Albert Nobbs

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: Yes
Watched With: Myself

One of the oscar films from last year I missed. All I knew about it was Glenn Close played a woman pretending to be a man.

Once I realised it was set in Dublin in the late 19th century and concerning the working class of servants, I figured it had to be a tragedy. And it was indeed. But it was a kind of a sweet one. Glenn Close really does give an amazing performance. The hair and makeup manages to transform her face in oddly subtle ways but it's the body language and the speech, the demeanour of the person that seem quite different from anything I've seen her play before. It's a part that calls for a lot of subtlety and quiet moments. I don't see it working as well on stage as it does here.

The rest of the cast are all pretty good too. It's a pretty slow moving story and it's only by the time the end comes around that you can realise how it's been working right under your nose, much like the main character in the film. The emotional investment in these characters grow organically as we get to know them but it's only when the climax hits at the end that you realise just how well that worked. It works remarkably well for a tragedy, just as we are getting to understand something, to rip it away from us.

It's a small subtle film about people trying to lead simple lives and lead simple dreams. Perhaps to slow for my tastes but the end worked rather well.