House of Mirth (Terence Davies, 2000) wr. Edith Wharton, Terence Davies; Gillian Anderson, Dan Ackroyd, Anthony LaPaglia, Laura Linney, Elizabeth McGovern, Eric Stoltz, Eleanor Bron
It's a costume drama, but shot with many closeups, particularly of Gillian Anderson. As she's probably known more for the X-Files than anything else, one doesn't expect much and therefore is more than surprised when she turns in a very moving performance.
Wikipedia:
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, The House of Mirth has an 81% approval rating based on 101 reviews, with an average rating of 7.1/10. The site's critics consensus states: "Despite being a period piece, The House of Mirth's depiction of social cruelty still feels chilling and relevant for today." Metacritic rated it 78/100 based on 30 critics' reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
The Guardian critic Peter Bradshaw awarded the film 5/5 stars, writing: "How extraordinary that this is Terence Davies's first film in six years, and only his fifth in a career of 25 years. His signature visual touches are all there: the languorous, unhurried takes on the still-life interiors. But this has been opened out into a substantial, well-upholstered picture with more sinew and power than almost any other period drama of recent times. It gripped me like a thriller throughout: a brilliant new film from a great British director." In Slant Magazine, Ed Gonzales wrote "Besides his remarkable ability to render a profound sense of past in all his films, Davies can uncannily map out the emotions of his characters via his mise-en-scène."
The Washington Post's Michael O’Sullivan wrote "the real revelation here is The X-Files' Anderson, who plays Lily with subtle gradations of emotional depth unexpected from someone who has made a career out of deadpan. When we first meet Lily, her character is all radiant subtext: Her smoldering carnality -- buried beneath a veneer of social-climbing pleasantries -- seeps out in every cigarette she and Lawrence share … Later, Anderson gives a tour de force as a woman who's at the end of her rope without knowing how she got there."
IMDb page.
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