The Libertine

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! There May Be SPOILERS in the movie reviews !

Written by Sheila Seacroft
21 10 2005

Directed by Laurence Dunmore

A stunning, in every sense, debut feature by Laurence Dunmore, whose work has so far mostly been in commercials, this film is based on the play by Stephen Jeffreys which wowed the Royal Court in London 10 years ago. While it shows its theatrical roots in a very classy and literary screenplay, its translation to the big screen has been perfectly worked, so that its cinematic qualities hit you in the eye from the very beginning when Jonny Depp as Rochester, his face filling the screen, tauntingly addresses the audience, setting out his amoral and self-hating take on life.

Rochester, accounted by some to be a hugely talented poet, (most of whose work was not published until after his death) is also a clever, nihilistic purveyor of salacious ribaldry and vicious satires on his times, not sparing his former friend, King Charles II. Depp produces a fine performance, showing once more the range of his talent, moving from the cold cynic to the intense lover to the ravaged victim of syphilis who is to die, horribly mutilated by the disease, at the age of 33. His life is set alight by his passionate relationship with the actress Elizabeth Barry (Samantha Morton), whom he coaches to become a star of the stage.

John Malkevich took the role of Rochester onstage in Chicago, and now as well as producing the film he plays Charles II, in a prosthetic nose ("sometimes they let me paint it myself") that is a close relative of Nicole's Virginia Woolf one in The Hours, in a nicely understated performance with none of the mannerisms that sometimes accompany his screen presence.

But the really striking aspect of the film is its look. The C17th is definitely not a place you would want to go. Darkness, dirt, disease and violence are superbly evoked by the use of candlelight for indoor scenes, with a minimum of artificial light used on set. A yellowish greyness pervades, claustrophobic and febrile. For once the costumes and sets of a historical drama really do look lived in, even if that means we can hardly see them very well, and the fetid atmosphere of the streets, inns, and theatres where Nell Gwyn would have sold her oranges is so thick one can almost taste it. Did the sun never shine on Restoration England? There are grim laughs along the way - Rochester puts on a play for the king to entertain the French ambassador that is full of mimicked sex of all kinds and pirouetting around a vast phallus. The king is not amused. And look out for Johnny Vegas, big mates with Malkevich during the filming, apparently, looking totally at home in a greasy wig.

While there's no disputing the power of the experience of watching this film, there remains the nagging doubt - what does it all amount to? Malkevich has said it is a portrait of a great talent that wastes itself. Yes. But quite why is never really explained. Self-hate, or hatred of humanity? And where exactly does his passion for Elizabeth Barry fit in? It's a long, sour journey down the feverish tide of Rochester's self destruction, fascinating and repellent in equal measure.

Seen at Cinema Days, Cineworld, Milton Keynes, October 2005

The Isle of Man was the unlikely setting for a movie raunch-fest, when Johnny Depp and friends raised hell as Libertines Rochester and Charles II. Brigitte Lancombe captured the mayhem

Outside Johnny Depp’s Winnebago the discarded props of a working film production await collection at the end of a day’s shoot. There’s a box jammed with wigs next to a rail lined with velvet frock coats, a stack of buckled shoes and an array of feathered hats.

Nearby, though, precariously positioned against a wall, is unmistakable evidence that The Libertine is quite unlike most ordinary period dramas. “Have you seen the giant phallus?” Depp inquires cherrily, pointing to the bright-orange object in question, which must be 8ft tall. “ Its an impressive, er, prop don’t you think?”

This, after all is the story of John Wilmot, the second Earl of Rochester: poet, wit, war hero and exponent of debauchery on such a scale it would make your hair curl more than the jumble of hair pieces nearby. There was nothing ordinary about Rochester.

Depp is clearly having fun. As are the crew. They inform me that I’ve chosen the wrong day to visit the set. “You should have been here yesterday,” says one. “Makes the long hours worth it, mate.”

Rumours of the explicit content of Laurence Dunmore’s film have spread far from the town of Ramsay, in the north of the Isle of Man, where Depp, John Malkovich (who plays Charles II) and co have been based in the studio for the past weeks. Indeed, when the production filmed in England and Wales, at historic locations including Hampton Court, there were times when the film-makers were hoping that they weren’t asked too many questions about the script.

Some might have been a little anxious when they discovered that Rochester’s life was something akin to a 17th century rock star- only with more sex and drink. “If you want a modern comparison, he was as famous as Mick Jagger,” says writer Stephen Jeffreys. The producer Russel Smith, adds: ”He was like a rock star. Actually, he was more like a punk because he put the finger up at everybody.”

A legendary hell raiser who wrote excellent often exceedingly filthy poetry, a wit who amused and outraged the court of Charles II, Rochester bedded just about every woman he came into contact with and drank far too much before he died from syphilis at 33.

“The location we were most afraid of was Wells Cathedral because they hadn’t asked anything at all and we were using the Bishop’s room as our House of Lords. And we were like, “Oh my God, if they read this script we are out of here so fast…” We started filming and rumours were spreading that the movie had bestiality in it or something, so we were tiptoeing around that one. But we went and showed them that we are regular people and they were fine.”

Jeffrey’s script, adapted from his own stage play, portrays Rochester as part hedonistic hoodlum, part tortured soul who was at turns capable of expertly lampooning London society, penning near-pornography chronicling his latest bawdy exploits, and writing some of the most beautiful prose of the time to the women he genuinely loved, his wife Elizabeth Malet (Rosamund Pike) and his mistress, the actress Elizabeth Barry (Samantha Morton).

“The Libertine is about someone who has a fantastic talent for everything and he wastes it,” says Jeffreys. “It was deliberate, destroying barriers, knocking things over. I think it was partly in response to revulsion at the court of Charles II, although I have the feeling that whatever the society he would have been against it in some way.”

Depp was hooked from the moment he read the opening “You wont like me” monologue that Rochester delivers to the audience at the start of the film. “That was it for me, “ he says. “It was one of those rare occurrences where you read a script and you think, “this is great”. “ Three sentences into the opening monologue and I was in. I knew it was one of those things, the kind of material that you see just once..” He also agrees with Jeffreys that beneath the punk exterior, there was a sensitive soul struggling to be heard. “For all his adventures and all his sexual exploits and deviant encounters, he was quite sensitive and loving,” says Depp. “When you read the stuff, he was a very caring man. And a great, great writer.”

Right now, Depp is finished for another day. He offers a glass of red wine as he chats about the film and wardrobe arrive to take away his costume. Outside, the nondescript walls of the Isle of Man film studios are providing a backdrop to that prop. It’s a surreal sight. “I think they should keep it there,” grins Depp. “Like a tourist attraction. “ The Earl of Rochester was here.”

FOLLOWING ON-STAGE TRIBUTE

LOS ANGELES, October 13, 2005 - AFI FEST 2005 presented by Audi has selected actor Johnny Depp as this year's tributee. The Tribute to Johnny Depp will take place at ArcLight Hollywood on Friday, November 11, 2005, followed by the World Premiere of The Weinstein Company's THE LIBERTINE, starring Depp, Samantha Morton and John Malkovich, as part of the Festival's Special Screening series. The film is Laurence Dunmore's directorial debut. (Picture of Johnny Depp available upon request).

"Our challenge each year in choosing a tributee is to find someone who is a highly accomplished artist about whom we crave to know more," says Christian Gaines, Director of AFI FEST. "Johnny Depp is such an artist. He has made interesting, risky choices in his career and has evolved into one of the most absorbing actors of our time."

Johnny Depp will make a rare appearance in a lively on-stage conversation with acclaimed film critic, commentator and author Richard Schickel. The Tribute will also include a career montage, and a series of clips that will take a close look at the work and art of this singular, stylish performer. The Tribute is made possible through a collaborative partnership with the Skirball Cultural Center.

"Johnny is a brilliant and truly unique actor, whose remarkable career has been defined by its diversity and veracity. The originality of both the characters he has portrayed, and the films he has made, further emphasize his integrity and passion,” says Laurence Dumore, director of THE LIBERTINE. "I am delighted Johnny is being honored by AFI FEST."

THE LIBERTINE stars Depp as history's notorious enfant terrible, the Earl of Rochester. Rochester was a man of many contradictions: an anti-monarchist Royalist who was the confident of British King Charles II (played by John Malkovich in the film); an atheist who converted to Christianity; and a poet and pornographer in Restoration-era Britain. The film follows how Rochester's famous cynicism is thrown for a loop when he falls in love with a struggling young actress (Morton). THE LIBERTINE opens in New York and Los Angeles on November 23, and wide on January 13.

"Johnny's character in THE LIBERTINE is multifaceted and he conveys the complexities with brilliance," says Harvey Weinstein. "He is a true master and his performance in this film is outstanding."

Johnny Depp is one of the most versatile and compelling actors working in contemporary world cinema. His ability to recognize and then whole-heartedly immerse himself in memorable film roles has made him the rarest of movie stars—simultaneously iconoclastic yet eminently bankable—a true original. Pivotal performances in films as diverse as CRY BABY, EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRAPE?, ED WOOD, DONNIE BRASCO, FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS, DON JUAN DeMARCO, BEFORE NIGHT FALLS, BLOW, CHOCOLAT and ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO make his matinee idol good looks almost incidental to his work as a great actor.

More recently, PIRATES OF THE CARRIBBEAN (now with two sequels currently in production), FINDING NEVERLAND, and CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY have earned Depp a new legion of fans and made him more in demand than ever, with a slew of new projects in the pipeline.

As part of the Tribute, AFI FEST 2005 will also screen a retrospective of four of Depp's films during the 10-day Festival: DEAD MAN (1995), directed by Jim Jarmusch; EDWARD SCISSORHANDS (1990), directed by Tim Burton; FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS (1998), directed by Terry Gilliam; and WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRAPE? (1993), directed by Lasse Hallström—whose latest film, CASANOVA, will close the Festival's program this year.

AFI FEST 2005 presented by Audi will run November 3-13, 2005. Passes are on sale now and individual event tickets go on sale to the public on Friday, October 14, 2005. To order passes and tickets and to get more information, visit www.AFI.com or call 1.866.AFI.FEST.

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