Belle
Description
Johan Zoffany’s 18th-century painting of two relatives, mixed-race Dido Elizabeth Belle and her white cousin Elizabeth, the great-nieces of William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, inspired this lush period drama. The daughter of Royal Navy Admiral John Lindsay (Matthew Goode) and a Caribbean slave, Dido (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) grows up in the high society world of Kenwood House under the care of her great-uncle, Lord Mansfield (Tom Wilkinson), the family patriarch and Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales. Director Amma Asante and screenwriter Misan Sagay (Their Eyes Were Watching God) deliver a romantic alternative to Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, powered by Mbatha-Raw’s engaging performance, one that balances delicate beauty, fiery passion and worldly intelligence. There are shades of Pride and Prejudice, as well, in a drama that blends themes of social justice involving the British slave trade with a tale of a young woman who is both part and outside of society—and whose wealth assures that she will have no end of suitors. Belle’s historic backdrop and lavish costumes recall Merchant-Ivory’s classic dramas while a courtroom subplot involving England’s slave trade adds extra emotional weight. –Steve Ramos
Amma Asante, born in Britain but a resident of the Netherlands, draws from experience on both sides of the camera, acting in British TV series like Grange Hill and Birds of a Feather, as well as writing and producing the drama Brothers and Sisters. In 2005, she won the BAFTA Awards’ Carl Foreman Award for Most Promising Newcomer for her directorial debut A Way of Life. She garnered the Directors to Watch prize at the 2014 Palm Springs Film Festival for her sophomore effort Belle.
Trailer
//player.vimeo.com/video/90581827?autoplay=1Film Details
Language English
Year 2013
Runtime 105
Country UK
Director Amma Asante
Producer Damian Jones
Writer Misan Sagay
Editor Pia Di Ciaula, Victoria Boydell
Cinematographer Ben Smithard
Music Rachel Portman
Cast Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Tom Wilkinson, Sarah Gadon, Miranda Richardson, Penelope Wilton, Emily Watson
Print Source Fox Searchlight Pictures/ russell.nelson@fox.com