Easy Virtue (2008)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Robert C

  
  A very enjoyable story about trying to move through life with all of the baggage that we inherit from our family and accumulate on our own. Witty, clever and at times touching. Made all the more powerful by the writing of Noel Coward and this amazing group of actors. Though the… More
  A very enjoyable story about trying to move through life with all of the baggage that we inherit from our family and accumulate on our own. Witty, clever and at times touching. Made all the more powerful by the writing of Noel Coward and this amazing group of actors. Though the weakest link is Biel...she does a pretty good job at holding her own against this pretty amazing cast. Kristin Scott Thomas and Colin Firth are favorites of mine and are great here. And it was my first time seeing Katherine Parkinson outside of her performance on the BBC series The IT Crowd and she was great as well. Even the soundtrack was very clever with a 1920-30 style badn performing hits from the period intermixed with random hits from other (later) eras, done in 1920's style.

• Morgan S

  
  ...I think my dislike for this movie was clearly on the basis of miscasting...Jessica Beil does not ring as the perfect 20s flapper that this role called for. She just doesnt have the chops or the experience. It just didnt fit her at ALL. Collin Ferral and the rest of the cast were… More
  ...I think my dislike for this movie was clearly on the basis of miscasting...Jessica Beil does not ring as the perfect 20s flapper that this role called for. She just doesnt have the chops or the experience. It just didnt fit her at ALL. Collin Ferral and the rest of the cast were perfect but I just did NOT LIKE Beil in this role...They should have gotten someone different.

• Cynthia S

  
  I really got a kick out of this movie. I loved the quirky stuff, especially. Just when you thought things were getting serious, they would throw in another little funny incident. Having Colin Firth in this movie was definitely a plus for me. He is just fantastic. Also, keep an eye on… More
  I really got a kick out of this movie. I loved the quirky stuff, especially. Just when you thought things were getting serious, they would throw in another little funny incident. Having Colin Firth in this movie was definitely a plus for me. He is just fantastic. Also, keep an eye on that butler....he is always doing something silly.

• Ken S

  
  Enjoyable with nice photography. It's a a good old fashion drawing room dramedy... if you're into that sort of thing.

• danny d

  
  the fact that this film gets any stars at all is entirely for colin firth, whose character was written perfectly and whose acting was excellent as always. the rest of the film was nearly insufferable. the wonderful cast pulled off an ensemble of terrible performances, the plot was… More
  the fact that this film gets any stars at all is entirely for colin firth, whose character was written perfectly and whose acting was excellent as always. the rest of the film was nearly insufferable. the wonderful cast pulled off an ensemble of terrible performances, the plot was inconsequential, and the script was very poorly written. biel looked the part but didnt play it well and the humor fell almost entirely flat. really a poor film.

• Wahida K

  
  In a family that prides itself as proper, vice becomes a virtue.

• Manu G

  
  Pretty good movie with a slight piece of humor and drama. This film reminded me alot of woody allen movies i don't know why.... A young Englishman marries a glamorous American. When he brings her home to meet the parents, she arrives like a blast from the future - blowing… More
  Pretty good movie with a slight piece of humor and drama. This film reminded me alot of woody allen movies i don't know why.... A young Englishman marries a glamorous American. When he brings her home to meet the parents, she arrives like a blast from the future - blowing their entrenched British stuffiness out the window.

• Walter M

  
  Most parents would be ecstatic to hear that their son has gotten married but that is not the case in "Easy Virtue" with the Whittakers(Kristin Scott Thomas & Colin Firth), especially when she finds out that not only did their darling son John(Ben Barnes) marry a… More
  Most parents would be ecstatic to hear that their son has gotten married but that is not the case in "Easy Virtue" with the Whittakers(Kristin Scott Thomas & Colin Firth), especially when she finds out that not only did their darling son John(Ben Barnes) marry a floozy, but a trouser-wearing, American floozy, Larita(Jessica Biel), who has an interesting taste in literature and would have won the Monte Carlo Grand Prix, if she had not been disqualified for lacking certain equipment. To be perfectly fair, Larita is stunned at the first sight of the Whittakers' mansion, even as half of it is not heated and some of the servants are being let go. Her plan is to move with John to London which is a decision that her allergies are making all the easier for her. "Easy Virtue" is a breezy farce with visual flair and a dark undercurrent with a wonderful ending in the 'oh why not' tradition. Not only that but the movie also serves as an allegory with Larita representing American progress from Detroit who favors horseless carriages over horses but it is not that easy to change a household with a mother who does not want her children to grow up or truly live their lives and a father who is emotionally absent, still nursing the psychic wounds of World War I. The excellent performances help immensely to prevent these characters from becoming mere caricatures.

• Jeff T

  
  A fizzy fish-out-of-water Noel Coward adaptation that is stylish and fun and has a major problem. It's about a sexy American woman who marries into an eccentric and hilarious English family in the '30s and the hilarity that ensues as she tries to fit in. The Brits are… More
  A fizzy fish-out-of-water Noel Coward adaptation that is stylish and fun and has a major problem. It's about a sexy American woman who marries into an eccentric and hilarious English family in the '30s and the hilarity that ensues as she tries to fit in. The Brits are headed by Kristin Scott-Thomas and Colin Firth, for goodness' sake. The American is Jessica Biel. Now, look, she's beautiful. She looks great in the clothes. And she occasionally has a great moment. But she has to say many, many words, and this is not her strong suit. And the movie relies on her to be good at saying words. So the movie, unfortunately, gets taken down a couple notches for it. Not terrible, but problematical.

• Sol C

  
  The performances of Colin Firth, Kristin Scott Thomas, Jessica Biel, and Ben Barnes makes the film worth seeing. The film reminded me of another film Relative Values which also had Colin Firth and Julie Andrews in it. It is well written and well cast. The only problems I saw with the… More
  The performances of Colin Firth, Kristin Scott Thomas, Jessica Biel, and Ben Barnes makes the film worth seeing. The film reminded me of another film Relative Values which also had Colin Firth and Julie Andrews in it. It is well written and well cast. The only problems I saw with the film was that it was predictable who would end up with whom by the end of the film. Also the style of the film was too much. The style was a combo from a stage page to English Comedy to 1940 romance film to slapstick comedy. Some of the comedic moments were a little too over the top. However, it is the performances that make the film watchable.

• Panta O

  
  [b][size=5][color=darkred]EASY VIRTUE (2009)[/color][/size] [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/custom/07/1202807.jpg[/img] [i][color=red]Film je snimljen kao adaptacija predstave Noel Coward-a sa istim imenom. To je prièa o naèinu života Starog sveta Engleske i… More
  [b][size=5][color=darkred]EASY VIRTUE (2009)[/color][/size] [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/custom/07/1202807.jpg[/img] [i][color=red]Film je snimljen kao adaptacija predstave Noel Coward-a sa istim imenom. To je prièa o naèinu života Starog sveta Engleske i slobode Novog sveta Amerike. Sve se dešava 1929 godine kada John Whitaker (Ben Barnes) nabrzinu ženi amerikanku, koja je inaèe profesionalna "automobilska trkaèica", Laritu (Jessica Biel). John je najstariji sin u porodici Whitaker --jedne od uglednijih engleskih porodica--i kada se vrati kuæi u zagrljaju svoje voljene supruge, njegova majka (Kristin Scott Thomas) nije baš oduševljena jer sve to kvari njene planove o buduænosti porodice. U stvari svi èlanovi porodice se èude ovoj amerikanki koja je "preglasna" za engleski ukus, meðu njima i John-ove sestre Hilda (Kimberly Nixon) i Marion (Katherine Parkinson). Jedini koji je oduševljen novim èlanom porodice je glava porodice Whitaker (Colin Firth). [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/gallery/1202807/photo_34_hires.jpg[/img] I pokraj svih pokušaja Larita ne uspeva da postane punopravni èlan porodice ili da ikako impresira hladnu g-ðu Whitaker koja ne oprašta nikome ništa. Ova nesretna porodica lako nosi maske pa je tako ostala dugo jedna od viðenijih imena u Engleskoj. Ali tu ima previše zapleta da bih opisivao ceo film... u stvari pogledajte ovo savršeno delo engleske kinematografije (koja sve više uspeva da me oduševi svežinom koju unose u svetsku kinematografiju èak i filmovima koji su "rimejk" starijih dela). [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/gallery/1202807/photo_25_hires.jpg[/img] Pravo uzivanje za oko, duši i uvo! Muzika je nešto što retko izdvajam kod bilo kog igranog filma , ali to moram ovom prilikom uèiniti. Režiser Stephan Elliot (THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT), èiji sam intervju imao prilike pogledati pre nedeju dana i koji je bio odsutan tolikih godina sa filmske scene, je uspeo da stare pesme Cole Portera ukomponuje u sadržinu filma da bi svaka scena bila osiromašena kada se ne bi tamo nalazile! Ne znam šta reæi o glumi osim da su Biel i Scott Thomas pružili maksimum režiseru i publici koji se da primetiti od prve scene, ali se glavni glumac ipak malo više istakao od prelepe i talentovane Biel! A kada budete gledali film, setite se mene kada scena sa nastupom gde se igra kan-kan bude na platnu... i smejte se samnom! [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/gallery/1202807/photo_19_hires.jpg[/img] Film koji æe mi ostati zauvek u seæanju kao lepo iskustvo! Drago mi je da konaèno mogu dodeliti 8/10.[/color] [/i] [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/gallery/1202807/photo_09_hires.jpg[/img][/b]

• Deb S

  
  The story is set in the 1920s and is an interesting tongue in cheek look at the Upper Class British family life in the early 1900's whereby the Whittakers live on an estate with a stately house, apparently very wealthy but in fact on the verge of bankruptcy. Kristin Scott Thomas… More
  The story is set in the 1920s and is an interesting tongue in cheek look at the Upper Class British family life in the early 1900's whereby the Whittakers live on an estate with a stately house, apparently very wealthy but in fact on the verge of bankruptcy. Kristin Scott Thomas is amazing as the rigid and disapproving matriarch who doesn't approve of new wife (Jessica Biel - the beautiful "trashy" American woman), who wants to live in London with her new husband(Ben Barnes), but the mother wants him "home" because they need him there. She is a welcome breath of sultry air to his father though, played perfectly by Colin Firth who is the only one in the family that seems to like Biel. I thought the tango scene between Biel and Firth was magnificent and sexy and the panty-less can-can scene at the war widows venue was jaw-dropping for back in the day lol. Kris Marshall's Furber, was witty as well and steals the show as a funny butler. The title comes from a line late in the movie, when someone refers to Biel's "Easy virtue", which was not a compliment This is a romp of a film; I wasn't bored even for one second to see the flashy American trying to fit in with the old school British, the one-liners come fast and frequent. It's 90 minutes of entertaining and intelligent fun.

• Lesley N

  
  It was okay. Integrating some pop songs amongst the 20's soundtrack was a nice touch.

• m h

  
  I thought it was a cute movie. There was some good laughs in there. Overall I liked the story presented. I don't think I necessarily needed the characters bursting out into song as much as they did though. I also didn't really like the ending. And some parts seemed a little… More
  I thought it was a cute movie. There was some good laughs in there. Overall I liked the story presented. I don't think I necessarily needed the characters bursting out into song as much as they did though. I also didn't really like the ending. And some parts seemed a little over the top, but for the most part the film did put a smile on my face. I thought it was well acted, I quite liked Jessica Biel and Ben Barnes together. I also liked the way the film was directed. I also thought the costumes were well done, made you really feel like you were a part of that time period. So overall I liked it. I don't think I loved it, but definitely liked it.

• FanGirl B

  
  I think I would have really liked this film if it weren't for Jessica Biel (and honestly I can't tell you if it's her or her character) who was just endlessly irratating and self obessessed. On the other hand Colin Firth and Kristin Scott Thomas were brilliant as… More
  I think I would have really liked this film if it weren't for Jessica Biel (and honestly I can't tell you if it's her or her character) who was just endlessly irratating and self obessessed. On the other hand Colin Firth and Kristin Scott Thomas were brilliant as always. Other than Biel a good movie about an upper class English family that is beginning to loose it's shine.

• Nikki M

  
  I enjoyed this movie, and I thought the ending was nicely done!

• d j

  
  id give it 3/5 and that might be marking it a little bit high. there was nothing particularly great about the movie. it was a pretty slow going story and sort of aggrivating. Jessica Biel was great in it. I expected just a little bit more out of Colin Firth. Its worth maybe one watch… More
  id give it 3/5 and that might be marking it a little bit high. there was nothing particularly great about the movie. it was a pretty slow going story and sort of aggrivating. Jessica Biel was great in it. I expected just a little bit more out of Colin Firth. Its worth maybe one watch if theres nothing else you would like to see. Definitely not going to watch it multiple times however.

• Sarah B

  
  Tries too hard to be a mixture of Noel Coward, Oscar Wilde and an Ealing farce. Still, it's always nice to see upper class Britishness turned inside out, a rebellious Colin Firth and an unpredictable ending.

• Daisy M

  
  young Englishman marries a glamorous American. When he brings her home to meet the parents, she arrives like a blast from the future - blowing their entrenched British stuffiness out the window. <a… More
  young Englishman marries a glamorous American. When he brings her home to meet the parents, she arrives like a blast from the future - blowing their entrenched British stuffiness out the window. <a href="http://s420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/ladypink_2009/?action=view&current=jessica.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/ladypink_2009/jessica.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a> Jessica Biel plays Larita, and rather well, too. Kristen Scott Thomas is a politely, and very funny, Mother. Colin Firth's Father role is sad and serious. Ben Barnes plays John as written, a pretty young man. Kris Marshal. the butler, gets most of the funniest bits. This film plays off the British class system, and it is very funny in some places, particularly in the first half, but ultimately it isn't really a comedy. Many of the main characters simply aren't very nice people. As events proceed you begin to get a feeling for what you would like to happen. As a result, the conclusion came as a surprise to me. I recommend this movie to all my friends, its funny, hilarious, and romantic. Simply a great one. click on this link if you want to see the trailer) <embed width="440" height="420" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://v4.tinypic.com/player.swf?file=10zrdsp&s=4"><br><font size="1"><a href="http://tinypic.com/player.php?v=10zrdsp&s=4">Original Video</a> - More videos at <a href="http://tinypic.com">TinyPic</a></font>

Read all 19 featured audience ratings