A former Lord Chancellor, by now a frail and aged man, hopes to leave his mansion not to his son, whom he detests, but to his granddaughter, whom he adores. Sadly the mansion is in dire need of expensive repairs. In order to provide the granddaughter with many miniature portraits of the Queen as issued by the Bank of England, the former Lord Chancellor writes his memoirs. This dangerous tell-all book soon attracts the attention of journalists, politicians and even MI5. But the old cynic is not the only one around who can use a great deal of money...
The title of "Lord of Misrule" refers to a local village's habit of choosing a carnival king entitled to organize bacchanalian revelry. But the title also refers to the former Lord Chancellor, a volatile and arrogant egotist who is all the more monstrous for being relentlessly charming. (Excellent acting, here.) The man certainly enjoys creating mischief wherever he goes, even within his own family. Near the end he amends his life, somewhat, although it's unlikely that this will suffice to undo the damage.
Part satire part farce, "Lord" is shot through with a sharp and not entirely kindly wit. The movie pokes intelligent fun at the British body politic and its various acolytes. The tabloid press also gets a panning, as does MI5. Remarkably, actual politicians are referred to by name. While this characteristic shows considerable satirical courage, it tends to confine the movie to its own era. For instance, how many people still remember the political exploits of Michael Portillo ?
Different people will, of course, appreciate different things about the movie. Me, I particularly liked the scenes where the villagers and the fishermen went around celebrating carnival, drinking and dancing and wearing antlers. (Not that there were fishermen present. They were all attending the Fishing Conference.)
British political life circa 2022 richly deserves another "Lord". However, many recent events have been so mind-bendingly silly and so blatantly unbecoming that they are likely to defeat any attempt at satire. How can one improve on reality, if that reality is already egregious enough to make millions of citizens spit out their breakfast cornflakes in stunned disgust ?
The title of "Lord of Misrule" refers to a local village's habit of choosing a carnival king entitled to organize bacchanalian revelry. But the title also refers to the former Lord Chancellor, a volatile and arrogant egotist who is all the more monstrous for being relentlessly charming. (Excellent acting, here.) The man certainly enjoys creating mischief wherever he goes, even within his own family. Near the end he amends his life, somewhat, although it's unlikely that this will suffice to undo the damage.
Part satire part farce, "Lord" is shot through with a sharp and not entirely kindly wit. The movie pokes intelligent fun at the British body politic and its various acolytes. The tabloid press also gets a panning, as does MI5. Remarkably, actual politicians are referred to by name. While this characteristic shows considerable satirical courage, it tends to confine the movie to its own era. For instance, how many people still remember the political exploits of Michael Portillo ?
Different people will, of course, appreciate different things about the movie. Me, I particularly liked the scenes where the villagers and the fishermen went around celebrating carnival, drinking and dancing and wearing antlers. (Not that there were fishermen present. They were all attending the Fishing Conference.)
British political life circa 2022 richly deserves another "Lord". However, many recent events have been so mind-bendingly silly and so blatantly unbecoming that they are likely to defeat any attempt at satire. How can one improve on reality, if that reality is already egregious enough to make millions of citizens spit out their breakfast cornflakes in stunned disgust ?
