Living Life...Boomer Style

The Duchess

A Young Woman's Passion

The seventeen year old Georgiana (Keira Knightley) enters into an arranged marriage with the 50 year old Duke of Devonshire (Ralph Fiennes), and soon learns that the loveless, unemotional Duke isn’t what she perceived. It seems he only wanted a male heir from Georgiana and he would pay her handsomely for a son. Overtime she had two baby girls plus she helped to raise a little girl from the Dukes former mistress. She eventually had a son but it was after she was violently raped by her husband.

A Free Spirit

Georgiana had a free spirit and innocence about her and over

time it began to diminish like a flickering candle. The Duke, like most men of that time, felt it was his right to have mistresses. Women of the time had no rights and did not speak against their husbands for any reason. Women were treated like owned objects. I would like to think there were exceptions to this rule and not all were this way. Georgiana finds passionate love with a young politician (Dominic Cooper) and finally experiences real love, only to give him up later in the movie.

The Real Thing

I know this story was based on a real person and I know the movie industry can take liberties as they see fit, but I feel this was very close to the real thing. The costume designer, Michael O’Connor, did a superb job on the costume details. The colors, trims and fabrics used made it easy to see what a woman’s clothing was like, from the peasant to the wealthiest. Boy would I like to work under this designer. The furniture and the filming locations in the UK, plus the music added to the ambiance. I found myself immersed in the story. There is nudity but very tastefully executed. There are some violent scenes, not recommended for children. The movie has more to it, and one needs to go and see this movie to get the whole picture. This is a movie I would gladly add to my library. Let me know how you felt after seeing the movie.

By the way the theater I saw this film in was the Crest in Sacramento. I found the Art Deco décor beautiful. It was good to see Sacramento preserving the old theaters; a lot of history in old buildings.

Cast and Credits

Cast: Keira Knightly, Ralph Fiennes

Directed by: Saul Dibb

Rated: PG13

September 19, 2009

                                      The Duchess Trailer 

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