‘Bright star! would I were steadfast as thou art’
July 25, 2010 | Comments | Inspirations
I recently watched the beautiful film Bright Star, directed by Jane Campion. The story tells the poignant romance between poet John Keats and Frances ‘Fanny’ Brawne, his first and last love before his untimely death at age 25.
Although a credible representation of early 19th century life in England, Bright Star transcends the predictable parlor and pinched nose laboriousness of period pieces that have come before it. Focusing softly on the domestics of Fanny Brawne’s day, the film slowly takes form, stitch by stitch, when the highly spirited young girl meets her pigeon-toed poet. Their flirtation meets immediate obstacles, from the mores of contemporary society, to disapproval of the attachment by the Brawne matriarch, who fully expects her eldest daughter to marry into money, and primarily Keat’s friend and patron, the insolent Charles Brown. Ultimately, Keat’s lack of financial success proves to be the persistent, dog-eared obstacle that conquers the love affair, punctuated by his tragic death from consumption.
Holding aloft the ideals of Romanticism, Bright Star embraces the unconventional chasteness in the story. The building tension of the lover’s affair validates their deepening emotional bond, elevating their love of aesthetic beauty and quite literally giving butterfly wings to their imaginations. Such truths would be sacrificed if the relationship were ever consummated, but instead, they relinquish themselves to the sweet, dull ache of emotional love.
Bright Star is sumptuous and delicately filmed. The lighting and colors evoke a strongly impressionistic feel. Each moment is thoughtfully expressed to emphasize the natural lighting of the period and reflect the sub current of emotion. A voice-over of Keats poems gently steer the peak expressions of love and melancholy while an anxious violin and sorrowful piano soundtrack voices the character’s intense struggle to contain their feelings. The soundtrack is mostly quiet, lightly backed with the natural noise of birds chirping and the natural surroundings.
The costuming shines bright and clear. Fanny Brawne was a seamstress who had a penchant for style, sewing most of her own clothing and experimenting with her skills. The recreations and original pieces made for the movie are elegant, unique and exquisitely simple, yet never misstep from the 19th century. Both Fanny’s attitude towards personal style and the beautiful creations by costume designer Janet Patterson are a great inspiration for me. This inspiration and the acquisition of some new fabrics have given me another direction in which to expand my skill set and dolly clothing design.
Bright Star’s haunting strength is anchored by the aim of Keat’s poetry – to love the principle beauty in all things.
Watch the International trailer.
