Never underestimate the power of dainty looking women wearing long skirts and undergarments that would bring a NAVY Seal to his knees crying.

The Beguiled is set in the midst of the Civil War.

The place is a girl’s school in Virginia and it’s part of the Confederacy.

When a Union Soldier (played by the ever charming Colin Farrell) pleads for medical help from a young girl living at the school —the entire school—or what’s left of it gets involved with his well-being—and the flirtation gets heavy.

Hey, when you’re a good- looking enemy intruder—you don’t get kicked to the curb.

Nicole Kidman is outstanding as the school’s headmistress with nerves of steel—except of course around a handsome man—than her veneer does a bit of cracking.  Kirsten Dunst plays the somewhat shy—‘I’ve never had a man’ type— with wide eyes for Farrell.  And Elle Fanning is the overly flirtatious teen that has no trouble locking lips with the only guy in town—even if he is the enemy. The cast is stellar.

When it looks like the ladies are going to cut one another’s throats (in a sweet passive aggressive way) over the cute guy—and he knows it, he does what any guy does who has a crowd of girls to choose from….but you have to see the film for more.

The Beguiled is a game of cat and mouse played out to perfection. It is also a remake of a 1971 film starring Clint Eastwood and Geraldine Page.

But beyond the great acting, and the intriguing story is the director—wild applause to Sofia Coppola.  I know I’m not the first to applaud her—she won the best director award at Cannes earlier this year for The Beguiled—(by the way, she is only the second woman ever to win that award at Cannes.)

Also—I’d be remiss not to mention the cinematography, which is exceptional:

Philippe Le Sourd made this film look like a turn of the century postcard.  And the sound design—which captures the crunch of the crinolines and the roar from exploding guns—gives the movie an almost documentary feel.

The Beguiled moves slowly—like the times—but it is absolutely engaging, and I wholeheartedly recommend a summer evening in the theater enjoying it.

Lisa DiGiovine

About The Author

Lisa DiGiovine is a yacht owning, Ph.d with a trust fund and a penchant for lying--except when it comes to movies. She loves them. She worships them and outside of a good glass of wine and a date with her boyfriend and a cuddle with her pets---can be found mesmerized in a dark theatre in the back row--losing herself in a marvelous adventure. Lisa is an unscripted TV producer with 3 Emmy nominations and a delirious sense of humor.

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