Far from the Madding Crowd (2015)

i must have seen a different film!!

To all those who have watched it: I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

What an absolute waste of potential. The cinematography ... enchanting. The acting ... captivating. The writing ... incoherent and illogical. So much so that I couldn't help but wonder how this got through preliminary editing stages.Unlike most complaints of illogicality, this has nothing to do with suspense of disbelief. It has more to do with the overwhelming question riding in my mind throughout this film. "Why"?Bathseda goes from a strong and enforced independence to abject stupidity in moment. Really. After having rejected 2 men, within 10 minutes of the nearly 2 hours of this film, she falls for and marries a man she met in the middle of the night while walking back home, and who just so happens to be a selfish drunk. Why?Perhaps you could just explain away her stupidity with love, but the film takes no time with it. Any emotion is thrust upon the viewer without even the simplest of justification. At best, weak explanations are added in afterwards to quell these questions (she married him was jealous and required a distraction; if you say so). Then within minutes the next man falls in love with her (all the men in this movie just fall in love and propose, there's no time for any justification behind this love that would actually make this movie interesting) and then shoots the husband who by the way was thought to have drowned. Who needs any sort of background behind any emotion when they can just throw love at the screen. Who needs any motivation? We have time constraints people.Moreover, the primary character, Bathseda, is so utterly unlikable that at best you can feel abject apathy. She fires a man who she is indebted to after he dared point out her capriciousness (after, notably, she asked for his opinion). This is until she needs him the next day when her livestock fails. Perhaps some found this stubbornness and pride endearing. I didn't. By the end of the film, my only investment was hoping she did not get her happy ending after so callously and irresponsibly using the people around her.The film only gets 3/10 stars because of the cinematography, which I can't stress enough, is so utterly amazing. Additionally, the acting was rather well done, with Carey Mulligan being a notable standout. It's a shame such cinematographic and acting skill was wasted on an atrocious plot.

Having now seen this twice,I feel this adaptation could have been so much more. Let's start with the good points; cinematography is beautiful, the countryside has never looked more stunning, makes me want to visit it more often. The actors are on form - Sheen really delivers,the part of Liddy is also worth noting. The music is also good and doesn't impose.Now the bad, it felt as if the director picked the main bits of the book that he remembered from class and packed them into the film. The atmosphere and build up is definitely missing. I think half an hour more could have added more and given it the payoff that it deserved. In short it ended up being a late Sunday evening affair that should be on a TV screen rather than cinema.

Watch the GREAT BBC adaptation of the Hardy book. This is a waste of time. Sturridge is particularly bad and miscast as Sgt. Troy. Jonathan Firth, the brother of Colin Firth (King's Speech, Pride and Prejudice), is a much better Sgt. Troy. The BBC miniseries had the time to fully lay out the plot and address the intricacies of the book. This version is like reading bad cliff notes. The dark atmosphere is also all wrong. You don't get a sense of the gritty yet vibrant everyday life surrounding the characters. Farmer Oak (sturdy as an oak) is just a love sick calf in this film. In the BBC series, you see a subtlety in the performance and not a depressing dogged joyless devotion to a women who can't make up her mind. The BBC version also shows you Bathsheba's caring relationship with the town folks who depend on her for their livelihood. You see how and why she becomes so devoted to them and how their lives are intertwined. Accordingly, you understand why her marriage to Sgt. Troy is a disaster beyond her own story and so poignant. The one thing that makes this film bearable is the performance of Michael Sheen. He is simply superb. In the BBC version, the actor played Boldwood as a raving lunatic. It is all wrong. Sheen's performance gave you compassion for the character and displayed the depth and pathos of his devotion and unrequited love for Bathsheba. He is a much better actor than the man who played him in the BBC series In fact, Sheen's performance is the only reason to watch this mediocrity.

Far from the Madding Crowd is a movie that lets us dig into the extraordinary Thomas Hardy genius that gorgeously scales his unique style of story building. David Nicholls knits a fine screenplay to complement the powerful Hardy plot. Thomas Vinterberg on the other hand helms sheer magic. His direction is subtle, focuses on the call of the hour and displays only the best bits he thinks worth depicting.Born in this era I didn't have the good hap of watching the first one first, so I decided to accept whatever was flung before me. The setup even though modishly shot doesn't even for once gives away the intended timeline. You can't help but compare it to the likes of Gone with the Wind. There are magnificently shot landscapes that will compel you to marvel at innate scenery our planet offers. Lush farms and the tranquility surrounding it will force you to have second thoughts about all the urban choices you made.SPOILERS AHEAD: When we look at the cast, Carey Mulligan was an extraordinary find. The role she plays – Bathsheba Everdene is a girl with education, an independent woman who doesn't want to be tied down by promises of love. She can't be picketed down like someone's property, until she hits an infatuation herself in the form of Sergeant Francis Troy played by Tom Sturridge. She becomes bewitched at once, slave to her emotions and that's when a terrible mistake happens. Like she puts it "between jealousy and distraction" she marries him. It is hard not to feel sorry for her to find the inconsiderate guy that doesn't give two rats about her, and two jilted lovers who only hoped for the best in the backdrop. Carey's character will also peeve you beyond limit when she turns down brilliant advices by Gabriel Oak played by Matthias Schoenaerts. But isn't that how life happens to us all? One moment we think we are right only to tumble and rise again. Bathsheba is quite relatable in that respect, and she gets forgiven as well.The sheep bit in the beginning was one of the gloomiest unfortunate events to have befallen Oak. It was impactful in a way that was capable of flinging you in a sudden gush of emotions. There was nothing Oak could have done to stop that from happening. As the sheep fell all I could remember was being the "The Catcher in the Rye". Really powerful stuff! The thing that miffed me was Gabriel Oak's acting. Even though the script desired him to stay taut like a rock, we don't see him nail any kind of emotion ever. His act is banal and makes you wonder if he was the right choice for the role. William Boldwood played by Michael Sheen, au contraire acted brilliantly and aced his character to perfection. Jilted finds a meaning on his face, as he takes the gun to pass the eventual poetic justice. Also, I couldn't help but notice there was no such gut-wrenching drama to it, presence of which could have possibly made the movie even better. However, in the end every frame was worth it.A very well written, acted and shot flick! Far from the Madding Crowd will impel you to question the choices your reckless head makes.