Bright Star
Bright Star , alternative long title Bright Star - Meine Liebe. Eternal or Bright Star - The first love shines brightest is a melodrama by Jane Campion from 2009. It was a British, French and Australian co-production. The film tells of the last few years in the life of the poet John Keats ; the film is based on real events.
action
The year 1818: Fanny Brawne is a young seamstress who lives with her mother and younger siblings Toots and Samuel. She takes pride in her sewing and embroidery skills and therefore despises the literary man Mr. Brown, who does not appreciate her work. Brown is the mentor and promoter of the talented poet John Keats, whom he offers accommodation in a semi-detached London house and gives him the necessary peace and quiet to write. A first meeting of Keats and Fanny interrupts Brown after a short time. Fanny doesn't know much about poetry and is therefore not a good conversationalist for Keats. However, she buys his last poem Endymion , which turned out to be a slow seller. She does not find large parts of the poem appealing, but the beginning is masterful. She asks Keats, who is spending Christmas with the Brawnes, to teach her poetry. For Keats, Fanny company is also a distraction from the death of his brother Tom, who died of tuberculosis .
Brown smiles at the poetry lessons and Keats soon realizes that poetry is nothing that can be explained. Fanny, in turn, begins to read numerous works. Even if she does not know Geoffrey Chaucer , although she claims to have read all of his works before Brown, she can soon memorize numerous poems by Keats. Brown, however, warns Keats that Fanny will bring his art to a standstill. Fanny's mother is also against a marriage, but Keats is completely penniless.
The Brawnes spend the summer next to Brown and Keats in the same house, they have rented the other semi-detached house for several months. Soon, however, Keats and Brown are traveling for an indefinite period as Keats has to write to make money. On departure he is ready to bow to Mrs. Brawne's will and to do without Fanny for social reasons. However, both remain in close correspondence. When Keats returns, he and Fanny become a couple, even against the mother's wishes. One day, Keats travels to London without a coat, gets caught in a thunderstorm and has to make the return trip on the outside bench of a carriage. He arrives at Brown's house frozen through and is almost unable to walk. In the near future he will have to stay in bed and will spit blood. His condition barely improved in the next few weeks.
The Brawnes' maid, Abigail, is pregnant with Brown. He takes responsibility for the child, but can no longer co-finance Keats. He moves into a small apartment on the outskirts of London. The drafty, wet surroundings make Keats' health even worse and so numerous friends decide to send him to Italy. Fanny bursts into tears when she hears it, and Keats knows too that he will never come back to her. They spend the evening before they leave together and Mrs. Brawne agrees to a wedding at the end of the day, when Keats returns from Italy, his latest book was a small success. On the day of departure, Keats and Fanny do not speak to each other. Keats travels to Italy with his friend Joseph Severn . A few months later, Brown brings the Brawnes news of the death of Keats, who, like his brother, died of tuberculosis. Fanny collapses. Later she sews a black mourning dress and cuts her hair. Alone she roams the heathland where she used to be with Keats, reciting her fiancé's poems.
production
Bright Star portrays the life of John Keats and his love for Fanny Brawne. The basis was the biography Keats by Andrew Motion , who also acted as a consultant during the shooting. The film was shot in and around Hyde House in Hyde, Bedfordshire in nine weeks from April to May 2008. The funeral scene was also filmed for a day on the Piazza di Spagna in Rome .
Bright Star had its premiere on May 15, 2009 at the Cannes International Film Festival and was released in German cinemas on December 24, 2009. The film was released on DVD in June 2010.
criticism
"Occasionally the action, which is structured by poems, is exaggerated by an overly emphatically artistic imagery, but the film always finds its way back to intense moments, not least thanks to its convincing leading actress," said the film-dienst . Cinema called the film "subtle and poetic" and described it as a "bittersweet ode to the beauty and pain of unrequited love". The Spiegel called Bright Star a "dark ode to longing"; the film "beguiles [...] with elegantly photographed images of light beauty". Critic.de said that “landscapes and seasons reflect the moods and developments of the protagonists”. Except for a few “scenes that are a bit too clumsy”, Keat's poetry flows “casually and unobtrusively into the plot”.
Awards
At the Cannes International Film Festival 2009 the film was shown in the competition for the Palme d'Or . He was nominated for four Satellite Awards that same year and received two CFCA Award nominations. Greig Fraser won a British Independent Film Award for Best Technology; the film was nominated for three other British Independent Film Awards.
Janet Patterson was nominated for an Oscar in the category Best Costume Design in 2010 , but couldn't beat Sandy Powell ( The Young Victoria ). The film won three AFI Awards in 2010 and was nominated for eight more. Janet Patterson received a BAFTA nomination for Best Costumes.
In 2011, the film received a César nomination for Best Foreign Film .
Web links
- Bright Star in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Certificate of Release for Bright Star . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , December 2009 (PDF; test number: 120 768 K).
- ↑ Age rating for Bright Star . Youth Media Commission .
- ↑ Bright Star. My love, forever on kulturexpress.de, December 23, 2009.
- ↑ Bright Star. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ↑ See cinema.de
- ↑ Ilse Henckel: Love film "Bright Star": Inspired letters, chaste kisses . spiegel.de, December 24, 2009.
- ^ Birte Lüdeking: Film review on Critic.de, November 10, 2009.