The Duchess - a Royal Disappointment

A Movie Review

The Duchess, the story of a young noblewoman who marries Britain's most powerful peer and becomes the toast of London, arrives on DVD and Blu-ray December 28th from Paramount Home Entertainment.

Keira Knightley (Atonement, Pride and Prejudice, Pirates of the Caribbean), Ralph Fiennes (In Bruges, the Harry Potter series, The Constant Gardener), Dominic Cooper (Mamma Mia!), and Hayley Atwell ( Brideshead Revisited ) star in this dismal, tragic tale of a vibrant woman trapped in a loveless marriage at 17 to the wealthy and influential William Cavendish (Ralph Fiennes), the fifth Duke of Devonshire, a man who cares more about his dogs and his lineage than his wife. His disgust with her grows as she bears two daughters, and to further complicate matters and insult his wife, he takes a mistress into his house, into his household, and into his social life. The Duchess of Devonshire and "Empress of Fashion" eventually must face an agonizing choice between responsibility and love.

The movie is based upon the true story of young Georgiana Spencer, direct ancestor to Princess Diana, who marries into power and becomes a fashion icon in her day. While the movie hints at her role in politics and press blurbs calls Georgiana "a devoted mother, a voice for the common man," the movie dwells much more on such unsavory aspects as the scandals: her affair with Charles Grey, her brutal rape by her husband, his affairs, and even deviates into a brief quasi-lesbian scene. This "devoted mother" leaves her children to have an affair, and according to the movie, almost doesn't return to the them. The "devoted mother" is also forced into giving up the illegitimate child she bore Grey. As Duchess of Devonshire, she reportedly becomes one of the most impassioned political voices in all of 18th century Britain, but this interesting point is sort of lost in all the titillating scandals that are bound to sell more tickets and DVDs than the "voice for the common man" ever could.