John Schlesinger directs Julie Christie, Alan Bates and Terence Stamp in this epic adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s classic anti-romance novel.

In turns sumptuous and bleak. Tells the story at an accessibly gentle pace. All the performance pop and I got really lost in this. Without ever making things too implicit, Schlesinger frames the reaction shots of characters so you care and connect to their inner turmoil and desires. Christie’s Bathsheba Everdene might be a bit of a cruel tease and a fool at times but I like the way she runs her house and heart. Feels progressive. Nicolas Roeg’s cinematography, unsurprisingly, really loves a bit of red.

8

Perfect Double Bill: Tess (1979)

My wife and I do a podcast together called The Worst Movies We Own. It is available on Spotify or here https://letterboxd.com/bobbycarroll/list/the-worst-movies-we-own-podcast-ranking-and/