`DREAMING' A TALE OF REBELLIOUS LOVE.Byline: Janet Maslin The New York Times Though Samantha Morton proved herself a raw, electrifying e·lec·tri·fy tr.v. e·lec·tri·fied, e·lec·tri·fy·ing, e·lec·tri·fies 1. To produce electric charge on or in (a conductor). 2. a. actress in ``Under the Skin,'' she now turns up in the kind of tremulously trem·u·lous adj. 1. Marked by trembling, quivering, or shaking. 2. Timid or fearful; timorous. [From Latin tremulus, from tremere, to tremble. carnal carnal adjective Referring to the flesh, to baser instincts, often referring to sexual “knowledge” shy-flower role that once would have been played by Sarah Miles. ``Dreaming of Joseph Lees,'' which opened Friday, casts her as a prim-looking spinster SPINSTER. An addition given, in legal writings, to a woman who never was married. Lovel. on Wills, 269. who works at a sawmill and sends a lusty lust·y adj. lust·i·er, lust·i·est 1. Full of vigor or vitality; robust. 2. Powerful; strong: a lusty cry. 3. Lustful. 4. Merry; joyous. pig farmer named Harry (Lee Ross) in pursuit of her. Harry courts Eva (Morton) so unabashedly that he makes her blush, which is to say that he gets her attention. Harry's sister teases Eva about this, claiming that Eva is ``lookin' at him like he was burnin' you from the inside out.'' ``Dreaming of Joseph Lees'' is set in 1958, when such thoughts qualify as dangerously naughty. And it is shot on the Isle of Man Noun 1. Isle of Man - one of the British Isles in the Irish Sea Man British Isles - Great Britain and Ireland and adjacent islands in the north Atlantic , where lonely, rugged panoramas replete with stone, mud and timber create rebellion-ready mood. So Eva is eventually tempted to flee the household of her stern, disapproving father and move to Harry's house. But as the title suggests, Eva yearns for something more. Specifically, she thinks about her distant cousin, a geologist who lost a leg while working in an Italian quarry. (The sawmill's way of cutting logs may be an unfortunate metaphor.) She has not seen him since she was a 14-year-old with a schoolgirl crush. Then, at a family wedding, Joseph Lees shows up in the form of Rupert Graves and looks not at all the worse for wear. Unfortunately Joseph is not an option, now that Harry is on the scene. But Joseph, who sends his cousin books about Italian art, has an undeniable effect on her. ``You and me, my darling, are made for love!'' exclaims Harry, only to have Eva snap ``You and I, Harry.'' Eventually, she and the handsome geologist wind up entwined, talking about the earth's crust and other matters that are beyond Harry. And Harry begins behaving differently, as if the screenplay (by Catherine Linstrum) had flipped a switch. As directed by Eric Styles, this earnest first feature pays careful attention to drably authentic details (Harry's sweaters have moth holes) and tells its glumly glum adj. glum·mer, glum·mest 1. Moody and melancholy; dejected. 2. Gloomy; dismal. n. 1. bodice-ripping tale with somber sensitivity. Morton succeeds in seeming volatile and alive even when the material is all too strained. Not content with metaphorical import, the sawmill also becomes part of a suicide attempt near the film's shrilly contrived ending. The screenplay asks viewers to believe that a character would willingly get in the way of a whirring whir v. whirred, whir·ring, whirs v.intr. To move so as to produce a vibrating or buzzing sound. v.tr. To cause to make a vibratory sound. n. 1. blade. THE FACTS The film: ``Dreaming of Joseph Lees'' (R; sexual situations and implicit gore). The stars: Rupert Graves, Samantha Morton and Lee Ross. Behind the scenes: Directed by Eric Styles. Written by Catherine Linstrum. Released by Fox Searchlight Pictures. Running time: One hour, 32 minutes. Playing: Landmark's Westside Pavilion Cinemas in West Los Angeles
Our rating: Two stars. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Samantha Morton and Rupert Graves star in ``Dreaming of Joseph Lees,'' the tale of two love-struck cousins in 1950s Britain. |
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