Targowisko próżności

Yep, this English cinematic endeavor truly lives up to its name as a Vanity Fair. Not to be completely negative, there are moments here that are genuinely amusing, making you chuckle quietly to yourself. It's very Austen-esque, and while the film has its flaws, the actors do occasionally provide some enjoyable moments. (19.11.2023)

Up until now, I've only associated Thackeray in cinema with Barry Lyndon, who is too Kubrick to be Thackeray. But thankfully "Vanity Fair" is a novel that is adapted very often, and this latest version so far is very charming and inspiring. While there was a brilliant 1930s short in the beginning (1911), one sexy modern version with Myrna Loy, and another traditional one in Technicolor with Miriam Hopkins, this one with the charming Reese Witherspoon puts the whole story in an Indian context and tells of all the nice and unpleasant things that befell poor Becky Sharp. Although Becky would never call herself poor, would she? These lavish novels in Empire splendor can really only gain when directed by someone as cosmopolitan as Mira Nair. Yes, the Mira Nair whose Monsoon Wedding meant so much to the revival of interest in Indian film and Indian culture in the West. Basically, I have to recommend it. And if you're still not sure, take your time. I waited a decade for my Vanity Fair encounter and it was worth it. (10.05.2017)

The trend of adapting literary classics into films is quite traditional and has regained significance in recent years. However, what Pride and Prejudice achieved a year later, Vanity Fair didn't quite manage to approach. The period depiction is good, but the story itself isn't one that completely draws you in. I don't like Reese, and here she didn't convince me at all that she's an exceptional actress. I'm planning to watch Barry Lyndon again soon, another adaptation of Thackeray's work, and I know I'll have better feelings about it, even though it's an hour longer. (07.04.2014)

Some comments did warn me, but the cast led by my favorite actress Reese Witherspoon looked promising and, above all, from the first shots, the set design seemed great. I had a sense of an authentic touch with the distant past. However, with each passing minute, my disappointment grew. The film could have been made as a social drama about an outsider girl who wanted to escape the unattractive prospects of her social class at all costs. Her background and occupation as a governess in an aristocratic family would allow her to become an observer from below with the ability to capture life across all social classes - especially during the exceptional and uncertain period of the Napoleonic Wars when human characters were shaped and many lives were turned upside down. Unfortunately, the film gets lost in the penny-dreadful, which turns promising solutions into banalities and romantic clichés. The director doesn't commit outright atrocities, but she fails to extract a strong and impressive story from this promising material. Comparing it to Bondarchuk's monumental War and Peace, considering the exceptional nature of the source material, may not be fair, but to some extent, it explains my doubts and low rating. Overall impression: 40%. 1 star is for the set design, and the second is for the visual sophistication. (03.02.2016)

An inconsistent mix of Dangerous Beauty (the breakdown of the main character) and The Age of Innocence (similar characterization of the period), which, however, does not take the best ingredients from either and thus remains somewhere in the middle between a fully-fledged serious drama and a delightful romance. The actors, except for a few moments, are very convincing, with Gabriel Byrne taking the lead, but Reese Witherspoon, who until then had been seen by audiences only as a little pink yapper from Legally Blonde, showed that she can also handle a more serious role without hesitation. Technically, it is flawless, with outstanding costumes, London scenery, and vibrant camerawork. The atmosphere of the Victorian era is masterfully and elegantly recreated, but unfortunately, the content is sometimes quite disjointed and dull. (11.09.2006)