Transcript:
The Duke of Burgundy is a psychological drama which was written and directed by Peter Stickland and co-stars Sidse Babett Knudsen and Chiara D'Anna. The film's story revolves around a couple, their highly disciplined sex life and the strain the latter places on the former.
I really enjoyed Strickland's previous film, Berberian Sound Studio and I'm a big fan of psychological dramas in general so The Duke of Burgundy was amongst my most anticipated releases for 2015. I finally got around to watching it last night and, sadly, was left a bit disappointed.
In many ways it's a fantastic film and nowhere is this more true than in it's technical aspects. Strickland has always been a lover of strong sound design – to my mind something something that film-makers don't tend to play with enough and as such I was very glad to see that aspect return for Burgundy.
The overall tone is very quiet but the sonic emphasis given to certain simple sounds from nature such as water trickling down a stream enhance the atmosphere no end. He also plays with noise to startling effect in several key scenes and these moments are harsh but hypnotising and in their own way, incredibly beautiful. The music, provided by English indie act Cat's Eyes, is also a treat for the ears – helping to create a dreamy and surreal but comforting and warm tone for the film.
It's also a beautiful looking film with the mise-en-scene being full of tangible textures, shapes and colours which range from close ups of rainbow imbued washing up bubbles to dirt-ridden larvae writhing about the woodland. At the other end of the scale is the attention to detail given to the set design and costuming where controlled decadence is the order of the day – ornate interior decoration, elaborate lingerie and rows of perfected mounted butterflies are all lovingly showcased throughout.
That's not to say that the film is just a piece of installation art – there is a unique story here with both the lead actresses brilliantly, subtly expressing their characters' wants, fears, desires and insecurities. Rather than being a piece of exploitation full with endless scenes of titillating lesbian bondage it is actually a more universal story of power struggles in relationships.
Who is the dominant one, who gets to choose where money or time is spent, who's desired are treated as secondary? The answers to these questions are constantly shifting and neither woman acts as the 'bad or good one'. It is a film concerned with the grey areas in emotion and relationships and it's core theme is relatable to anyone – gay or straight, woman or man - who has been in a long-term relationship.
Another thing the film does brilliantly is show the more day-to-day realities of their sexual activity which is sometimes shown to be embarrassing, banal or simply a chore with the film mining these moments for a surprising amount of laughs. The film plays with audience expectations in a number of other ways, the best example of which is the first ten to twenty minutes of the film.
We first watch a scenario from one person's perspective and then the same actions are shown through the other character's eyes and our understanding of the situation is completely thrown on it's head and I thought was a really smart move. So what didn't work for me?
My issue with the film largely falls on the storytelling. The film has a truly glacial pace, which helps create the dreamy atmosphere yes, but also kept me from being fully engrossed in the story. I like slow and subdued but this film went too far for my liking. Again the stoic tone works in the sense that it conveys how these women live their lives and adds to the surrealism of events but it also served to keep me at arms length from fully engaging with the characters.
The characters and plot here, as already mentioned, are really interesting but there wasn't enough of them or it to keep me involved all the way through. Likewise the imagery of the film is beautiful but never fully meshes with the themes of the film and in later stages a strong horror influenced element comes into play which felt at odds with the rest of the movie.
There are also several instances, such as the title sequence, where Strickland obtrusively references sex-ploitation films of 1970s Spanish cinema which detracted from the experience for me.
The Duke of Burgundy is a visually and sonically striking film with some great inter-personal drama which is obscured by a less-than-captivating mode of storytelling. Parts I loved but overall I was left feeling a bit cold so I'm going to have to give it a 6/10. I'd recommend it to fans of Berberian Sound Studio, Under the Skin, Sleeping Beauty or Upstream Colour.
The overall tone is very quiet but the sonic emphasis given to certain simple sounds from nature such as water trickling down a stream enhance the atmosphere no end. He also plays with noise to startling effect in several key scenes and these moments are harsh but hypnotising and in their own way, incredibly beautiful. The music, provided by English indie act Cat's Eyes, is also a treat for the ears – helping to create a dreamy and surreal but comforting and warm tone for the film.
It's also a beautiful looking film with the mise-en-scene being full of tangible textures, shapes and colours which range from close ups of rainbow imbued washing up bubbles to dirt-ridden larvae writhing about the woodland. At the other end of the scale is the attention to detail given to the set design and costuming where controlled decadence is the order of the day – ornate interior decoration, elaborate lingerie and rows of perfected mounted butterflies are all lovingly showcased throughout.
That's not to say that the film is just a piece of installation art – there is a unique story here with both the lead actresses brilliantly, subtly expressing their characters' wants, fears, desires and insecurities. Rather than being a piece of exploitation full with endless scenes of titillating lesbian bondage it is actually a more universal story of power struggles in relationships.
Who is the dominant one, who gets to choose where money or time is spent, who's desired are treated as secondary? The answers to these questions are constantly shifting and neither woman acts as the 'bad or good one'. It is a film concerned with the grey areas in emotion and relationships and it's core theme is relatable to anyone – gay or straight, woman or man - who has been in a long-term relationship.
Another thing the film does brilliantly is show the more day-to-day realities of their sexual activity which is sometimes shown to be embarrassing, banal or simply a chore with the film mining these moments for a surprising amount of laughs. The film plays with audience expectations in a number of other ways, the best example of which is the first ten to twenty minutes of the film.
We first watch a scenario from one person's perspective and then the same actions are shown through the other character's eyes and our understanding of the situation is completely thrown on it's head and I thought was a really smart move. So what didn't work for me?
My issue with the film largely falls on the storytelling. The film has a truly glacial pace, which helps create the dreamy atmosphere yes, but also kept me from being fully engrossed in the story. I like slow and subdued but this film went too far for my liking. Again the stoic tone works in the sense that it conveys how these women live their lives and adds to the surrealism of events but it also served to keep me at arms length from fully engaging with the characters.
The characters and plot here, as already mentioned, are really interesting but there wasn't enough of them or it to keep me involved all the way through. Likewise the imagery of the film is beautiful but never fully meshes with the themes of the film and in later stages a strong horror influenced element comes into play which felt at odds with the rest of the movie.
There are also several instances, such as the title sequence, where Strickland obtrusively references sex-ploitation films of 1970s Spanish cinema which detracted from the experience for me.
The Duke of Burgundy is a visually and sonically striking film with some great inter-personal drama which is obscured by a less-than-captivating mode of storytelling. Parts I loved but overall I was left feeling a bit cold so I'm going to have to give it a 6/10. I'd recommend it to fans of Berberian Sound Studio, Under the Skin, Sleeping Beauty or Upstream Colour.
Have you seen The Duke of Burgundy? If so let me know what you thought it in the comments below and make sure to subscribe for more reviews coming soon.
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