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Vanity Fair

  • 20042004
  • PG-13PG-13
  • 2h 21m
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
23K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Vanity Fair (2004)
Trailer
Play trailer0:16
1 Video
99+ Photos
  • Drama
Growing up poor in London, Becky Sharp defies her poverty-stricken background and ascends the social ladder alongside her best friend, Amelia Sedley.Growing up poor in London, Becky Sharp defies her poverty-stricken background and ascends the social ladder alongside her best friend, Amelia Sedley.Growing up poor in London, Becky Sharp defies her poverty-stricken background and ascends the social ladder alongside her best friend, Amelia Sedley.
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
23K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Mira Nair
  • Writers
    • Matthew Faulk(screenplay)
    • Mark Skeet(screenplay)
    • Julian Fellowes(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Reese Witherspoon
    • Romola Garai
    • James Purefoy
Top credits
  • Director
    • Mira Nair
  • Writers
    • Matthew Faulk(screenplay)
    • Mark Skeet(screenplay)
    • Julian Fellowes(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Reese Witherspoon
    • Romola Garai
    • James Purefoy
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 165User reviews
    • 115Critic reviews
    • 53Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 wins & 5 nominations

    Videos1

    Vanity Fair
    Trailer 0:16
    Vanity Fair

    Photos209

    Reese Witherspoon and Mira Nair in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Julian Fellowes and Mira Nair in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Jonathan Rhys Meyers in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Rhys Ifans in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Reese Witherspoon and William Melling in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Reese Witherspoon and James Purefoy in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Romola Garai and Rhys Ifans in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Romola Garai in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Reese Witherspoon in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Mira Nair in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Rhys Ifans, and James Purefoy in Vanity Fair (2004)
    Reese Witherspoon in Vanity Fair (2004)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Reese Witherspoon
    Reese Witherspoon
    • Becky Sharpas Becky Sharp
    Romola Garai
    Romola Garai
    • Amelia Sedleyas Amelia Sedley
    James Purefoy
    James Purefoy
    • Rawdon Crawleyas Rawdon Crawley
    Jonathan Rhys Meyers
    Jonathan Rhys Meyers
    • George Osborneas George Osborne
    Gabriel Byrne
    Gabriel Byrne
    • The Marquess of Steyneas The Marquess of Steyne
    Angelica Mandy
    • Young Beckyas Young Becky
    Roger Lloyd Pack
    Roger Lloyd Pack
    • Francis Sharpas Francis Sharp
    Ruth Sheen
    Ruth Sheen
    • Miss Pinkertonas Miss Pinkerton
    Kate Fleetwood
    Kate Fleetwood
    • Miss Pinkerton's Croneas Miss Pinkerton's Crone
    Lillete Dubey
    Lillete Dubey
    • Ms. Greenas Ms. Green
    • (as Lillette Dubey)
    Tony Maudsley
    Tony Maudsley
    • Joseph Sedleyas Joseph Sedley
    Deborah Findlay
    Deborah Findlay
    • Mrs. Sedleyas Mrs. Sedley
    John Franklyn-Robbins
    John Franklyn-Robbins
    • Mr. Sedleyas Mr. Sedley
    Paul Bazely
    Paul Bazely
    • Bijuas Biju
    Rhys Ifans
    Rhys Ifans
    • William Dobbinas William Dobbin
    Charlie Beall
    Charlie Beall
    • Gambleras Gambler
    David Sterne
    David Sterne
    • Queen's Crawley Mail Coach Driveras Queen's Crawley Mail Coach Driver
    Bob Hoskins
    Bob Hoskins
    • Sir Pitt Crawleyas Sir Pitt Crawley
    • Director
      • Mira Nair
    • Writers
      • Matthew Faulk(screenplay)
      • Mark Skeet(screenplay)
      • Julian Fellowes(screenplay)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      After asking Reese Witherspoon to get pregnant for the role (as a joke, because she thought Reese was too thin), director Mira Nair was delighted when Witherspoon announced she was pregnant after all.
    • Goofs
      Becky sings "Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal," a poem Lord Alfred Tennyson wrote in 1847 and appears in the Thackeray novel (1848) on which the film is based. Because the novel concludes over a decade later (we assume on or before the present day for the author), and young Georgie, born in 1815 or 1816, is still only an adolescent, she would have sung it no later than 1840, which is well before it was published. However, the anachronism is Thackeray's and not the film makers'.
    • Quotes

      Mrs. Sedley: I thought her a mere social climber, but now I see she's a mountineer

    • Crazy credits
      Before the credits start rolling the word "Alvida" (goodbye) appears in Urdu script. Beneath it is the following dedication: for our beloved Ammy Kulsum Alibhai 1927-2003
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Vanity Fair/Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid/Hero/Suspect Zero/The Brown Bunny (2004)
    • Soundtracks
      She Walks in Beauty
      Lyrics by Lord Byron (as Lord George Gordon Byron)

      Music by Mychael Danna

      Produced by Mychael Danna

      Performed by Sissel (as Sissel)

      Sissel appears courtesy of Universal Music, AS Norway and Stageway Talent, AS

    User reviews165

    Review
    Top review
    Fairly Vain
    Elegant costumes, beautiful scenery, and piano playing in excess all add to the sights and sounds of Mira Nair's film 'Vanity Fair.' Her 2004 version is one of over ten tries to put William Makepeace Thackeray's novel onto the big screen. Most attempts failed miserably, lacking the magic of today's movies and failing to grasp the themes of the novel. Nair's version, with its visual and audible pleasures, has the potential to become one of the few successful attempts. With humble beginnings as a poor child with a starving artist as her father, Becky (Reese Witherspoon) was determined to overcome her circumstance. She managed to work her way into a governess position in a down-on-his-luck aristocrat. New opportunities arise, and she hastily abandons her post to become the companion to a wealthy woman known only as Miss Crawley (Eileen Atkins). Much to Miss Crawley's displeasure, Becky wastes no time in her quest to climb the social ladder and marries into the family. Becky's new husband, Crawley's nephew, is soon sent off to war. Returning after the battle of Waterloo, their marriage is rocky due to his gambling debts and her never-ending quest to raise her social status. Meeting a man who collected her late father's art, she uses his money and his influence to continue her rise in the social hierarchy, causing more distress to their marriage. Nair attempted to bring something new to the film, using her fantastic creative talents in the costuming and scenery. Her musical choices weren't overwhelming and accented the film rather than hiding behind its beautiful visual aspects. She tried to cover the expanse of the novel, but ending up making a summary of the story and leaving the characters bland and undeveloped. Nair intentionally portrays Becky as a victim of the social system, showing her as merely taking advantage of circumstantial events. This contradicts harshly with Thackeray's Becky, who is manipulative and cunning, turning circumstantial events into anything that will benefit her rise up the social ladder. This movie is beautifully made and had the potential to become something great, but Nair's overly eager attempt leaves it as nothing more than another mediocre film. Had she paid as much attention to the plot and the characters as she did to the audio and visual aspects, this would definitely be the best film of the year. But she didn't, so don't waste your seven dollars to see it in the theater. Wait for the video, or better yet, wait for that one Friday night when you are home alone and it comes on cable.
    helpful•44
    20
    • kealbertson
    • Oct 21, 2004

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 1, 2004 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • United Kingdom
      • India
    • Languages
      • English
      • French
      • German
    • Also known as
      • Hội Chợ Phù Hoa
    • Filming locations
      • Holburne Museum of Art, Bath, Somerset, England, UK
    • Production companies
      • Focus Features
      • Tempesta Films
      • Granada Film Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $23,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $16,136,476
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $4,800,000
      • Sep 5, 2004
    • Gross worldwide
      • $19,463,185
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 21 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • DTS
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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