Rating: R16 - Contains Offensive Language, Sexual Themes and Content That May Disturb.
Duration: 170 mins.
Genre: Drama, Biography.
Actors: John Malkovich, Johnny Depp, Samantha Morton.
Director: Laurence Dunmore.
Release Date: Available Now.
Synopsis
The Libertine follows the brief life of flamboyant 17th Century poet John Wilmot, focussing more on the period of his downfall, during a time when his sexually overt poetry was becoming an issue for his friend King Charles II, who himself was struggling to keep hold of his power…
The Reality
Any movie with Johnny Depp is bound to be an interesting one, and in The Libertine, Depp doesn’t disappoint.
But don’t be under any delusions, this is not the family friendly Pirates of the Caribbean, this is a movie that a lot of people will find hard to watch. It’s a movie that forces the viewer far outside of our comfort zone as we witness a character that cares only for his own enjoyments and the stroking of his ego.
Perhaps I’m being a little harsh, for if we look a little closer perhaps we will see in John Wilmot a man trapped in a prison of his own making. A man so addicted to sexuality that he gains little if any pleasure form it. Someone who’s addiction has lead him so far down that his life is not only consumed by it, but leads him into the darker folly of alcoholism. Indeed we are told during the closing stages that Wilmot hasn’t been sober for the last five years.
So what do we get from a movie that shows the debaucherous life of such a man?
We get to see several things. For one, John Wilmot was a man who broke out of the box, who lived a life of liberty, who refused to be moulded by societies constraints.
And yes, this is a good thing, if done with the respect and love to those around us. Sadly, John Wilmot did it only for himself, which brings us to another outstanding feature of The Libertine; it shows with no restraint the folly of such a life. It shows not only the evaporation of enjoyment through the ravages of addiction, but it also quite plainly portrays the physical result of a life lived without a though of the consequences.
Finally it shows in a powerful way that no man is beyond redemption. When confronted with his own mortality and the suffering that Christ endured, Wilmot conceded that there was a better way, and in his final days turned his life around.
The Look
Johnny Depp as you might expect seems to relish his role as John Wilmot, and plays it with a passion that sweeps the viewer effortlessly into his life. This is aided by some great period sets, with the murky, almost overbearing English climate pervading the entire movie with a subtle undertow of hopelessness.
The makeup department, used so subtly for the most part comes out in force as Wlimot’s life starts to degrade into the ruination of hill illness and disfigurement, leaving the viewer at times wondering if that is still Johnny Depp.
Of course with the subject matter at hand, and do take note of the censors warning, there are a number of gratuitous scenes that many viewers will find uncomfortable, but if you take time to think about the movie afterwards, these scenes will likely seem less gratuitous, rather just visual clues as to Wilmot’s true character.
Food for thought
Does a life of liberty only give freedom when love for others is the motivating force?
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Comments
2 comments to "The Libertine"
7:04 PM
Hmm...sounds interesting - and I agree about Depp and interesting movies, except for The Crying Man which I found dull - but I probably won't see it because I'd probably be offended as hell.
5:59 PM
The film is not as offensive as many people are making it out to be. The sex scenes are few, and for the most part, in keeping with the subject matter. I've seen more titillating fare on television. If anything is gratuitous it's the cursing, but then, when you're an acid-tongued alcoholic afflicted with syphilis, your profane outbursts are perhaps understandable.
I thoroughly enjoyed the film, and despite Wilmot's life being little more than a festival of debauchery, he remained a sympathetic character. It was as though he just couldn't help himself. He was hardwired to provoke, antagonise and offend, though always with a sense of mischief or whimsy. He was a man who, through apathy, self-loathing and contempt for his own species, was compelled to dig his own grave.
One point that should be noted is that Wilmot's "deathbed conversion" remains a matter of some debate. His confessor was a man who vilified him during his life and had a vested interest in claiming to have coaxed Wilmot to repent of his decadent ways. Whether or not the Earl of Rochester did in fact repent we'll probably never know. For my part, I doubt a man who seemed so bloody-minded in life would shuffle off his mortal coil in so pedestrian a fashion. I've always pictured him howling invective at the Almighty until his blasphemous exertions exhausted him utterly.
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