A Little Chaos, directed by Alan Rickman

I love this film, but I didn't realize that I loved it until I'd watched it for the fourth time. 

I just read a review (by Katie Erbland) which complained that (Kate) Winslet and (Matthias) Schoenaerts didn't have persuasive chemistry together, while the scenes between Winslet and Rickman "crackled". I hadn't noticed the lack of chemistry between the leads. I can't help thinking it's easier to play with people you've played with before, and Rickman and Winslet both appeared in "Sense and Sensibility." Erbland also believes the plot's got a little too much furniture in it and is quite crowded. It might be a little crowded. 

The UK miniseries Versailles explained the complicated private lives of the folks here; it may not have been necessary for the Princess Palatine to make that speech about her marriage. I think I like concrete backstories and having everything make sense. The emphasis on the class difference between Winslet's character and everybody else is one of those obstacles it's pleasant to surmount in a romance (but unnecessary). Love stories have to have obstacles of some kind because without them there's no dramatic tension. The things Erbland objected to were to me necessary to create a movie plot, which has its own rules and is as artificial as any opera. Otherwise it's just good music, beautiful costumes, beautiful sets, and beautiful photography (which this film has in abundance and is definitely part of its appeal to me). 

Really, as classic are obstacles in love stories ..faithfully reiterating the formula is not pleasing in itself.

What strongly appealed to me was the slight emphasis on aesthetics. French Baroque garden design was austere and certainly grand. Le Notre, played by Matthias Schoenaerts, was a historical character and Madame La Barra, played by Winslet, was not. But the idea of a playful hidden garden ballroom, in the midst of severely elegant garden design is quite appealing. That is the meaning of the title, "A Little Chaos." 

Helen McCrory also appears as Le Notre's wife. She was wonderful and I love watching McCrory's face. Jennifer Ehle's cameo is at least as artificial as any other part of the film, but it's lovely and perfect. Phyllida Law also appears in a tiny part in a fascinating scene when Madame La Barra meets the ladies of the court in a private meeting behind closed doors with no men present. It's almost like a seraglio. 

Fran Lebowitz has a new series on Netflix, "Pretend it's a City," which I enjoyed very much. She and Toni Morrison were friends, and I found a video on YouTube of the two of them talking at an event. Fran said that today's reader really wants reading to "speak to them," and to offer some reflection of their own lives. I think until I ran across this I did not realize that that explained my fondness for certain books and films. I think it's at the heart of my fondness for Normal People, and it's at the heart of my fondness for A Little Chaos. I'm not a landscape architect, but I was forced to write a paper on Pope's Windsor Forest, and later, I had to read Kevin Lynch, and yes, as a result I have an ongoing interest in landscape architecture. So while A Little Chaos may be quite flawed, or whether liking it is a question of experience and taste, I do like it.

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