THE DUCHESS

RYAN: Out in limited release today, “The Duchess” is Keira Knightley’s annual period piece.

CAROLINE: [laughs’ I kept thinking that as I was watching. She has indeed done many a British period film; but she’s always good at it.

RYAN: We can pretty much expect a period drama from her every year and an Oscar nomination to follow. This time I actually think she deserves it, and could even win it. She was outstanding as the Duchess Georgiana.

CAROLINE: I thought she was great too. Several scenes required some pretty dramatic acting from her, and she totally pulled it off. The only thing she couldn’t pull off was the attempt to have a bust line. The costume department valiantly tried to squeeze a little bit of bosom out of her corset, but there was none to be had. She’s very thin.

RYAN: You can’t create somethin’ outta nothin’. I loved the set design in this movie. The rooms were huge and fabulous and so ornately decorated. It harkened me back to one of the most beautiful period films of all time, “The Age of Innocence.” The costumes were gorgeous too. The only thing I didn’t love was Keira Knightley’s hair, which I understand was true to the period and the duchess’s style, but every time I looked at her, I thought, “Bride of Frankenstein.” Her hair was so high.

CAROLINE: That wedding scene in particular – she almost doesn’t look pretty because the wig is so up and out there. But other than that, I loved all the styles of the period, and the gorgeous manors and dance parties. It also made me wonder if everyone was an alcoholic back then because Keira Knightley was rarely without a glass of wine in her hand, pregnant or not.

RYAN: Well, there wasn’t much else to do to pass the time back then. Ralph Fiennes plays her husband the Duke, and after this role, his role in “Schindler’s List” and his turn as Voldemort in “Harry Potter,” he’s the reigning king of evil. He’s become Hollywood’s go-to guy for the most despicable characters in film.

CAROLINE: His character is a total bastard. Their marriage was appalling, and since this movie is based on the story of a real woman, you really pity her. She was an ancestor of Lady Diana, by the by, and their lives mirror each other’s in a lot of ways. It’s shocking to watch the appearances she had to keep up, and it’s probably still like that today in the royal family to some extent.

RYAN: Let’s just say there are a lot of similarities to the Duchess’s marriage and the situation with Princess Diana, Charles and Camilla.

CAROLINE: Everyone was having affairs, children were born as a result of infidelity and yet you had to pretend everything was great and your marriage was fabulous. The whole thing is pretty shocking. It’s crazy to watch what she had to do in her role as royalty, and the happiness that she initially thought she would have upon marrying the Duke. How wrong she was.

RYAN: Dominic Cooper co-stars and every time he was onscreen I kept hearing ABBA songs in my head ‘cuz he was in “Mamma Mia!” He’s fine in this, but I don’t think he was hot enough. I would have rather seen Joseph Fiennes in the role.

CAROLINE: Eew, he’s not hot enough either. But I think we both agreed that Dominic wasn’t hot enough for his role in “Mamma Mia!” either; so basically, he’s just not hot enough period.

RYAN: At least he was shirtless in “Mamma Mia!” so his abs justified the casting. But in this movie he’s fully clothed and wigged and I wasn’t buying his wide-set eyes.

CAROLINE: [laughs’ Totally! He looks like Baby the dinosaur.

RYAN: The soundtrack is great too, and there are some amazing close-up shots. This director is great at drawing out long close-ups beautifully. Bottom line?

CAROLINE: It’s very well done, and I’m sure it will get all kinds of nominations for set design, costumes, etc. I don’t know that it moved me so much that I’d tell you to run out and see it immediately, but for people who like these kinds of period pieces, it won’t disappoint.

RYAN: Several times I thought to myself in my head how great this film looks. I’d highly recommend it whether you like period films or not. It reminded me of Princess Di, and I thought it was fantastic. I didn’t check my watch even once because I didn’t want it to end.