Every moment in this romantic drama seems to be being played as if it was some grand tragic epic, completely lacking in subtlety and overdone as far as emotion, music and direction are concerned. It concerns the upper class James Wilby who falls in love with the working class Imogen Stubbs and desperately tries to get back to her when he is stranded without money. Told through flashback, it shows Wilby reminiscing as an old man about his past, staying with Stubbs and her family (which includes mother Susannah York), and it becomes very obvious where this is going.
Beautifully filmed in the country, this should have reigned itself in, and every moment truly seems to be trying to be larger than what came before it. Wilby and Stubbs are lovely, but much of the supporting cast is directed as if to play to the top of the balcony, with the music at times completely overshadowing the nuances of the story which could have been quite touching had it toned down on the emotion. After a while, it becomes difficult not to start laughing at the melodramatic mood, with its final revelation so determined to draw out tears that it just left me in near hysterics. But it's so delightfully old fashioned in its motivations that it's completely impossible to totally dismiss, even if at times it seems like one of those lush women's pictures that dominated the 1930's, 40's and 50's.
Beautifully filmed in the country, this should have reigned itself in, and every moment truly seems to be trying to be larger than what came before it. Wilby and Stubbs are lovely, but much of the supporting cast is directed as if to play to the top of the balcony, with the music at times completely overshadowing the nuances of the story which could have been quite touching had it toned down on the emotion. After a while, it becomes difficult not to start laughing at the melodramatic mood, with its final revelation so determined to draw out tears that it just left me in near hysterics. But it's so delightfully old fashioned in its motivations that it's completely impossible to totally dismiss, even if at times it seems like one of those lush women's pictures that dominated the 1930's, 40's and 50's.