terrible... so disappointed.

Beautiful, moving film.

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

This was slagged off in the Radio Times but I'd checked the viewer comments here and decided to watch it . My one main problem with this is Minnie Driver . She can't do restrained and repressed . It's not her . She's not Helena Bonham-Carter or Kristin Scott Thomas . The fragile English rose , she's not . Stillness doesn't suit her . When she lets rip at Tom Wilkinson she comes alive . Let's see some more of that kind of temperament in her performances . Apart from that it is a very well put together film although the wonderfulness of this Jewish woman alone in the Gentile world of the nineteenth century gets laid on with a trowel , somewhat . Nevertheless an interesting and unusual film .

This movie had potential. If it had been handled differently. What it needed was a different director. That's certain. And perhaps a different leading lady. I just can't understand the Minnie Driver character - or at least how she played it. She was completely unbelievable. I cannot believe she would have liked her performance in this movie either. She was probably abandoned by the director or incapable of delivering what the director was trying to get her to do. I am writing this as I am still watching it. I'm thinking I would have hated to be in her shoes trying to 'act' something I didn't understand. Well, we've just proceeded to the affair she begins with the son (I'm still watching). I'm now beginning to be profoundly embarrassed for everyone involved in this enterprise. If you enjoy watching movies that miss their mark in a big way, then watch this one.

THE GOVERNESS is a moody period piece, the meandering story of a Jewish woman who, upon the death of her father, sets out to 1830's Scotland, posing as a Gentile to get work to support her family in London.Rosina - or Mary, as she calls herself in a none too subtle piece of symbolic writing - is a rudderless child, a socialite with dreams of being an actress. She strikes up an alliance with her employer, and by accident solves a crucial problem in his research with photography. Giddy with success, they begin a halting and uncomfortable affair while the eldest son of her paramour falls hopelessly (and inexplicably) in love with her.And like a child, she fails to understand the consequences of her actions - in the end, betraying those she deceived in order to make a life for herself.Many claim this is something of a feminist manifesto, but I disagree. Whether intended or not, this film only resonates with me if I think of it as a cautionary tale. In the end, Rosina's greatest disappointment is the truth - that she lied, happened upon a way to help a man she wanted to be both her father and her lover, and in the end contributed nothing but destruction. As such, the end of the film gives me the impression that nothing she did, no one she used, made her happy - and that is exactly as it should be.Did I need a movie this long and langorous to teach me this lesson? Not at all. On the contrary, had it not been for excellent cinematography, unique score and my hope that she'd get her come-uppance, I wouldn't have stuck with it to the end of the film.Fans of Minnie Driver will likely be disappointed by her uneven performance but may wish to see it anyway; I doubt young female fans of Jonathan Rhys-Meyers will be able to stay awake for the payoff they expect, and I can't help thinking this holds too little cultural detail to be of interest, even to photography buffs. The 3 points I award the film are solely for its visual style and score. On the strength of their other work, I assume the actors' performances are so disappointing because of a poor script and worse directing, but they are, in the end, unremarkable.

This extraordinary period piece was breath taking and at times painfully real. Rosina (Mary Blackchurch) becomes interested in her employer's experiments with photography fixation and subsequently falls in love (while pursued by her employer's son). Rosina's first experience with love is tumultuous and passionate. Rosina's employer, played brilliantly by Tom Wilkinson, shared her passion but was unable to embrace the new emotions awakened within. Charles Cavendish, like his castle, was at times dim and hollow. Rosina (Minnie Driver) tries to bring life to an otherwise cold and lifeless environment. Some viewers have wondered why the Rosina character would fall for the older man, when the son (Henry) was obviously smitten. Considering the immature and bizarre behavior of Henry Cavendish (played by Jonathan Rhys-Meyers), should anyone wonder at all? The senior Cavendish despite his shortcomings possessed a mysteriously masculine allure that would charm any young woman looking for both a lover and a father figure. Unfortunately, in this story the viewer will witness that love (alone) is not always enough to sustain a relationship. This film is well done and worth watching.