Telluride at Dartmouth 2018 "The Favourite"
This rollicking tale of royal intrigue pits Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone against each other in crazy Queen Anne’s court.
Early 18th century: England is at war with France. Nevertheless, duck racing and pineapples are all the rage. In Yorgos Lanthimos’s (The Lobster) darkly funny reimagining of the costume epic, Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) and striving gentlewoman Abigail (Emma Stone) engage in a sexually charged fight to the death for the body and soul of the mercurial Queen Anne (Olivia Colman). This brilliant trio exuberantly perform their savage dance of intrigue, desire and power, as if they were inventing the Game of Thrones. The witty, foul-mouthed script (think Barry Lyndon crossed with All About Eve) sets the court pageantry in ironic counterpoint with the primal conflict unreeling behind closed doors. (UK/US/Ireland, 2018, 2h) Courtesy of Fox Searchlight
