The rather gorgeous Gabriel Oak, was well cast, although perhaps a bit more handsome than the 'original oak' was meant to be; comparisons with the tree in Sherwood Forrest are intentional as Gabriel is as solid and incongruent with nature, as the ancient oak itself. Sergeant Troy, played by Tom Sturridge seemed far less appealing in comparison with Matthias Schoenaert's Oak, a conceited and irresponsible boy, no less; unfortunately, unlike the book, far less handsome than Gabriel. Bathesheba, played by Carey Mullighan, was not as heart stoppingly beautiful as Julie Christie in this role, but perhaps delivered a more convincing performance as the feisty Miss Everdene. The best performance in the film however, is that of Mr Boldwood, played by Michael Sheen. The sensitive and heart wrenching portrayal of the shy, sincere man, misled by Bathsheba's joke Valentine card, is perhaps the best performance of the film. Michael Sheen lends an element of sheer pathos to this adaptation, in his unrelenting devotion to Bathsheba.
The cinematography has to be mentioned; the Stunning west countryside is as much a part of the film as the cast. A criticism, which is probably a natural consequence of fitting a book into the relatively small time frame of a film, is that there is much omitted from this production. It is never really explained, for example, that Bathsheba saves Gabriel's life, which serves to put there relationship on an equal footing.
All in all, an exquisite film.
Truly delicious!
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