Marie Morgan Movies based on plays often have a particular - peculiar - feel. They take place in one or two rooms. There are only 2 or 3 castmembers. It takes places over the space of a few hours. Now - if you're riveted by that sort of microscopic examination of 3 characters' neuroses on one L-O-N-G night, then you'll LOVE this movie. If you're the type who would say, "Yeesh, get over yourselves already!" you'll hate it. The pointlessness of this is astounding - but I'm not big on watching train wreck personalities.

Hecate-3 I have now seen Colin Farrell in a lead role in two very different films. In both, he gave a ludicrously histrionic performance. In both, the director either made changes to the source material or arranged the accents of the entire cast to accommodate Farrell's thick brogue. In both, a director with considerable talent produced a muddled film with poor characterization and what should be a riveting plot that drags interminably towards a foregone conclusion. Fans of both films try to turn the criticism of detractors back onto them with blanket statements about what kinds of movies they must not like and what sorts of shallow entertainment they must prefer.Taking the last point first, I have seen movies before that were nothing more than filmed plays with a cast of only two people in a single location, so even more limited than Miss Julie in those respects. Those movies had even more dialogue and less action than Miss Julie. Those movies were also every bit as grim and depressing as Miss Julie. But those films had quality dialogue, consistent characterizations, and a story worth investment.I am flabbergasted by the unyielding support of Colin Farrell's fans, but then I'm flabbergasted that he has any fans at all. In addition to having no perceivable acting talent and an accent that he can't seem to shake, despite his character John's comments to Miss Julie about understanding her attraction to him, Farrell isn't even particularly good-looking and has no charisma on screen. On looking up his listings on IMDb, I discovered that he had the lead role in another film I have seen; I do not recall that he ruined that particular film, but then I don't recall much about him from that film even though he was the lead. I have certainly seen no reason to believe he deserves even his limited fame.Many people have criticized the direction in Miss Julie for poor pacing, but a good deal of the problem is in the writing before it ever got to the set. Although I am unfamiliar with the source material, I gather from comments and reviews I have read that certain key pieces of dialogue were left out of the screenplay, namely the servants' discussion of Julie's broken engagement and the menstrual period which are brought up as explanations for her erratic behavior. I don't know what other dialogue changes might have been made, but both Julie's and John's mood and behavior swing so wildly between various extremes, much of the time with no discernible explanation, that it's almost as though with each exchange, the writers rolled some dice to select the characters' moods that time. Even erratic characters need to be comprehensible. It doesn't help matters much that the characterization that does come through the constantly shifting, random moods are two people capable of appallingly cold selfishness while the remaining character turns out to be someone inflexibly judgmental and narrow-minded.Despite a costar who tries to destroy most of his scenes, Jessica Chastain and Samantha Morton deliver strong performances. Morton is understated but powerful while Chastain portrays desperation that grows so deep it becomes painful to watch, most notably in the scene where she proposes that all three of them leave together.** SPOILERS **I know that the story was written in Victorian times when convenient character death was seen as valid plotting, but I wonder how many modern viewers understand that Miss Julie's situation need not have been as hopeless as a melodramatic maiden raised on romances seemed to think. Even after the loss of her virginity in those restrictive times, a beautiful young woman who is the daughter of a wealthy baron could probably still make some sort of match with an impoverished but ambitious gentleman or with an older gentleman. Even if she turned out to be pregnant, she could have been sent to a convent far from the public eye to have her child. She might have to take orders to hide her disgrace, but she did not need to commit suicide. It's also worth remembering that this story was written and set in a time when the church was inflexibly condemning of suicide, no matter what the reason. Suicides weren't even buried in hallowed ground. It's hard to see John's willingness to prod Julie in that direction as anything other than a man willing to manipulate a young woman into needlessly taking her own life in order to spare himself inconvenience. As bad as Julie showed herself to be from her first scenes, John turned out to be far worse.In the end, the film turned into a horror movie, and although it's undeniably a cut above standard slasher flicks, it does not reach the level of meaningful classic to which it aspires. Worth watching for the two female leads but otherwise not recommended.

SloaneWasHere Not having seen the play or being familiar with the story, I was expecting a romantic and sexually charged period piece as that's what the trailer implied. What I saw was a mentally ill woman being 'taken advantage of' (to put it mildly) by a man out to avenge his brother's death by playing mind games with her and ultimately absolving himself of any responsibility by encouraging her to take her own life. I was not prepared for a tragedy, and it left a sour feeling. The acting was intense and well done, the dialogue was poetic at times, and Colin's 'John' was a spot-on manipulating character. Jessica was outstanding in portraying existential pain and desperation to be free of it. It was painful to watch - which I'm sure is the point - but I would have appreciated knowing before watching that this is ultimately a tragedy and not -as labeled- a romance.

cnycitylady Miss Julie is a very compelling piece, that cannot be denied. The small, confined setting allows for this epic problem to play out in the most stressful way possible. And the performances by both Jessica Chastain and Colin Farrell are powerful in all of their subtlety and rancor. The two characters are always perfect juxtapositions; one with their innocence and the other with their malice. But which character is which? This is never made clear as they both seem to jump into one of the roles and back again. This leaves you more confused with the arguments that follow and the events that take place, and with questions that will forever remain unanswered. The problem that is the catalyst of the story isn't even, in my opinion, the act that takes place halfway through the film. No. In fact I believe it is the simple explanation that Farrell's character gives Chastain about love. Those conversations are dangerous at the best of times, and this just happened to be the worst of times. He bewildered her at a time of innocence, and whether he was sincere or not is irrelevant. The blow was struck. The two then panic and bounce between what they should do after the fact, both trying to lay blame on the other, neither realizing that it takes two to tango. You cannot help but pick a side while watching. Someone, whether it was him or her, had to be the responsible one; Had to know when to stop. But neither did, and so someone must take on the role of the villain, because the world is black and white. At the end the loser is left to his somewhat cruel fate while the "winner" is left to bask in his victory and shy away from the guilt that will never truly relinquish him of his part in the role. The characters search for absolution the entire time, and even when they they've found it, they will not be completely absolved.For all of the power in this filmed play, I have to say that I didn't like the material or the characters. Sexism, hatred, and sleaze take center stage and leave all who are involved considerably diminished. The ending will infuriate anyone with a soul and leave you questioning the way society works. 5/10