Beau Brummell – This Charming Man (2006/Acorn Media DVD)
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras: C Telefilm: C+
Though it
is not widely enough known, a then-daring man named George Brummell decided to
change fashion and dress as we know it by dumping the overdone presentations of
so much clothes and much less make-up (including deciding it was best to get
cleaned up every day) in the 18th Century to what became fashion as
we know it today. James Purefoy plays
the man in Beau Brummell – The Charming
Man (2006) in a telefilm biopic of his life.
On the
good side, Purefoy (who almost play Simon Templar in a revived version of The Saint that fell apart) is well cast
in the role and the teleplay by Simon Bent (based on the biographical book by
Ian Kelly, who also co-stars in the film) has some good moments, but a
problematic combination of too much humor and the usual biopic formula hold
this back. Also, being a television
piece, it is not as wide-ranging as it could have been. 79 minutes is also just not enough time to do
justice to the subject matter, but those interested will want to give it a
look. Hugh Bonneville (as Prince Regent)
and Mathew Rhys (as Lord Byron) also star.
The
anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image is not bad, but has motion blur and
detail limits, in part from what is likely an older 1080i shoot. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo is well-recorded
enough, but with (which only goes so far) or without Pro Logic surrounds is not
spectacular, but as good as any telefilm of late. Extras are two texts pieces: cast
filmogrpahies and Brummell in Pop Culture.
- Nicholas Sheffo
