A 19th century tale of jealousy, marital disputes, and child custody battles, I mainly got the movie because Bill Nighy was in it. His character sparks the controversy that leads a man to take extreme measures against his wife and goes mad because of... (read more) A 19th century tale of jealousy, marital disputes, and child custody battles, I mainly got the movie because Bill Nighy was in it. His character sparks the controversy that leads a man to take extreme measures against his wife and goes mad because of his jealousy. A really good time-piece, I really enjoyed it. At some times, the actors turn to the camera and do a soliloquy, I really liked that. 3 stars out of 5.

A Victorian morality tale of jealousy that leads to insanity. An infuriating self-righteous prig, Louis Trevelyan (Oliver Dimsdale), is so convinced that his innocent, young, and beautiful wife, Emily (Laura Fraser), has betrayed him that he will not... (read more) A Victorian morality tale of jealousy that leads to insanity. An infuriating self-righteous prig, Louis Trevelyan (Oliver Dimsdale), is so convinced that his innocent, young, and beautiful wife, Emily (Laura Fraser), has betrayed him that he will not listen to anyone who tries to convince him otherwise. He goes to great lengths to prove himself right, by hiring a disreputable private detective, Bozzle, to spy on her. And, although the detective gets things wrong from the get-go and is found out, rather than admit he is wrong, the husband sends Bozzle back in to continue his surveillance. Several other romances are played out, between Emily's sister and a young journalist, the journalist's sister and a cousin by marriage, and the village vicar and a pair of silly sisters. If not for the maniacal self-deception of Louis, and his constant error of judgement and deed, this would have been a quite joyful tale, indeed. But, madness will not succomb to reason, no matter how prettily it is dressed. Bill Nighy is properly smarmy as the raconteur who sets the ill-fated events in motion. Well-done, if just a bit melodramatic.

I just can't like Louis and Emily, but I love other characters like Aunt Stanbury, Priscilla, Nora and Hugh.

i was kind of disappointed with this film. it seemed to be 2 hours too long and a lot of repeated dialog.

My favourites were the old aunt and the journalist's sister. They make this worth watching.