THE BEGUILED – Review

THE BEGUILED is director/writer Sophia Coppola’s remake of an offbeat, little-seen 1971 gem that starred Clint Eastwood. Though directed by Don Siegel, best known for tough crime drama (he directed Clint in DIRTY HARRY the same year), the original had a strong feminist bent, so it’s seems suitable that the story is retold from a woman filmmaker’s perspective. The new film is faithful to the original to the point where it may seem unnecessary to some, but it’s a compelling story and Ms Coppola and her cast do an admirable job.

THE BEGUILED is a haunting gothic western that takes place near the end of the Civil War in a Southern mansion that functions as a small all-girls private school. As the war rages on outside its wrought-iron gates, headmistress Martha Farnsworth (Nicole Kidman) tries to maintain civility inside. The youngest student Amy (Oona Laurence), discovers injured Union soldier John McBurney (Colin Farrell) while out mushroom-hunting. She brings him back to the school where the women agree to hide him until he is strong enough to survive a Confederate prison camp. It’s not long before some of the women starts throwing themselves at McBurney, who takes advantage of the situation (and the women). There’s inexperienced Edwina (Kirsten Dunst), the sole teacher at the school who immediately takes a romantic interest in McBurney while pouty Alicia (Elle Fanning), one of the older students, also has her eyes on him. And then there’s Martha, torn between her longings for McBurney and the safety of the girls. The sexual tension becomes increasingly thick until it all comes to a head in a burst of violence and revenge as McBurney learns the hard way that Hell hath no fury like a gang of man-deprived women scorned.

THE BEGUILED has an eerie atmosphere thanks in part to the hazy, candle-lit glow of Phillipe Le Sourd’s 35mm, all-natural lensing and the mournful score by Laura Karpman that perfectly complements the mood of the film. Coppola’s calculated direction and her taut, tight screenplay (the film runs just 85 minutes) bring out the best in the cast. Farrell fill’s Eastwood’s shoes surprisingly well in the unsympathetic role of McBurney.  Although we feel bad about the condition he’s in, we soon realize what an amoral, manipulative scoundrel he is (though Clint was even worse in the original, even enticing young Amy). The female cast fits perfectly to their roles – from Kidman’s yearning spinster, to Dunst’s  fragile virgin with chaste romantic fantasies, to Fanning’s beguiling vixen. The BEGUILED is a carefully-paced and elegant film and is recommended.

4 of 5 Stars

THE BEGUILED opens in St. Louis June 30 at Landmark’s Tivoli Theater and Plaza Frontenac Theater.