Wally Winthrop (Abbie Cornish) sits at Sotheby’s obsessing and bidding on memorabilia from Wallis “W” Simpson (Andrea Riseborough) and King Edward “E” VIII (James D’Arcy) circa 1930s. As this happens..the film intercuts with their story seeming like another movie alltogether.) Yet, their story seems real and recognizable…royalty marries beneath himself or falls in love with a divorcee (a big no-no in the UK throne system.) And we recognize King Edward’s character from history and
from last year’s The Kings Speech when we watched that version of King Edward give up the throne to his stuttering brother, played by Colin Firth, who went on to win an Oscar.
But this year’s version seems confusing. Not only are the women of the by-gone era so similar looking we can’t tell them apart at a dinner table (who cast this film?) but when the story intercuts between modern day Cornish’s character and theirs we find ourselves screaming for Julie & Julia, a movie about a modern day Amy Adams who longed to know Julia Child, intercutting between two story lines that actually worked.
But by far the biggest surprise is that W./E. is directed by Madonna who co-wrote the screenplay with Alek Keshishian – probably the lamest dialog of the year. But director? Madonna? Sure. If you want to rate the movie on costume, music video cuts, lipstick and soundtrack then the girl has nailed it. But Madonna’s forgotten the most important part of a movie. The story. And wait….what about the sex?! This is Madonna! Queen of provocative being a bit too straight-laced.
We never emotionally engage with any of these characters – though Riseborough does a fabulous job – but she’s too good for this silly film shot in some sort of Vogue pages vignette. One tiara