Iris”), manages to get a sublime balance of light and dark, with Danes and Crudup illustrating this perfectly.

There’s comedy, drama, heartache, tragedy and action on offer and the tension will keep you hooked right up until the penultimate scene, which, if it doesn’t have you glued to the screen, heart in mouth, sat on the edge of your seat…I don’t know what will.It’s ludicrously engaging (though an ardent follower of Crudup’s work, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this as much as I did!). It takes you on an emotional rollercoaster ride and leaves you feeling breathless, with nothing but admiration for the cast and crew, who’ve carved out a little slice of genius and placed it on our screens.

Brilliant.

by Matt Crockford.