MYST POST #3: Belle

   

   This movie caught my attention as I was wading through movie trailers.  It was an official selection at the Toronto International Film Festival and was directed by Amma Asante, also known for writing/directing "A Way of Life."  The movie follows the story of Dido Elizabeth Belle (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), a mixed race woman living with her aristocratic relatives in 18th Century England. Although Dido is technically a part of the family and has rank, her race provides for many subjects of controversy.  She is not allowed to dine with guests but is too high rank to dine with the servants, for example.  At the same time we are following Dido and her cousin  Elizabeth (Sarah Gadon)'s attempts to find suitable husbands, Dido's great-uncle Lord Mansfield (Tom Wilkinson), Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, is ruling on a case regarding the drowning of diseased slaves aboard a cargo ship.  He can either rule in favor of the ship's crew and ensure slavery continues, or rule in favor of the insurers and make a huge step in the abolition of slavery and the increased value of all human life, regardless of race.  Dido begins to come to terms with herself and begins becoming more active in the abolitionist movement once she meets John Davinier (Sam Reid), an aspiring lawyer and active abolitionist.  Dido then must choose between marrying the aristocratic Oliver Ashford (James Norton) and reaffirming her social imbalance, or marrying Davinier and reaffirming her position as an abolitionist.

      Let's just start by saying Gugu Mbatha-Raw knows what she's doing as an actress.  Her acting starts very subtle and reserved, just as Dido's character starts, and gets more and more passionate as the film progresses, just as Dido does.  She is so convincing as a woman lost in a world that does not accept her.  Kudos to her, man, she was what made the movie possible.  And it was also nice to see Tom Felton again (playing James Ashford, brother of Oliver) after his role as Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter.  He plays the odious, close-minded, unlikable scoundrel once again (constantly calling Dido repulsive and even at one point attempting to harm her), and pulls it off just as he did before.  All other actors were outshone by Mbatha-Raw, but played their parts respectably.

(Tom Felton and Gugu Mbatha-Raw)

     There is nothing intensely stylistic about this film.  There are valuable close-ups that allow us to see an important props.  There are wide shots that allow us to see the sprawling parties.  The defining characteristic of this film is that the camera is almost always on Dido.  It is a film about her, after all, so she is almost always in frame.  We have the obligatory conversations between other characters, but otherwise Dido is the focus.  There are also many close ups of Dido's hands, whether she is playing piano or fiddling.  Her hands are very pale, so sometimes it's even hard to tell she is mixed race at all.  That's an interesting point, whether intentional or not, because Dido's hands are the same as anyone's hands; they are used for the same things.  Beyond that, there are many perspective shots, angled to show us what Dido is looking at.  This allows us to see things as she would see them, and really feel connected to her.  All in all, this film is very much designed to link us directly with Dido, since it is primarily about her.  Meaning the film relies very much on the acting of Mbatha-Raw, which was in fact the highlight of the film.

     One scene which I though was constructed very well is the scene where Dido's suitor, Oliver Ashford, is introduced to John Davinier.  Dido and Oliver have tracked down the string quartet that is playing, and the camera pans down from a view of the strings to Davinier's face as he turns around, so we recognize him.  Then we see Dido and Oliver as Davinier must be seeing them, Oliver placing a hand on Dido's face.  Dido then looks up almost directly at the camera.  We then see Davinier's face in between the shoulders of Dido and Oliver, splitting the two of them in the frame and interrupting the closeness Dido had to Oliver.  We only see Dido's expression as Davinier approaches, showing her shock and awe.  This leads to several close-ups of their faces and their clear attraction to each other.  The camera frame widens to include Oliver as Dido remembers he is there and goes to introduce them.  In this shot, Davinier's back is still in frame, larger than Ashford, showing that he takes up more of Dido's attention than Ashford does.  Other characters, extras, pass in front of the camera, reminding us that this is in a public place where they can be observed.  This happens just as Dido remembers to introduce the two, meaning she has realized where she is an her focus shifts from just Davinier.  As Oliver tips his hat to Davinier, a medium shot is used to include all three characters, accenting the distinct space between Davinier and the other two.  This encompasses the societal difference between the characters, seeing as Davinier is lower class than the two of them and is not a part of that aristocracy.  In one scene, Dido's two possible love interests have been introduced, and the scene has shown Dido's attraction to Davinier yet his clear distance from the world she lives in.  A major point of tension in the story has been shown solely though the camera angles and shots, and that is why this scene is so important.

       The movie itself is actually based on the true story of Dido Elizabeth Belle.  Her family relations have been incorporated accurately into the film.  Throughout the film, images of blacks being lower and subservient in paintings are used.  So when Dido and her cousin Elizabeth are painted in the same portrait as equals, it is an important moment in the film.  There is in fact a painting of Elizabeth Murray and Dido Elizabeth Belle, which is what sparked the film.  It hangs in Scone Palace today.  As far as historical accuracy, the film was pretty solid.  Although the incredible and lasting affect Dido and Davinier had on Lord Mansfield's view of slavery was stretched a bit.  Davinier was not a lawyer in real life, but a servant.  Lord Mansfield was, however, against slavery.  Much of the dialogue used actually came from his rulings (although it was not on the Zong case, but a different case about slavery).  Lord Mansfield did contribute to the abolition of slavery.  If you're still interested, links to several articles where I found my information in can be found here :
(Belle: was British history really this black and white?)
(Dido Belle: the artworld enigma who inspired a movie)

(The actual painting of Dido Elizabeth Belle

and Elizabeth Murray)

      All in all, if you like films about the social hierarchy of 18th Century England, you'd enjoy this.  But seriously, this is a very interesting film that gives a very realistic view of the struggles of being the odd one out in the crowd.  The film itself reminded me a little of "Pride and Prejudice" with Keira Knightley and Donald Sutherland, just in the way it was filmed, in the place it was set, and in the story-line style.  It seemed a bit Jane Austen-esque. It was a touch predictable, but Mbatha-Raw's performance makes it all worth it.  I'd give it a go, if I were you. 3/5 stars.