It’s London, 1818, with its bonnets, tea and biscuits. Beautifully shot, always contained and extremely sophisticated with it’s proper English greetings -“Hall-o” – don’t expect Seth Rogen to walk out onto this set. Written and directed by Jane Campion of New Zealand and best known for “The Piano” this time she tells the story of the gifted but penniless poet – John Keats (Ben Whishaw). Keats was yet another writer (think Sylvia Plath) not publicly recognized until after his death. Enter Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish) a self-made seamstress who lives in the picturesque English countryside, able to afford her mortgage and her sewing materials, but incapable of convincing her family to let her marry the very broke Mr. Keats. So typical of its time, a woman would never think about ditching her parents, taking off with the lover and shacking up. Though never quite sure of her family’s connection to his we soon learn that Fanny’s life allows her the luxuries of society balls, and that her nemesis is a writer named Brown (Paul Schneider) who wants Keats all to himself. There is a holiness to the heart’s affections, but like all these Period pieces where a telegraph arrives via messenger announcing they’ve either fallen in love with another, or taken ill with consumption, this too has a sad but true ending. (It should be said that Keats best writing was during the time he courted Fanny Brawne.) The dialog is always magical and unexpected, and the acting is as flawless as Fanny’s complexion. In one scene of a lesson on “tea party 101” the women are taught to stir their spoons two to the right, two to the left, tap-tap on the rim and then blow on the tea before sipping. I’ll drink to that. Three tiaras
