To me, this movie is perfection.

best movie i've ever seen.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

"Fingersmith" (2005) is a BBC miniseries, directed by Aisling Walsh. It's adapted from a novel by Sarah Waters. The basic plot is the interaction of two women. One is Maud Lilly, played by Elaine Cassidy. The other is Sue Trinder, played by Sally Hawkins. The women come together from entirely different backgrounds. They have nothing in common except that they are both young and beautiful.Each one has her own tragedy. Maud is a gentlewoman, but has been raised by her harsh, perverted uncle. He specializes in pornographic novels, and he forces Maud to read them aloud to small groups of invited "sophisticates."Sue is a "fingersmith," which is English slang means a talented pickpocket. She has been raised in what is (literally) a den of thieves, run by Mrs. Sucksby, portrayed by Imelda Staunton. Sue has very little money and she can't read or write.The plot begins with treachery. Richard "Gentleman" Rivers (played by Rupert Evans), offers Sue an immense sum of money if she will help him swindle Maud. She accepts, and he and she arrive at the mansion of Maud's uncle. That's as much as I'll say about the plot, except to warn you that nothing is what it seems to be. It's a complicated tale, which flips back and forth when you least expect it to.Cassidy, Hawkins, Staunton, and Evans are all superb actors, and it's a pleasure to see them act and interact. As you would expect from the BBC, production values are high. The supporting actors, the sets, and the streets look real. We know that there are production people everywhere, just outside of the range of the camera, but, still, the sense of realism is there.We saw this film on DVD, where it worked well. It probably would be better in a theater-- most movies are. However, it was made for television and it looks good on the smaller screen. Important note: The 2016 Japanese/Korean film Handmaiden is based on the same novel. Being Korean substitutes for being lower class, and being Japanese substitutes for being among the elite. Most of the story is basically the same, although some revelations in the last third of the BBC production are not included in the Japanese/Korean production.I enjoyed both films, and it makes sense to see them both.

I discovered Fingersmith precisely in one of IMDb users lists a few months ago, which I found strange because Fingersmith dates from 2005. I had never heard about the series before but decided to give it a try, since the story seemed so appealing. And well, what can I say? I've watched it a few months ago and no matter how many times I watch it, I never grow tired. I envy those of you who haven't watched it, for all those marvelous sensations are yet to come! I don't think we could expect anything less from such a masterpiece as Fingersmith (relating to the book, now). Notwithstanding the fact that books are generally better than its adaptations, this one really matches the former. The acting is astonishing, even though Sally Hawkins could have been more intense at times (but perhaps that's just due to the fact that Sue's not as intense as Maud). What's more, Elaine Cassidy is brilliant! You only must be delighted watching her eye-expression, those eyes really say it all. And then, Imelda Staunton, Rupert Evans, Charles Dance and David Troughton are indeed wonderfully characterized. The twists and turns, apart from the acting, are something, which make the story unpredictable. However, it took me a moment to understand all the twists in the last part of the series, for they come quite fast and unexpected, but in the end they make perfect sense. I also feel that they could've explored Maud's childhood a bit more (as the book does), so that the viewer would truly understand why she would do such a thing. Despite these few critical aspects, I strongly recommend Fingersmith to those who enjoy a love story. And an outstanding one.

"Fingersmith" is divided into two episodes, and it is truly a hit and miss film. While watching the first episode, I thought I was experiencing one of the finest films ever made - it developed like a Dickensian novella courageously and poetically weaving a tale of lesbian love. Until just before the end of the first episode, I was fully expecting to give "Fingersmith" my highest recommendation.The organic kernel of the movie - as presented in the summary on this web site - is superb and of the highest quality. The movie goes off the tracks, however, at the very end of the first episode and never really gets back on track after that. There are too many plot twists which stretch the viewer's capability for suspension of disbelief past the breaking point. The film becomes much too impressed with its own cleverness and the second episode just feels inauthentic and overly contrived. It's almost an insult to the viewer's intelligence and a betrayal of the time so well invested up to that point. It also robs the film of its crux and primary dilemma, namely, after wrestling with her powerful feelings of love, her past loyalties and moral and ethical considerations, what decision will Sue Trinder make regarding the plan to defraud Maud? There's no doubt about it, simpler would have been much much better in this case. Nine stars for the first episode. One star for the second episode. Five stars overall. This could have been so much better.

I'm not exactly sure why I ordered "Fingersmith" from Netflix -- probably, because I enjoy BBC dramas, it was on a list of recommendations. I had no idea what I was about to see. The plot, which I will only describe in general so as not to spoil it for anyone who will see it after reading my review, has more twists and turns than a mountain road in the Rockies, of the sort that customarily appear in "caper" movies. They are very unusual in a period drama. Not having read the novel (and I do not intend to do so), I was totally unprepared for the surprise that ends the first segment on the DVD and equally surprised by the subsequent twists and turns. Nonetheless, it is extremely well acted by the two young principals (by Sally Hawkins,in particular, as Sue and by Elaine Cassidy as Maud) and, in key supporting roles, by Imelda Staunton as the mother figure in a house of thieves and by Charles Dance as the rich uncle who collects pornographic materials and who rescues young Maud from the mad house where her mother lived to be his secretary. The lesbian affair between Maud and Sue is the "big news" in the movie, but really not its centerpiece. The centerpiece is a plot to steal the fortune that Maud is due on her 21st birthday. The turns and twists in the plot add tension, though not much credibility, to the movie. However, no viewer is likely to doubt that Maud and Sue will somehow end up together -- improbably -- as the credits roll. Although one has been raised as a ady, and serves a collector of pornography, and the other is a pickpocket posing as a lady's maid, the author obviously means for them to live together in the end. It's a bit difficult to swallow, since each has conspired to cheat the other. Despite these reservations, I liked movie well enough. It does not quite deserve the praise that others have lavished on it. The most fearsome and interesting scenes take place inside the madhouse where one of the two young women has been confined until she is able to escape and return to London to bring the story to its unexpected conclusion. Sally Hawkins (Sue) is a very impressive young actress, able to convey her character's cascading and changing emotions with her facial expressions and her eyes. No doubt we'll see more of her. I certainly hope so.