Suffragette – Blu-Ray Movie Review

Maud Watts is a young woman working back-breaking hours in a London laundry to help support her husband and son. One of her co-workers is a member of the women’s suffrage movement who has been called to testify before Parliament. Maud goes along to listen but at the last minute is asked to give her own testimony. From that moment she is irrevocably drawn into the cause. She meets others willing to fight for women’s rights and is soon arrested when a peaceful protest becomes violent. Meanwhile an inspector is watching her movements in an attempt to learn the whereabouts of leader Emmeline Pankhurst. Everything comes to a head when Maud and another protester attend the annual derby in an attempt to catch the attention of the King. What happens there draws world attention to the cause of women’s rights and changes history forever.

Specifications

Universal Studios
2015, Color, Rated PG-13, 1 Hr 47 mins
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, 2.39:1 Aspect Ratio
Starring: Carey Mulligan, Anne-Marie Duff, Helena Bonham Carter
Directed by Sarah Gavron

Rating

Entertainment:

Video:

Audio:

Extras:

Violence: Yes
Sex: No
Language: No

I couldn’t help but notice that Suffragette begins in the same year as Downton Abbey, 1912. The story of that era in England is told from two perspectives that couldn’t be more opposite. That being said, this film is most definitely a British period drama. It’s just not something you’re likely to see on the BBC. The story is based on true events and actual people like Emmeline Pankhurst and Emily Wilding Davison, though Carey Mulligan’s character, Maud Watts, is fictitious. The depictions are fairly graphic and the violence is often explicit. These were intense and difficult times for women everywhere and director Sarah Gavron doesn’t hold back. The film is extremely well-made and acted with a superb script and standout performances from Carey Mulligan and Helena Bonham-Carter. It’s compelling to watch but extremely dark at the same time. The story has great historical significance and it inspired me to read more on the subject. Though it’s not a film I would watch multiple times, I recommend it very highly.

The image is rich with detail and shows a broad dynamic range. Film grain is used to provide a gritty and dirty feel which is a perfect way to portray London at the turn of the twentieth century. Color is warm and saturated and has a palette that indicates the different types of lighting in use from gas lamps to candles and vintage electric light bulbs.

The DTS-HD Master Audio encode also boasts tremendous dynamic range with lots of depth and slam in the more intense sequences. Dialog is crisp and clear though you’ll have to concentrate to understand the period-correct accents in use. Plenty of environmental cues come from the front and surround speakers to create an immersive feel to both the streets of London and more confined interiors like the women’s prison.

Two mini-documentaries are included on the history portrayed in the film; one of which has comments from cast and crew. There is also a short on the visual effects used plus audio commentary from director Sarah Gavron and screenwriter Abi Morgan.