Vanity Fair (2004)
Average Rating: 5.8/10
Reviews Counted: 163
Fresh: 82 | Rotten: 81
A more likable Becky Sharp makes for a less interesting movie.
Average Rating: 5.8/10
Critic Reviews: 43
Fresh: 24 | Rotten: 19
A more likable Becky Sharp makes for a less interesting movie.
liked it
Average Rating: 3/5
User Ratings: 48,259
Movie Info
William Makepeace Thackeray's witty assessment of the British class system, as seen through the experiences of one young woman, is brought to the screen with some serious star power in this period comedy drama. Becky Sharp (Reese Witherspoon) is a bright and ambitious girl born to a poor British family. Becky is determined to make something of herself however she can, and after accepting a job as a nanny for the children of the powerful and aristocratic Sir Pitt Crawley (Bob Hoskins), she wastes
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Cast
-
Reese Witherspoon
Becky Sharp -
Romola Garai
Amelia Sedley -
James Purefoy
Rawdon Crawley -
Jonathan Rhys Meyers
George Osborne -
Rhys Ifans
William Dobbin -
Gabriel Byrne
Marquess of Steyne -
Jim Broadbent
Mr. Osborne -
Bob Hoskins
Sir Pitt Crawley -
Ruth Sheen
Miss Pinkerton -
Eileen Atkins
Miss Matilda Crawley -
Timothy Bentinck
German Official -
Trevor Cooper
General Tufto -
Deborah Findlay
Mrs. Sedley -
John Franklyn-Robbins
Mr. Sedley -
Douglas Hodge
Pitt Crawley -
Nicholas Jones
Lord Darlington -
Barbara Leigh-Hunt
Lady Bareacres -
Gabrielle Lloyd
Nursemaid -
Geraldine McEwan
Lady Southdown -
Niall O'Brien
Mr. Moss -
Brian Pettifer
Mr. Raggles -
Tim Preece
Horrocks -
Tim Seely
Doctor -
David Sterne
Queen's Crawley Mail Co... -
John Woodvine
Lord Bareacres -
Sian Thomas
Lady Darlington -
Kelly Hunter
Lady Steyne -
Veerendra Saxena
Coventry Island Man -
Sean McKenzie
Auctioneer -
Roger Lloyd Pack
Francis Sharp -
Stephanie McMillan
Dancer -
Richard McCabe
King -
Natasha Little
Lady Jane Sheepshanks -
Lillete Dubey
Ms. Green -
Andrew Shepard Price
Casino Stranger -
Camilla Rutherford
Lady Gaunt -
Kate Fleetwood
Miss Pinkerton's Crone -
Helen Coker
Firkin -
Steven Elder
Curzon Street Footman -
Alexandra Staden
Lady George -
Tony Maudsley
Joseph Sedley -
Jonny Phillips
Mr. Wenham -
Charlie Beall
Gambler -
Angelica Mandy
Young Becky -
Paul Bazely
Biju -
Georgina Edmonds
Young Rose Crawley -
Emilie Richardson
Young Celia Crawley -
Sophie Hunter
Maria Osborne -
Paul Bentall
Coalman -
Kathryn Drysdale
Rhoda Swartz -
William Melling
Rawdy -
Daniel Hay
Georgy -
Anu Gopalakrishnan
Desert Beauty -
Tom Beard
Officer -
Roma Edmonds
Rose Crawley -
Gledis Cimque
Celia Crawley -
Grant Thomas
Little Pitt -
Bruce MacKinnon
Casino Boy -
Mathew Horne
Casino Boy -
Tom Sturridge
Young Georgy -
Chloe Treend
Dancer -
Stefane Sauer
Dancer -
Nicole Forbes
Dancer -
Amanda Courtney Davies
Dancer -
Louise Weekley
Dancer -
Lene Langgaard
Dancer -
Sarah Mogg
Dancer -
Tracey Lushington
Dancer -
Sandy Borne
Dancer -
Suzanne Thomas
Dancer -
Mari Baade
Dancer -
K. Knight
Dancer -
Sylvano Clarke
Dancer -
Megan Owen
Lady Crawley -
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All Critics (173) | Top Critics (46) | Fresh (82) | Rotten (81) | DVD (28)
It's lavish but lulling, and at two hours and 18 minutes, it's something of a bore.
Top CriticA less than absorbing adaptation of Thackeray's sprawling but sharp-witted classic.
Scene by scene and moment to moment, it's a woeful misreading of the book.
Witherspoon moves director Mira Nair's version of Thackeray's social satire forward at a good clip, making Becky's rising and falling fortunes an intensely watchable spectator sport.
There is no depth beneath its bright surfaces, no potent emotional undercurrents.
A charming movie that falls short of greatness, but is still worth a solid recommendation.
A beautiful adaptation of a literary classic.
From the ostentatious costumes by designer Beatrix Aruna Pasztor ("Wonder Boys") to the annoying male hairstyles that permeate every scene, "Vanity Fair" is a movie that depends on its overall visual effect to hypnotize audiences into overlooking the film
Yay! England sucks and India is cool! Well, except for that troublesome caste system, of course.
In Vanity Fair's universe without heroes, shameless central character Becky Sharp would have surely felt supremely at home stuck on Temptation Island, or in the boardroom of The Apprentice.
To our utter delight, these stories and messages are told with superb acting, amazing costumes that burst with color and texture, and dazzling locales.
Es una sólida adaptación de la novela de Thackeray por la que bien vale la pena pagar el boleto.
Becky's adept maneuvering through upper society's pitfalls is sometimes muddled from too many characters and too little explanation, but Witherspoon remains fun to watch...
Not at all the stiff costume drama bore I thought this movie was going to be.
Witherspoon is the only thing that kept me watching Vanity Fair even as my eyelids morphed into anvils.
Lacking a character we really care about, we're left floundering in a mud puddle of human misbehavior. [But] the performances are all impressive.
As Vanity Fair rests unsteadily between floral elegance and grim satire, Mira Nair's auteurist touches keep it engaging as it fails to get a grip on Thackeray's scope.
In Vanity Fair, Witherspoon presents a complex character beautifully, even when her character's choices vastly depart from her own values.
Reese Witherspoon is miscast in this poor adaptation of the popular novel.
Even though the central stories are compelling, dividing the film between them means we never have anyone to grab hold of.
It has all the feel of a clone.
I knew Scarlett O'Hara and you, Ms Witherspoon, are no Scarlett O'Hara
The director's vision seems as obstructed by affectation as the vision of the classist characters in her film.
Reese's piece certainly looks good, it's just not terribly engaging.
Although long and disjointed, with characters...from Gone With the Wind, and burdened by (terrible) audio..., Vanity Fair is an entertaining film that held my interest.
Nair... revels in Thackeray's lampooning of genteel class warfare...
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Movie: ID: 10793 Title: Vanity Fair Release Date: 2004-09-01 00:00:00.0 MPAA: 3 Status: 1
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It's period set pieces are designed pretty well, the costume design is imaginative, and technically, Vanity Fair is kind of excellent. However, i'm not sure if i'm the only one who saw this but Reese Witherspoon's performance is a bit of a mixed bag, sometimes she acts convincingly, but in the more dramatic moments she tends to crack slightly. Also her character, Becca Sharp, like many have said is supposedly dislikable, even if the film managed to make her that way she still wouldn't be that interesting. Mainly due to it's incoherent uncertain style of storytelling. In addition the ending is highly unclimatic and as a whole, the film is just too long. It's not terrible because there are some good supporting performances, such as Tony Maudsley's, but it's often quite dull and lifeless and suffers from various sub plots and a bloated amount of unnecessary characters.