Star Scene

By Ian Gibson

There’s a funny thing about the movie business – in the midst of massive add campaigns, Scrooge-like business moves, and blind fanboy fanaticisms, it becomes all too easy for a genuinely good movie to be brushed aside and ignored. Easy Virtue, a romantic comedy from the British Isles, is a wondrous delight of a film that will likely fall prey to the aforementioned Hollywood malady.

Starring Jessica Biel, Colin Firth, Kristin Scott Thomas, and other British actors, Easy Virtue focuses on the injection of an American wife (Biel) into a 1920s Aristocratic family. It’s a classic culture-clash with an upbeat twist as the individual characters play off each other with wit and hilarity. This is no standard “Meet the Parents” affair, however, as the feature never turns stale or boring, from odd beginning to tumultuous end, Easy Virtue is a movie one can’t help but smile along with.

One of the many things that make this movie so enjoyable is the bright cinematography and brilliantly inclusive soundtrack.  The roaring 20s are presented in bright colors and sweeping scenes where the aristocrats of the film spending their days in the most glorious of fashion. Songs from the era play beautifully in each scene providing a perfect match to the exhilarating dialogue.  As proof of the music’s brilliant placement, the characters occasionally sing along in a fourth-wall break that works thrillingly.

The story of the movie also proves a delight to the unaware movie-goer. In expecting the standard popcorn flick, one can’t help but be surprised at the emotionally rich and deeply intellectual plot. Can love truly overcome all? Is concession necessary for the perfect relationship? Beneath the hilarious witticisms and bright style are issues with weight and depth far beyond what is expected. Easy Virtue is a movie that not only tickles the funny bone and jumpstarts the adrenal gland but also feeds the soul.

Easy Virtue is a movie whose praises cannot be sung loudly enough. British humor, familial intrigue, and blossoming romance work in absolute harmony that the film can’t help but shine in nearly every manner imaginable.