A Little Chaos-2014

Director Alan Rickman

Starring Kate Winslet, Matthias Schoenaerts

Scott’s Review #269

Reviewed August 22, 2015

Grade: B-

A Little Chaos (2014) is a difficult film to review.

The film does not kick into high gear, or much of a gear, until the final thirty minutes or so, as the drama hits a crescendo and past events are suddenly explained.

At this point, it becomes a very entertaining film.

Until then, it is largely a bore and slow-paced.

Starring Kate Winslet, Matthias Schoenaerts, and Alan Rickman, who also directs the film, A Little Chaos is a good film with beautiful period-piece costumes to marvel at, and it feels great. Still, it misses the mark with a lack of momentum balance throughout.

It is also largely fictionalized, which makes it less enjoyable to watch.

A period drama set at the gorgeous Versailles in France, in the late 1600s, when King Louis XIV of France is in power and lives on the illustrious estate.

Landscaper Andre Le Nôtre hires unconventional gardener Sabine (Winslet) to create one of the gardens.

Sabine is progressive and does not live in the past. Rather, she has ideas for creating a unique pattern. Sabine is instructed to incorporate a wonderful fountain within the garden.

She faces hostility from staff members for simply being a woman, and they refuse to work for her.

Others admire her creativity.

As the plot unfolds, Sabine has romantic feelings for Andre, a man trapped in a loveless marriage with Françoise, and they begin a tender courtship.

The past haunts Sabine, and she frequently hears cries in her dreams. The audience does not know what her past life was, only that she is widowed.

The final act brings everything together nicely. We learn about Sabine’s past, and her suggested dalliance with Andre comes to fruition.

After the film, I was left thinking how exceptional it was, but then I remembered most of it dragged.

The themes of A Little Chaos are class systems, feminism, and societal views. At first, snubbed by some for being a commoner, Sabine is slowly accepted by the royal figures, including the King himself, whom Sabine humorously mistakes for the gardener at one point.

Ideally, it would have been lovely if a woman had been hired to create the garden.

Sadly, events do not happen this way, but it is someone’s fantasy.

A Little Chaos (2014) has great potential and looks beautiful- my main complaint is that, for most of the film, nothing happens.

Also disappointing is that the film was not filmed at the historical Versailles, nor was it even shot in France. Every exterior scene was filmed in England.

This isn’t a deal-breaker, but some authenticity would have been nice.

Another major detraction is that Sabine De Barra is not even a real-life figure, but rather is fictionalized- sort of how the past should have been but wasn’t really.

If she were a real person, the film would be more interesting. What is the investment?

From an acting standpoint, the film succeeds. Winslet, a highly talented actress, is well cast, and the chemistry between her and Matthias Schoenaerts is palpable. Both actors are believable in their roles.

Stanley Tucci, typically great in whatever he appears in, plays Philippe, a silly, slightly effeminate Duke who does more to annoy than to amuse and is a trivial character.

Throughout the film, I kept thinking it was the kind of movie you should like because it looks great, but something was missing.

The royal drama, sexual dalliances, and antics were fun, but I felt like the film could have been much more than it ended up being.