I'll start by saying that I am not referring to either of the leading ladies when I say that casting was odd. Olivia Colman is perfect as Edith Swan, a pious spinster who is oppressed by her domineering father, and Jessie Buckley is fun as Rose Gooding, a streetwise single mother who is accused of writing a series of letters that curse out Miss Swan (and several others).
The story takes place in post-WWI England. Edith Swan and her prim-and-proper family were shown first, then Rose Gooding was shown with her black boyfriend, teaching her daughter how to curse while simultaneously telling the child that "nice girls" don't play the guitar. For a moment, I wondered if the Gooding household took place in a different time period from the Swan household, then I realized Rose was supposed to be the neighborhood eccentric. None of the other characters commented on the interracial relationship, even while Rose was being accused of a crime. To tell the truth, Jessie Buckley and the guy they cast opposite her had zero chemistry. I wasn't sure if they were supposed to be lovers or platonic friends until near the end of the film.
There is a female police officer, an oddity in a time period when women were still fighting for the right to vote, but even odder because she is an East Indian who acts as though she were born in England. I thought East Indians began immigrating to England long after WWII, am I wrong?
Then Edith Swan's group of friends includes a very African-looking one, and finally, a courtroom scene has a very African-looking judge. I came to the conclusion that we're all being lied to. Racism never existed. That's the only explanation for why a film based on a true story would be like this, right? It's all the racism that must be the fiction.
But seriously, the casting choices did nothing but create a distraction in what would have otherwise been a very charming movie.
The story takes place in post-WWI England. Edith Swan and her prim-and-proper family were shown first, then Rose Gooding was shown with her black boyfriend, teaching her daughter how to curse while simultaneously telling the child that "nice girls" don't play the guitar. For a moment, I wondered if the Gooding household took place in a different time period from the Swan household, then I realized Rose was supposed to be the neighborhood eccentric. None of the other characters commented on the interracial relationship, even while Rose was being accused of a crime. To tell the truth, Jessie Buckley and the guy they cast opposite her had zero chemistry. I wasn't sure if they were supposed to be lovers or platonic friends until near the end of the film.
There is a female police officer, an oddity in a time period when women were still fighting for the right to vote, but even odder because she is an East Indian who acts as though she were born in England. I thought East Indians began immigrating to England long after WWII, am I wrong?
Then Edith Swan's group of friends includes a very African-looking one, and finally, a courtroom scene has a very African-looking judge. I came to the conclusion that we're all being lied to. Racism never existed. That's the only explanation for why a film based on a true story would be like this, right? It's all the racism that must be the fiction.
But seriously, the casting choices did nothing but create a distraction in what would have otherwise been a very charming movie.
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