Film Review: Far From The Madding Crowd

I recently saw Far From The Madding Crowd starring Carey Mulligan. I just posted my full Film Review: Far From The Madding Crowd in my other blog, In The Mood For Movies, where I post my general movie reviews (of the movies I've seen in theaters).

Read part of my review of FFTMC movie below...

Far From The Madding Crowd (2015)

starring Carey Mulligan, Matthias Schoenaerts, Tom Sturridge, 
Michael Sheen, and Juno Temple

Watch the trailer #2 for Far From The Madding Crowd 

Far From The Madding Crowd synopsis 

The story of independent, beautiful and headstrong Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan), who attracts three very different suitors: Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts), a sheep farmer, captivated by her fetching willfulness; Frank Troy (Tom Sturridge), a handsome and reckless Sergeant; and William Boldwood (Michael Sheen), a prosperous and mature bachelor. This timeless story of Bathsheba's choices and passions explores the nature of relationships and love - as well as the human ability to overcome hardships through resilience and perseverance.

I saw Far From The Madding Crowd on Carey Mulligan's birthday (May 28th) of all days, that's because it was finally showing in my local theater and it happens to be her birthday. I loved and enjoyed watching it. The period drama feel and the countryside shown in this movie reminded me of one of my all-time favorite period movies: Pride & Prejudice (2005). Not too mention, one of its stars from P&P movie, Carey Mulligan (aka Kitty Bennet, the 4th Bennet daughter) was the main star of this movie. I've heard of FFTMC novel by Thomas Hardy, but has never read it until about 5 years ago when I visited the UK and a friend gave me a copy of it to read. I tried to read it during my flight back home from the UK, but unfortunately, the novel did not really capture my interest in reading it at the time. So, I ended up watching a movie adaptation of it sometime later that same year and the one I saw was the 1967 movie version starring Julie Christie. I thought that movie was good and I understood what the story was about without knowing much from the book. I went back to re-read the book and I did liked it, but it still not a favorite of mine.

Five years later, a new film version of Far From The Madding Crowd starring Carey Mulligan, surprisingly got me excited to go see the movie especially with Miss Mulligan playing Bathsheba Everdene, the main heroine. Her character, the beautiful Miss Everdene, who is a strong-willed, intelligent, witty, and independent woman reminds me of my favorite English literary heroine Elizabeth Bennet of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. I love that her character was a strong and intelligent woman of her time (and of when the story was set). Unlike, Miss Bennet though (who was smarter in picking the right man for her, the one she deeply loved, to marry rather than marry someone for money or someone who just charmed her into one), Miss Everdene made a hasty decision to marry someone she just met (and not the one she really loved) just on a whim. She did, eventually, learned her lesson and picked the right man for her, in the end. I love Carey in this movie and her singing Let No Man Steal Your Thyme (with Michael Sheen) was great too. She has a very good and soothing (singing) voice. She did a great job playing her lead role and one of my favorite lines of her character (the one that I still remember long after the credits roll and up to now, almost a month later) was, "From now on, you have a Mistress not a Master. It is my intention to astonished you all."

(Spoiler Alert: This particular scene in FFTMC reminds me of P&P movie...)

Read my full Film Review: Far From The Madding Crowd here.