Notes On A Scandal
Judi Dench/Cate Blanchett/Bill Nighy/92 minutes
The plot could have been lifted straight from the tabloids – an attractive art teacher has an affair with her 15-year-old student. But this is only one of two obsessions that the film, based on Zoe Heller’s novel of the same name, draws you into.
When Sheba Hart’s (Blanchett) secret is inadvertently discovered by her colleague Barbara Covett (Dench), she is at first relieved that the latter won’t squeal on her.
But that’s because Barbara is weaving her own web of deceit and treachery. Dench is all purse-lipped and steely-eyed as a repressed lesbian, but she also conveys the desperate loneliness of the character.
Blanchett’s role is more nuanced. She is excellent as a woman drowning in insecurities, grasping at affection and floundering in indecision.
The featurettes offered some morsels of interesting information, such as Dench’s ability to quickly get into and snap out of character.
Director Richard Eyre’s commentary was disappointing though. The admiration for his actors and the scriptwriter was clear but hardly makes for riveting dish.
(ST)