Most previous reviews of this film seem to take up extreme positions: They express either fervent admiration or virulent dislike. The first group seems to be from lovers of British period films such as the Merchant-Ivory productions, while the second seem to come from filmgoers with more pedestrian sensibilities. 'Angels and Insects' is certainly better than the usual Hollywood garbage, but it is certainly not of the caliber of the best British period films. There is a scene near the end of the film where the main character shuffles a hand of cards and in so doing rearranges the word 'INCEST' to spell 'INSECT.' Maybe this anagram was the inspiration for this entire story!
William Adamson, a Victorian naturalist/entomologist of modest means, suffers a devastating career setback in the course of returning from a Brazilian expedition. Sir Harald Alabaster, who also likes entomology, takes pity on him and offers him refuge at the Alabaster estate, where he meets and marries the beautiful oldest daughter Aurelia, who, true to her name, has golden hair, but who in fact seems to be little more than a pair of ovaries with legs. He actually has more in common with drab, plain governess Matty Crompton, who turns out to be an amateur entomologist who is more accomplished than he is! With nothing else to do, he sets about studying the insects on the Alabaster estate. Matty volunteers to be his assistant. The lives of the Victorian idle rich are portrayed as days of mind-numbing fatuousness, but strangely, Adamson's intellectual pursuits are not made much more interesting. He is looked down upon by his brother-in-law Edgar, a thoroughly hateful young man who seems to be interested mainly in molesting all the young female servants. Aurelia produces child after child for William, but somehow they seem quite unlike him, and he has trouble feeling any connection with them. The reason becomes apparent when he discovers that all the children are the product of incest between Aurelia and Edgar, which has gone on for many years. William is scandalized, of course, but is also glad to have a reason to leave the Alabaster estate. Matty confesses her love for him, and off they go to South America. Fade to black.
This film has a great look but the plot lacks the immediacy or interest of, say, Howards End. The actors are also not of the caliber of the best films of the genre. It is more like viewing a succession of Victorian paintings than watching a supposedly living, moving story. Compositions are strangely drab and lusterless and the dialogue is muffled and difficult to make out. Master shots that are meant to be stately and imposing come across as static and boring. And the great secret of the film, i.e., the incest, actually fails to make much of an impact, and Patsy Kensit is spectacularly unconvincing as the mortified, disgraced Aurelia after William discovers her.
William Adamson, a Victorian naturalist/entomologist of modest means, suffers a devastating career setback in the course of returning from a Brazilian expedition. Sir Harald Alabaster, who also likes entomology, takes pity on him and offers him refuge at the Alabaster estate, where he meets and marries the beautiful oldest daughter Aurelia, who, true to her name, has golden hair, but who in fact seems to be little more than a pair of ovaries with legs. He actually has more in common with drab, plain governess Matty Crompton, who turns out to be an amateur entomologist who is more accomplished than he is! With nothing else to do, he sets about studying the insects on the Alabaster estate. Matty volunteers to be his assistant. The lives of the Victorian idle rich are portrayed as days of mind-numbing fatuousness, but strangely, Adamson's intellectual pursuits are not made much more interesting. He is looked down upon by his brother-in-law Edgar, a thoroughly hateful young man who seems to be interested mainly in molesting all the young female servants. Aurelia produces child after child for William, but somehow they seem quite unlike him, and he has trouble feeling any connection with them. The reason becomes apparent when he discovers that all the children are the product of incest between Aurelia and Edgar, which has gone on for many years. William is scandalized, of course, but is also glad to have a reason to leave the Alabaster estate. Matty confesses her love for him, and off they go to South America. Fade to black.
This film has a great look but the plot lacks the immediacy or interest of, say, Howards End. The actors are also not of the caliber of the best films of the genre. It is more like viewing a succession of Victorian paintings than watching a supposedly living, moving story. Compositions are strangely drab and lusterless and the dialogue is muffled and difficult to make out. Master shots that are meant to be stately and imposing come across as static and boring. And the great secret of the film, i.e., the incest, actually fails to make much of an impact, and Patsy Kensit is spectacularly unconvincing as the mortified, disgraced Aurelia after William discovers her.