Notes On Notes On A Scandal (Notes on a Scandal (DVD))

Member Name: eatingpinkzebras

Product:	Notes on a Scandal (DVD)
Date:	09/05/09 (110 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Brilliant acting

Disadvantages: Uncomfortable and unenjoyable

Notes On A Scandal is a film that was released in 2006 and was based upon the book of the same name, written by Zoe Heller. It was nominated for four Acadmey Awards and three Baftas, and although it did not win any of them, it did collect a variety of lesser known awards for the performances of Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett, and the screenplay written by Patrick Marber.

The film tells the story of a young woman called Sheba (Blanchett) who arrives at a comprehensive school to teach. She soon makes friends with Barbara (Dench), a history teacher and lonely spinster who keeps extensive diaries. Barbara begins to develop an obsession with Sheba, but is hurt and appalled when she finds Sheba having an affair with a 15-year-old student. She promises to keep Sheba's secret, but her obsession with Sheba grows and begins to threaten Sheba's relationship with her husband and children. What lengths will Barbara go to in order to keep Sheba close to her?

This is a bit of a strange subject for a film, and doesn't fit into most normal genres. It is very interesting though and the roles of Sheba and particularly Barbara are the sort of awards-attracting, deep and intense roles that actresses dream of. Both actresses perform impeccably and Judi Dench is absolutely amazing. She is disturbing and, strangely, a bit sympathetic at the same time. Bill Nighy is also good in the part of Sheba's husband. He is very sweet and likeable and adds some normalcy to the film as well as increasing our desire for the film to turn out well so that he is not hurt.

However I am not sure I would say that this film is enjoyable. It all seemed a bit embarrassing and uncomfortable to me, as we get to see some very grubby and intimate thoughts and deeds. It is also quite slow and the end feels a bit anticlimactic. It is also left quite open which will annoy anyone who likes everything to be finished off properly.

The DVD costs £3.99 from Play.com. It contains an audio commentary by the director Richard Eyre, four conversations with Cate Blanchett and Bill Nighy on casting, characters, life on set and love scenes, plus three 'webisodes' and three featurettes which are entitled 'Notes on a Scandal: The Story of Two Obsessions', 'Notes on a Scandal: Behind The Scenes' and 'In Character With Cate Blanchett'. It's nice to see a DVD where such effort has been put into providing special features and extras, so if you are interested in the film it is probably worth buying it rather than just renting it for a night, so that you have the time to watch all of them at your leisure.

Summary: Not one I will watch again