Evelyn Waugh's greatest novel gets a respectable new film treatment from a team of Britain 's biggest names, although it will inevitably remain in the shadow of the 1981 TV series.
Comment
10/18/08
Brideshead Revisited (2008)
64
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:127
Fresh:81
Rotten:46
Average Rating:6.1/10
Consensus: Suspenseful and beautifully mounted, Brideshead Revisited does an able job condensing Evelyn Waugh’s novel.
Theatrical Release:03-10-2008
Synopsis: Though director Julian Jarrold's adaptation of the Evelyn Waugh novel BRIDESHEAD REVISITED spans decades and continents, it's a taut film that never drags and can excite contemporary audiences.... [More]
Starring: Matthew Goode, Ben Whishaw, Hayley Atwell, Emma Thompson
Director: Julian Jarrold
Reviews for Brideshead Revisited
This new version of the Evelyn Waugh tale of conflicts in class, sexuality and religion is more about the sumptuous imagery than the provocative subtext.
10/03/08
For the most part, this is an enjoyable, well made and superbly acted drama, though it drags towards the end and doesn't quite pull off its emotional climax.
10/03/08
In the end, however, this is a film which though less ambitious than Atonement is very much the equal of The Duchess. Its weakness is the same as that of the latter: it has no guiding hand prepared to take risks and make it distinctive.
10/03/08
It's not much to offer a newcomer, who would be best advised to read Waugh's novel; failing that, to get hold of the TV serial. Either would be preferable to this copy of a copy, and a rather inadequately handled one at that.
10/03/08
Lovely if you have the time. But if you have the time you may, I feel, be living in the wrong time.
10/03/08
The movie is borrowed from Evelyn Waugh’s classic novel but lacks its many layers and subtleties.
10/03/08
Top CriticSomeone once said the only thing worse than nuclear war was Evelyn Waugh. Maybe they’d seen this.
10/03/08
It isn't at all emotionally involving. Charles Ryder remains a cold fish, and Goode endows him with good looks instead of personality.
10/03/08
All isn’t fair in love and Waugh in an adaptation of his best-known work that’s often too tasteful for its good. Handsome and thoughtful, it might’ve had more appeal had first-choice leads Jude Law, Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly stayed.
10/03/08
Purists may baulk at Jarrold's liberties with the text but it's a well-constructed story that works on many levels. If you enjoyed the book or the series, revisit Brideshead.
10/03/08
It's a dutiful, good-looking slice of heritage cinema so empty that you expect Keira Knightley to show up at any minute.
10/03/08
Top CriticKingsley Amis once said his difficulty with Brideshead Revisted was not that these people were behaving badly, but boringly. On the page, that isn't true, but here on the big screen, it turns out to be an insuperable problem.
10/03/08
Top CriticThe repressed victims are beautifully framed by Jarrold. The acting is faultless. But there is no reason why we should be revisiting Brideshead. The melodrama is so damp and overwrought it’s hard to care about these old ghosts.
10/03/08
Top CriticA good film that occasionally verges on greatness, but never quite gets there, this is a respectable adaptation of a much-lauded book that will no doubt find an appreciative audience in time.
10/03/08
Top CriticPerformances are good – Thompson and Gambon impress – but the insipid music is dreadful.
10/03/08
Top CriticOkay for those who dote on ‘classics illustrated’ in the Merchant Ivory line, but not as fluid as all that.
10/03/08
Top CriticThe Roman Catholicism is not diluted. Brideshead itself seems more like a cold cathedral than a home. And Sebastian's homosexuality is not fudged: he kisses Charles on the lips during one boozy summer. Ben Whishaw embraces an aristocratic camp.
10/02/08
Tepid
08/26/09
A bleak and often befuddling 2-hour-15-minute disappointment.
08/14/09
Latest News for Brideshead Revisited
January 27, 2009:
Milk Among GLAAD Nominees 
"Milk" has been a favorite on the awards circuit this year, and its hot streak has been extended courtesy of the GLAAD Media Awards, where it will compete in the Outstanding... More...
October 03, 2008:
UK Critics Consensus: How To Lose Friends & Alienate People Does Just That; Whilst Brideshead Revisited Is Resisted
In the UK cinemas this week we have two literary adaptations with Simon Pegg as an irksome hack in How To Lose Friends & Alienate People, and Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited... More...
July 24, 2008:
Critics Consensus: File The X-Files Under "Disappointing"
This week at the movies, we learn that the truth is out there (The X-Files: I Want to Believe, starring David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson) and that step-sibling rivalry can be... More...
July 23, 2008:
Matthew Goode Talks Watchmen
He's out promoting Brideshead Revisited, but with a role in Watchmen, Matthew Goode knows what people really want to talk about -- and he was gracious enough to oblige Collider,... More...
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