the painted veil

while not exactly a chinese film the location totally is that
which was the main appeal for me - see some of that country
i was also curious to see how the husband/wife acting team would go
naomi watts (kitty) in a leading role and liev schreiber (charlie) as her lover
i also admire the acting skills of edward norton who plays a doctor (walter)
and then as a final teaser diana rigg is mentioned in the cast
the film opens with kitty and walter dumped in country china
then cuts back to explain how they have ended up there
he is a bacteriologist briefly in london where he meets kitty
she is from a rich family with a mother keen to be rid of her
so kitty decides to scarper and accepts walter's proposal
and hi-ho hi-ho it's off to china we go - shanghai
i was looking forward to some scenes of 1920's china
but mostly what we see is a bored kitty with her new man
hubby finds out and gives her a choice of a divorce
or a trip to the country to deal with a cholera outbreak
take the divorce i was thinking - she being in love with charlie
but seems as a woman that is not the done thing
so then it's off to the country with a grumpy husband
this gives the director the opportunity for some impressive shots
plenty of scenes featuring china's unique mountain ranges
upon reaching their destination kitty is totally isolated
walter won't touch her and barely speaks to her
so she befriends the mother superior (diana rigg)
and finds some solace in her work with orphaned children
eventually after a drunken night they reconcile
fall into bed and she finally in love with her husband
gets pregnant, they live happily ever after, etc, etc
well not quite he gets the dreaded disease and snuffs it
which is about the most unpredictable part of this film
the rest is just too obvious - even boring in places
i found myself too aware that this is just a film
and not transported as film can do when done well
the costumes were grand (how many suitcases did she take?)
the acting was ok but naomi watts tends to rely on her beauty
i don't think this one will pick up any prizes for directing
of maybe the editing is at fault as it felt very jerky
a lot of scenes but not flowing very well
you could almost sense the one scene a day feel to it
all very well set up with totally unbelievable lighting
literally that is - bright spot lights used for dramatic effect
silhouetting characters or showing off beauty and/or dress
the chinese actors given or giving very wooden roles
some things going on that lacked explanation
or seemingly there because the budget allowed for it
which made me think - should have read the book first
but somerset maughan is not someone i am drawn to
ok - enough panning - not a bad film
just not a great one