Hello! I'm Nicola, and thanks for taking the time to read my review. A bit about me, well I'm 20 yea...
Hello! I'm Nicola, and thanks for taking the time to read my review. A bit about me, well I'm 20 years old and I live in Kent, I spend far too much time reading and watching movies and writing for this place :)
Member since:23.01.2007
Reviews:50
Members who trust:13
Notes on a Scandal is the story of Barbara Covett, a lonely and elderly teacher at an underperforming school. It begins with the introduction of a new teacher, young and pretty Sheba Hart. The two become friends, until Barbara discovers that Sheba is having an affair with a 15 year old student, at which point her view of the friendship intensifies significantly. Barbara becomes extremely posessive and falls in love with Sheba, who tries hard to please her and be a good friend but makes it clear she is feeling quite disturbed by Barbara's actions. When angry with Sheba, Barbara clues another teacher in about Sheba's past with the student, who informs the public. Sheba has no choice but to leave her husband and her family and temporarily move in with Barbara, where she discovers her diary and finds out her true feelings about her - and that there appears to be a recurring pattern, as her actions and views had been done once before with another teacher who recently left - with a restraining order against Barbara.
The film is narrated by Barbara, who is truly unlikeable. Everybody has known a teacher like her - someone who you consider to be an old hag, who is extremely strict, old fashioned, and who you probably go out of your way to avoid. I certainly had two or three when I was at school, and I think that Barbara definitley reminded me of them and the sort of things they would think and say. You can tell from the very beginning that there's something not quite right about Barbara, her dark sense of humour and personality in general always sound quite sinister, no matter what she's talking about. Sheba's character is equally believable. I had never really paid much attention to Cate Blanchett before but I thought she was excellent in this and will definitley be taking a better look at some of the other films she's in. She excellently plays the new teacher, who is clearly overwhelmed by her new career choice and very vulnerable. I cannot fault any of the acting in this film, though all of the characters are different and in some cases quite extreme, I never doubted any of the characters and really could feel the emotions that the characters were.
The plot line is very unusual and it is never clear what way it's going. You begin to have suspicions about characters or ideas about how things are going to happen, and then things change completely and you're left feeling unsure about. There are hundreds of twists and turns that kept me really paying attention trying to guess where things were going to, only to be completely wrong and thrown straight onto a different path.
I really enjoyed this movie. I expected to find it quite dull as it can be slow paced in parts, but my real feelings on it were completely the opposite. This is a movie you have to pay attention to in order to enjoy, but that shouldn't be hard to do, Barbara's narration alone will keep you glued to the story.
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A good review :D I wouldn't have given this film 4 stars tho... probably around two. I found it very uncomfortable to watch and would never watch it again. Kirsty., x
Gold stars to all for this taut psychological thrillerbased on Zoe Heller's novel that ... more
that gets more insidiously twisted as it unfolds. Oscar-nominated for her chilling performance, Dame Judi Dench gives a master class as schoolteacher Barbara Covett,...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Gold stars to all for this taut psychological thriller based on Zoe Heller's novel that ... more
that gets more insidiously twisted as it unfolds. Oscar-nominated for her chilling performance, Dame Judi Dench gives a master class as schoolteacher Barbara Covett...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Academy Award winners Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett give wickedly entertaining ... more
Oscar-nominated performances - one as a woman consumed by her colleague's guilty secret the other a victim to her own dark obsessions - in this sexy stylish thriller. De...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Academy Award winners Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett give outstanding, Oscar Nominated ... more
performances - one as a woman consumed by her colleague's guilty secret, the other, a victim to her own dark obsessions - in this intelligent and stylish thriller.Den...
![Notes On A Scandal [DVD] [2007]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78054503.jpg "Notes On A Scandal [DVD] [2007]")
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