I saw this one in London a couple of months ago and the idea of a film with Colin Firth and Jessica Biel together initially thrilled me. When Ben Barnes marries a wild race car driver (Biels) and brings her home to his Aristocratic parents (Colin Firth and Kristen Scott Thomas) the battle of their masquerading values ensue. It’s an old Noel Coward play that has been refurbished to add a twist of a man broke from war and suddenly seeing the difference in himself and his Victorian family’s ridiculous demands and lifestyles. Biel is adorable and wacky in this production, Firth is as good as Firth always is, and Scott Thomas is the best bitch on wheels whenever she’s in these movies. Biel is the only one who understands why Firth who led a troop into the village during the War and never came back. It was his wicked wife who came to get him. Only these two characters Biel and Firth understand each other, yet the dialog throughout most of the movie is not only annoying but strangely strained. Although there is one scene where the family discovers Biel’s scandalous past involving a previous husband. She handles the challenge with cool class and she won’t let the evil mother-in-law make a false move. Not great, not bad, but more mechanic and unnecessary. And the ending is rather predictable. If you like period pieces, you’d be best to rent “Emma” instead. Two Tiaras
