Stage Beauty

Claire Danes and Billy Crudup star in this new Shakespeare remake.

It seems that Shakespeare is back in fashion again; after the success a couple of years ago with Shakespeare in Love and with The Merchant of Venice scheduled for release shortly, Victorian dramas are back with a bang! Stage Beauty is the first film of this reinvigorated genre to be released and if it is a sign of things to come then it's not going to be a case of 'To be or not to be', it's simply going to be a case of it being a great time for cinema goers.

Set in 1660's, Stage Beauty chronicles the contrasting fortunes of Maria (Claire Danes) and Knyaston (Billy Crudup). The film takes place during a period of time when women were forbidden from appearing on stage, instead men play their roles and Knyaston is the leading female impersonator. Maria is his stage hand and is completely enamoured by his acting skills, so much so that she hopes to become an actress one day. After one of his performances Maria sneaks out and with the aid of a few of her mentor's props, she performs in a pub of ill repute. Despite the shoddy settings the young woman's performance goes down a treat and sets the ball rolling for a reversal of the draconian law in place. Soon Knyaston's world is turned upside down as men suddenly are forbidden from playing female roles, rescuing him from the gutter Maria must teach the actor how to be a man again otherwise he will end up self destructing.

From the get go it is quite obvious to point out that this film will not be everyone's cup of tea. Forgetting the fact that there are no explosions or aliens invading the earth, there's the more obvious fact that this is Shakespearean and that is enough to put a lot of people off. Sure it is very dramatic, the actors are all wearing funny clothes and some rather dodgy make-up but this movie is honestly worth giving a chance. The only problem with the movie is that its marketing appears to be portraying it as a romantic comedy when it tends to be far more serious in parts, there are plenty of light-hearted moments but it is very hard hitting at times. Stage Beauty deals with a whole host of issues such as women's rights, bisexuality and the cutthroat world of the acting business. Despite the film's time period, it manages to deal with these topics quite well and proves to be more insightful than most directly aimed at exploring such themes. The movie's light touch combined with some terrific performances from the principal actors makes for a rather splendid offering, especially in light of the fact that the filmmakers don't prove to be so incredibly banal as to revert to political correctness. For example, the issue of women's rights doesn't simply end up as a case of women suddenly getting their chance after years of being kept down. It explores whether they should be thrust into the spotlight for their sexuality or, more importantly, because of their talent.

The highlight of the movie is the wonderful chemistry that exists between Billy Crudup and Claire Danes; it almost comes as no surprise to hear that they have begun dating since finishing filming the project. Throughout the film both actors play off each other to great effect, it is almost like a see-saw motion as Kynaston firstly dominates his stage hand, then suddenly the roles are reversed until finally a balance is reached. Stage Beauty's finale is just about the best piece of acting that you are going to see all year, its intensity and emotion have yet to be matched in my opinion. Their performances are bolstered by the fact that, because of the setting, some of the scenes are almost overly dramatic. Each of the theatre sequences, combined with Knyaston's sexual issues, lead to a flimsy atmosphere that is borderline comedic. This all makes the final scene stand out so much because it is so contrastable with the rest of the film, it also drives home the point that we should look past a person's sex and focus on their talent when judging them for their worth. Stage Beauty's sex scene is also worth putting under the spotlight; it completely sexually charged and marks Knyaston's final transformation. While it is not overtly graphic, it sees Danes and Crudup swap positions as the actress questions her mentor about his sexuality; the resulting tension springs off the screen and is there for all to see. I wasn't aware of the off screen relationship before seeing this movie, but it makes sense in retrospect and Stage Beauty really does benefit from it.

Claire Danes has had a bit of a strange career of late, the actress has stepped out of the limelight during the past couple of years to pursue her studies and although many people thought her prospects would suffer as a result, she has come back stronger than ever. I thought that it was a rather dubious decision to accept a leading role in the last Terminator film, but if anything it seems to show that she is so competent now that she can breeze throughout mainstream and more independent offerings with ease. Her performance in Stage Beauty is so contrastable with that of the one in the sci-fi blockbuster that it really does exemplify her tremendous talent. She said of her career break, 'I was told that my going to college wouldn't be good for my career. I think that's nonsense. It's good to empower yourself by cutting yourself off from this business every once in a while.' Danes summed it up best there herself because she has come back bigger and stronger than ever, if this film is anything to go by then the only direction she can go is up.

Her co-star, Billy Crudup, closely resembles the actress' career in terms of the choices he has made over the past couple of years. He might not be a familiar name but he has been on the verge of super stardom for the past couple of years, in fact he has decided to turn down some roles that would have put him over the edge. The actor is probably best known for his role as Russell Hammond in Almost Famous, in Hollywood circles though he is best known for the career choices he has made so far. In fact Crudup famously turned down the part of Bruce Banner in The Hulk and starred in Tim Burton's Big Fish instead! Before you go thinking that it is simply a case of some bad decision making skills, let me say that this actor is probably one of the best talents in Tinseltown.

There is nothing that can hold him back and he adds so much to each film that he makes, Crudup is so talented that each of his characters are virtually unrecognisable from each other which is in complete contrast to some of the generic performances put in by some so-called Hollywood superstars these days. Stage Beauty is one of the standout moments of his career so far and the actor deserves some sort of award for his role in the movie. Crudup is nothing short of fantastic, shifting between the comedic and dramatic elements of the film with ease and creates one of the most interesting characters to have emerged from the big screen in years. Guys, beware of bringing your girlfriend to this movie because Crudup will have them swooning over him and unfortunately we stand little chance of competing with this star.

Claire Danes and Billy Crudup give the finest performances of their young careers and the dynamic that exists between the pair is nothing short of startling. The film's director, Richard Eyre, continues to go from strength to strength having made his initial transition to the big screen with Iris and Stage Beauty is sure to catapult him on to bigger things. Not many people thought that a film involving Shakespeare and cross dressing could be popular again, but it looks like it's a case of history repeating with Stage Beauty.

Piaras Kelly
Editor, Kikizo Movies