Stage Beauty DVD Review:

In the 1660s, under the reign of Charles II, the theatre was run by men and the plays performed by men. This included all of the women’s roles, as it was illegal for the fairer sex to take to the stage. The most beautiful woman working in London Theatre scene was Edward Kynaston (Crudup), a classically trained performer who was desired by men and women. As the King took more of an interest in the arts, his mistress Nell Gwynn (Tapper) pushed for a change in the law that would allow women to perform after seeing the first woman to illegally do so, Maria (Danes), Kynaston’s servant girl.

Probably the biggest advance in female equality in the 15th Century is lovingly brought to the screen in a movie that actually feels more like a play than a motion picture.

The story of how the law was changed to allow women back on the stage is a fascinating one. This was a time of sexual indifference, when it was completely acceptable for a man to play a female part and he was revered and respected for doing so. A time when boys would be trained to loose all of their masculinity and embrace their feminine side, all in the name of performance, leading to lost identities and sexual confusion. King Charles II and his stage-struck mistress Nell Gwynn changed all this and altered theatre forever.

The period drama is backed by some remarkable performances. Billy Crudup continues to make interesting career choices with the role of Edward ‘Ned’ Kynaston. This is another challenging role for the talented character actor, as he has to show many emotions and play, in essence, two roles, that of Kynaston the female performer and Ned the confused man who doesn’t who or what he is. He becomes both female and male, a myriad of personalities rolled into a perplexed young man. This is another outstanding performance by Crudup, making you wish he would appear in more movies.

Claire Danes shows more of that promise she exuded in Romeo + Juliet in probably her best and most challenging role since. Her character’s transformation from lowly servant girl with a passion for the stage, to the biggest thing to hit the London theatre scene is a showcase of her talents. It is her interactions with Crudup that really drive the movie, as her character’s secret love and respect for Kynaston drive her to do what she does.

Supporting the two leads are a few stalwarts of the genre. Rupert Everett ironically plays King Charles II (after playing the character’s father, the ill-fated King Charles I in To Kill A King), with all the glee and relevance of the theatre obsessed monarch. Tom Wilkinson, Richard Griffiths and Edward Fox bring abit of class to the proceedings, been no strangers to the period drama. Zoe Tapper makes an impressive debut as King Charles’s adoring, if rather common mistress, Nell Gwynn and Ben Chaplin impresses again as George Villiars, Duke of Buckingham, a man with a passion for the theatre in more ways than one.

Stage Beauty is beautifully shot and marvellously acted with a fascinating story to tell. Director Richard Eyre brings his theatrical background to bear, as he instils a sense of stage into the proceedings. Successfully mixing laugher with tragedy and then dowsing it all with a layer of intense passion, Stage Beauty is a fine example of a period drama that sets new standards in both performance and style.

Star Rating = * * * *

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is very good. The dark, dingy streets of King Charles II’s London are vividly brought to life with a very sharp picture, especially when you take into account how dark some of the settings actually are. The sound quality is also good, especially during the theatre moments. There is also a Audio Description track for the blind or partly sighted, which is always a welcome addition.

BONUS FEATURES

Feature Commentary by Director Richard Eyre
Covering the more technical aspects of the movie, director Richard Eyre talks frankly about ‘Stage Beauty’. He discusses how his crew and he went about setting the scene and creating the mood of the piece, as there isn’t much historical material from the reign of King Charles II. He reveals how they wanted to create an authentic display of theatre life at the time by showing both the on and off stage lives of the cast and crew. He talks at length about Billy Crudup’s performance and how he prepared for it and the rest of the cast. He also reveals what it was like filming at Hampton Court.

Featurette (20.33 mins)

Director Richard Eyre, Production designer Jim Clay, writer Jeffrey Hatcher, costume designer Tim Hatley and stars Billy Crudup, Claire Danes, Richard Griffiths, Hugh Bonneville and Zoe Tapper come together to talk about ‘Stage Beauty’. They talk about creating an authentic look with a modern ideal, as much of the time of Charles II was not very well documented, giving the production a free reign. The cast talk about their characters with Billy Crudup revealing why he took the role, Claire Danes telling you how difficult it was getting the English accent right, Hugh Bonneville talking about Samuel Pepys and Zoe Tapper discussing her first motion picture role. With behind the scenes shots and insights into the production, this is a good mix of interviews and making of… features.

Trailer (1.40 mins)

The full theatrical trailer for the movie

OVERALL

Nicely packaged with a good commentary track and featurette, the DVD of ‘Stage Beauty’ should make fans of the movie give it a round of applause. The film is presented excellently and the bonus features only add to the value making this a really good ticket.

DVD Star Rating = * * *

Jamie Kelwick

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