X
- 2014
- PG
- Fox Searchlight Pictures
- 1 h 40 m
- 2014
- PG
- Fox Searchlight Pictures
- 1 h 40 m
Summary Belle is inspired by the true story of Dido Elizabeth Belle the illegitimate mixed race daughter of Admiral John Lindsay. Raised by her aristocratic great-uncle Lord Mansfield and his wife, Belle's lineage affords her certain privileges, yet her status prevents her from the traditions of noble social standing. While her cousin Elizabeth ...
Directed By: Amma Asante
Written By: Misan Sagay
- 2014
- PG
- Fox Searchlight Pictures
- 1 h 40 m
- 2014
- PG
- Fox Searchlight Pictures
- 1 h 40 m
Belle
64
7.4
Where to Watch
Summary Belle is inspired by the true story of Dido Elizabeth Belle the illegitimate mixed race daughter of Admiral John Lindsay. Raised by her aristocratic great-uncle Lord Mansfield and his wife, Belle's lineage affords her certain privileges, yet her status prevents her from the traditions of noble social standing. While her cousin Elizabeth ...
Directed By: Amma Asante
Written By: Misan Sagay
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 35 Critic Reviews
64
63% Positive
22 Reviews
22 Reviews
37% Mixed
13 Reviews
13 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 35 Critic Reviews
64
63% Positive
22 Reviews
22 Reviews
37% Mixed
13 Reviews
13 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Beautifully cast, touchingly played and handsomely mounted, Belle is as close to perfect as any costumed romance has a right to be.
Belle's extraordinary intelligence is most evident in its slow but satisfying disentanglement of the jumble of privileges and disadvantages that the wealthy, aristocratic, and learned — but also female, half-black, and pitifully sheltered — Dido embodies.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 46 User Ratings
7.4
72% Positive
33 Ratings
33 Ratings
22% Mixed
10 Ratings
10 Ratings
7% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 46 User Ratings
7.4
72% Positive
33 Ratings
33 Ratings
22% Mixed
10 Ratings
10 Ratings
7% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
I hate to be sappy, but for me, the thing that usually separates simply good independent films from must-see independent films is whether or not you fall in love with the characters. Belle is an absolute must-see.
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A totally absorbing fact based story about a young black woman adopted into an upper class British family. The leading actress has to play against some of the leading actors of British film, and she more than holds her own with an exquisitely modulated and deeply felt performance. The film looks wonderful and avoids both sentimentality and high minded preachiness. I am not surprised so many viewers love it.
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The movie packs a lot in, and the quick pace of early scenes can feel like running on a treadmill, but Belle settles into a nice rhythm. It ends up having all the requisites of a period drama — a strings-heavy soundtrack, lavish costumes and passionate declarations of love — plus a good deal more.
What's best about Belle is the performance of Ebatha-Raw.
Though the inventions of Misan Sagay's script emphasize concerns over dowries and social rank that will be grating for many contemporary viewers, extracting little of the humor that Austen regularly found in such hang-ups, the picture's sour notes are balanced by fine performances and clear historical appeal.
Amma Asante's second feature tells Dido's extraordinary story in handsome, if formulaic, style.
Closer to a special episode of "Diff’rent Strokes" than to "12 Years a Slave," the movie seems to exist to give its white characters belated moments of conscience.
This movie is beautifully written and appropriately casted. I was mesmerized by the language and depth of each character. It certainly presented a different perspective on the slave trade and slave relationships with their captors.
The fact that this was taken from a real life Belle is even more enlightening because so many of our (Blacks or African Americans/ Mulattoes) stories have not been told or told accurately and in such beautiful detail against the back drop of a dysfunctional wealthy European family.
I enjoyed it very much and can't wait to share it with my students this fall.
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This being the 20th Friday of 2014 it means I have seen a minimum of 20 new movies and “Belle” without a doubt is, so far, the best movie of the year. It combines a beautiful love story with a realistic look at the society of that time plus a law suit that could change history. “Belle” is based on a true story.
There are 3 main story lines in the film, each of equal importance, so to say one is the main story is misleading. The first introduced story is that of an illegitimate daughter, Dido Elizabeth Belle, (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) of a white British naval officer, (Mathew Goode) and a Negro woman who dies when Dido is still a child. The father, Sir John Lindsay, acknowledges the child as his and brings her to his uncle Lord Mansfield (Tom Wilkinson) and aunt Lady Mansfield (Emily Watson) who are already raising another niece Elizabeth (Sarah Gadon). Dido and Elizabeth are treated as equals by their uncle and aunt but not by society.
We see that Dido will have a substantial dowry from her father and Elizabeth will have none, it is the latter who gets many privileges while the latter, strictly because of being a mulatto, cannot enjoy a dinner with guests but can join the company and that is just a minor consequence of society of that time---the 18th century.
Another story line involves Lord Mansfield, as the Chief Justice of England and Wales, having to rule in the Zong massacre case that could change the course of slavery and bringing it to an end or continue what the British Empire has always done and is accepted as the right of the privileged.
The third story line is of the love affair between a vicar’s son, John Davinier (Sam Reid) studying the law and Dido.
Okay, full disclosure--I am a cry baby and couldn’t stop crying the last 30 minutes of the film!
Like most British films every part is cast perfectly from Miranda Richardson who will forget color when it comes to ensuring her sons (Tom Felton and James Norton) future to Penelope Wilton as the ‘old maid’ aunt who is a governess to the girls.
While Sam Reid shines as one of many of Dido’s suitors it is Gugu Mbatha-Raw who is definitely the breakout star and there is no justice if she doesn’t win many awards for this film. Aside from beauty, eyes that reflect everything she is feeling and the absolutely mesmerizing way she holds herself she will not fail to touch you.
Only the basic facts of Dido’s life are known--be sure to stay for the credits and what happened to the people involved--the director Amma Asante who wrote the script based on a screenplay by Misan **** makes an almost perfect picture.
THIS IS A MUST SEE MOVIE AND YOU MUST SEE GUGU MBATHA-RAW!
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Historical romance. Some terribly nice people with modern attitudes run up against the social and racial norms of the 18th centuy and some quite nasty people. The costumes, sets and young actors all look great. The emotional tap is turned way up to gushing and it delivers exactly what you're expecting, like a hot bath after a long day.
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Gugu Mbatha-Raw's screen debut as Dido Belle is impressive amidst the beginning of the end of slavery in Britain. If only Belle featured a tighter script and deeper focus on society.
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Production Company
DJ Films,
Isle of Man Film,
British Film Institute (BFI),
Metrol Technology,
Pinewood Studios
Release Date May 2, 2014
Duration 1 h 40 m
Rating PG
Awards
Image Awards (NAACP)
• 2 Wins & 5 Nominations
Black Reel Awards
• 1 Win & 5 Nominations
Women Film Critics Circle Awards
• 1 Win & 4 Nominations
