re:mote voices

Title: A Good Woman
Cast: Helen Hunt, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Wilkinson, Stephen Campbell Moore, Mark Umbers
Director: Mike Barker

A Good Woman is a comedy based on the Oscar Wilde play Lady Windermere's Fan. Though it is more droll and witty than more contemporary pieces.

Mrs. Erlynne (Helen Hunt) of the sort of woman who moves from man to main, funding her lifestyle with the lavish gifts the men give her. Run out of her New York base she comes up with a plan that takes her to the Italian coastal resorts. Being that kind of woman it isn't long before the gossip starts. It seems clear to all, except Lady Windermere (Scarlett Johansson), that she has become involved with Lord Windermere (Mark Umbers). With this Lord Darlington (Stephen Campbell Moore) decides to target Lady Windermere, though at the same time Lord Augustus (Tom Wilkinson) is attempting to seduce Mrs. Erlynne.

From In Good Company to A Good Woman, we have the latest vehicle for Johansson to hit the UK (even if the two were actually made the other way round). With In Good Company I felt a little unconvinced by Johansson. Watching her here I think she can be a decent actress, but there is something about her accent, which she uses in all her parts, that comes across as flat and toneless. Ironically Hunt's voice sounds very similar in this voice, underlying that impression of monotone.

Though on the whole that kind of describes the film as a whole. On the whole performances are lacklustre, with only Hunt, Johansson and Sizemore really having anything to show for themselves. For the most part the adaptation feels a little flat, a little tame. Which serves to make the good lines stand out more, emphasizing the material is based on a play. With the fact that those lines stick out servers to make the piece feel inconsistent.