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

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

"The Way We Live Now" (2001) is a four-episode BBC miniseries directed by David Yates. The book is based on a novel written by Anthony Trollope (1815 - 1882). Trollope was a brilliant Victorian novelist, but, unlike his contemporary Charles Dickens, Trollope's name is not nearly as well known in the 21st Century. However, the BBC has produced several of his works, and they are worth seeing.This novel is Trollope's longest, and possibly his most complex. Someone has estimated that there are over 100 named characters, and subplots abound. However, all the plots and subplots involve Augustus Melmotte, a shady character with grandiose schemes. Melmotte has the uncanny ability to make people want to give him money. He wants the money because his goal in life is to be an English gentleman.If there had been a weak actor playing Augustus Melmotte, the whole movie would have fallen apart. This movie hung together because David Suchet played Melmotte so well. You'll have to see the film to know just how completely Suchet takes over the role of Melmotte.Most of the supporting cast was at the usual high BBC level. Matthew Macfadyen plays Sir Felix Carbury, the cad, very well. Paloma Baeza plays Hetta Carbury, his lovely sister who is everything Sir Felix is not. I think that the two weakest actors were Cillian Murphy as Paul Montague, and Miranda Otto as Mrs. Hurtle. Paul Montague is supposed to be the perfect Victorian hero. He's an engineer, and he isn't driven by greed. He's driven by the goal of designing and building the Mexican railroad. (The Mexican railroad is the starting point of Melmotte's rise to financial power.) The problem is that Murphy doesn't look or act the part. His character is not that different--in appearance or manner--from Sir Felix Carbury. They are supposed to be at opposite poles, but they aren't.Miranda Otto is an Australian actor who has been given the role of an American from Oregon. Otto has a strong Southern US accent, which doesn't work. It's certainly possible that Mrs. Hurtle was originally from the U.S. South, and moved to Oregon. However, her Southern accent doesn't sound right, and it's clear that she is struggling with it whenever she's on screen.As an interesting side note, Mr. Brehgert, a Jewish banker, is acted by Jim Carter, who plays Carson the butler on Downton Abbey. He's in love with an elegant Englishwoman, and his religion stands in the way of their marriage. His bank lends money to Melmotte. That's another subplot that revolves around the mysterious Augustus Melmotte.I enjoyed this miniseries, and I recommend it highly. Without Suchet it could have been a failure. With Suchet, it's a triumph. We saw it on the small screen at home, and it worked very well. (There are a few outdoor scenes that would work better in a theater, but most of them are fillers put into the movie to "open it up." The real plots take place indoors, and they work well on DVD.) Seek out this movie and watch it! You'll be glad you did.

For those who've read Trollope's novel, this adaptation might at times feel like a bit of a departure, since like most book adaptations, the film takes some artistic liberties.But in this case, they work. By turns, this production reminded me of 'The Age of Innocence', 'Angels & Insects', and even those gorgeous Merchant-Ivory films. While this was of a slightly different caliber, the sets and costumes were equally exquisite.The Melmott family is the most entertaining with a classically surreal Tim Burton sensibility about them--odd & wickedly funny, reminding me of the characters in 'Beetlejuice' & other films with eccentric performances by the the likes of Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, etc. As I'm a sucker for romantically dramatic costumes, I loved all the wardrobe for Mrs. Melmott & Marie's characters as much as their antics! And the over-the-top Melmott mansion was delicious eye candy.But the rest of the story/characters too were interesting enough to make me want to watch all 4 episodes. My other favorite character is Mrs. H., whose southern accent took a a sudden turn into a British one at times, yet was wonderful and quite watchable.And last but not least, Cillian Murphy was, as always, angelically entrancing. He and Mrs. H. made a far more interesting (and sexy) couple, but that would have been a different film altogether... All in all, if you're expecting the standard period piece, you'll get one, but with quite a bit more fun & spice thrown in! ~NN

The Way We Live Now is yet another British TV adaptation of the works of Anthony Trollope. Like The Pallisers and The Barchester Chronicles this is yet another mini-series to savor. The rich setting of 1870's London society is boldly brought to the screen. David Suchet gives the performance of his career as scoundrel Augustus Malmotte. Equally brilliant is Shirley Henderson as his daughter Marie. Henderson has emerged as one of the more spellbinding thespians of the last ten years. Why she isn't a major star when performers with a tiny fraction of her talent are on the A-list is one of those mysteries that will never be explained. Still, this is not quite up there in the same league with The Pallisers. Some of the characters are not that interesting. Unfortunately, Miranda Otto as Mrs. Hurtle and Cillian Murphy as Paul Montague are miscast.

Warning - I hated it.The entire time I was watching this, I kept feeling sorry for the poor set-construction crew. After each day's shooting ended, they only had around 12 hours to repair all of the serious damage caused by the actors chewing the scenery so hard; there must have been tooth-marks all over everything, and some of it was probably bitten right through. Perhaps they also had to keep a dental-hygenist on-set to assist with removing splinters from the actors teeth.The acting was generally atrocious, and I found Suchet's histrionics ghastly - it made me think of Jim Carrey going completely out of control, or Elizabeth Taylor's hysterics in "Suddenly Last Summer" - which people often mistake for serious acting. But I'd say that the primary responsibility for this shambles lies directly at the feet of a seriously incompetent and green director, and a surprisingly poor adaptation from Davies. I found it to be a horrible mess, and Trollope must be spinning in his grave.