I think it was December 2018 that I saw the trailer for the Favourite. I liked it instantly. I think Emma Stone & Rachel Weisz are great and the trailer made me laugh. So I decided that I wanted to see this movie in the cinema. Later, at the end of December I watched the Lobster. When I looked up the movie on Imdb, I saw that the director of the Lobster, was also the director of the Favourite. And since I really liked the Lobster, this got me more excited about the Favourite. In January, I watched even more movies of director Yorgos Lanthimos (The Killing of a Sacred Deer, Dogtooth, Alps). So was sooooo ready for the Favourite. I went to Lumiere in Maastricht to see the movie.
The Favourite
It's the 18th century and Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) is on the throne. She has quite the temper and her health is not that well. Her best friend, Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz), covers for her most of the time and with that she usually rules in the queen's place. One day, a new servant arrives. She's the nice of Lady Sarah. Abigail (Emma Stone) was once a lady herself, but due to circumstances, she's now a servant. While working as a servant, she gets into Sarah's favor. She sees it as a way to get a better life again and grabs the chance to work for Sarah. Some people at court see Abigail as way to reach the queen. They don't agree with what Sarah's doing. But what does Abigail want herself? It's an intriguing movie about politics, wealth, war, friendship, temptation and enemies.
Yorgos Lanthimos
The Favourite fits in line of Yorgos Lanthimos earlier movies and it doesn't at the same time. After watching his previous movies recently, I was very enthusiastic and it was easier to compare for me. The Favourite is, like his other movies, a bit of a strange and dark drama / comedy. I think the humor in for example the Lobster was a bit more subtle. The Favourite really made me laugh out loud a few times. But the type of humor is the same. At all movies of Lanthimos I have certain moments that I'm thinking 'What is this', 'what is happening', 'huh???'. And the Favourite is no different in that. Even though I had a pretty good idea of the content by watching the trailer the movie was still full of surprises.
More different was the setting. A costume drama is not what I'm used to. The Killing of a Sacred Deer, Dogtooth, Alps and the Lobster all have another setting & different feeling. In that, the Favourite is different, because of the time (18th century) and the sphere (At court, the costumes, politics). But I did like it. It's a unique costume drama, really different from the other ones I've seen.
My thoughts
I really liked the Favourite. It is a bit of strange movie. When it ended, and I was still sitting in the cinema, I was thinking, "What did I just watch?". But I like the strangeness, the dark humor and the surprises. The acting in the movie was great: I always enjoy seeing Emma tone and Rachel Weisz on screen. Olivia Colman was amazing as Queen Anne. She played such a funny character. And rivalry between Lady Abiligail is perfect. They're all great actresses. I am a fan of Yorgos' work now and I'm rally curious to find out what his future projects will be.
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