Daily Movie Rec 7/11/2023 (Double Feature)
Edward II (1991)
"Thy worth, sweet friend, is far above my gifts. And therefore, to equal it, receive my heart."
Directed by: Derek Jarman
Cinematography by: Ian Wilson
Country: United Kingdom/Japan
Plot:
After the new king frees his quarrelsome and common-born male lover from exile and bestows high-ranking titles upon him, the queen and a powerful lord stage a coup. Adapted from the 16th-century play by Christopher Marlowe, which is based on the actual reign of King Edward II in the 14th century.
Reasons to watch:
As death encroached upon Jarman toward the end of his life, the formal maximalism that defined much of his earlier filmography swang back like a clock's ticking pendulum and began ceding to increasing minimalism. The talented filmmaker didn't make stylistic choices without introspective purpose though, and the stripped-back sets of Edward II - often encompassing nothing but four walls - work to forefront the characters and performances in what's arguably Jarman's most story-driven film. And all the better for it, as he really lets his actors cook here - and cook they do. Though still winkingly postmodern with its campy anachronisms and unconventional sets, Edward II is what I would most strongly recommend as an entry point in Jarman's filmography to anyone less interested in experimental cinema. [My fingers refused to type "uninterested" there because my brain won't allow me to accept that anyone could be completely uninterested in experimental films. Only less.]
The Criterion Channel/Tubi/Kanopy
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