Bright Star

Poet John Keats lived an impoverished and short life and yet nearly 200 years afterwards he's considered one of the few poets anybody besides an English major can mention from the 19th century. Kind of a sharp contrast to current rock and roll poets, like say Dylan or Lennon neither of whom lacked funds once published and who'll surely be remembered in two centuries. And that poetical sense of searching for inspiration through words is captured with a feeling for what it must have been like for people to interact and live in 1818 by director Jane Campion.
The story of Bright Star reflects Keats (Ben Whishaw) through the eyes of his girlfriend Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish of Stop-Loss and Candy). Keats can't afford to marry her and his books of poems has some but not much critical support. Keat's friend Charles Armitage Brown (Paul Schneider doing a great job of playing an oafish yet educated antagonist) supports him both intellectually and monetarily. In fact the duo sits around in a stoned stupor not so much writing verse as waiting for inspiration to strike. Brown chides Braun for imposing on their manly ritual. There's a bit of hypocrisy in all three of these characters: Fanny lies about her knowledge of literature, Brown shows little sensitivity to other's feelings and Keats at times allows his pride to overwhelm his destiny with Fanny.
Campion has really tapped into something special here and the entire production overflows with quality whether through the brilliant lighting for the photography or the constantly changing hats, bonnets and clothing that define the period and people. Campion's pacing and camera movement is austere but she can also take your breath away with a high angle establishing shot of a pasture or a scene of a village's white linen drying in the wind. In many outdoor shots actors are seen as though intertwined in tree branches. Interiors have a candle infused flicker at night or bright winter light by day.
Bright Star has such a sense of realism of the era tempered with contemporary ideas of artistry that you're not likely to confuse its look with other quality period flicks like Merchant-Ivory productions. Bright Star also outshines the Julien Temple film Pandaemonium (2000) that portrayed Coleridge and Wordsworth as rock star like poets.
As much as you leave Bright Star feeling the power of Keats' linguistic imagery the film belongs to Cornish. Fanny wavers in her emotional state from happy to sad constantly but never hesitates in her love and devotion for Keats. Kerry Fox who plays Fanny's mother was the star of Campion first international hit An Angel at My Table.