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Main article: The Painted Veil (2006 film)
The Painted Veil
Directed by John Curran
Produced by Edward Norton
Naomi Watts
Bob Yari
Sara Colleton
Jean-François Fonlupt
Written by Screenplay:
Ron Nyswaner
Novel:
W. Somerset Maugham
Starring Naomi Watts
Edward Norton
Liev Schreiber
Music by Alexandre Desplat
Cinematography Stuart Dryburgh
Editing by Alexandre de Franceschi
Distributed by Warner Independent Pictures
Release date(s) December 20, 2006
Running time 125 min.
Country United States
Language English
Budget $19 million
Gross revenue $22,586,391
Official website
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

The Painted Veil is a 2006 American period drama film directed by John Curran and starring Naomi Watts and Edward Norton. The film a dysfunctional British marriage placed in 1920s China during the Chinese nationalist movement and a cholera epidemic. The Painted Veil is the third film adaptation based on the 1925 novel of the same name by author W. Somerset Maugham, following The Painted Veil (1934) and The Seventh Sin (1957). The Painted Veil had a limited release on December 10, 2006, gradually expanding its showings and ultimately grossing $22,586,391 worldwide.

Contents

[edit] Plot

Kitty Garstin (Watts) is a pretty, shallow young woman from a well-to-do London family, under pressure from her parents to find a husband. Soon after she meets him at a party, she marries Dr. Walter Fane (Norton), an earnest, socially awkward doctor on leave from China, even though she does not love him. The Fanes move to Hong Kong, where Dr. Fane is stationed in a government lab studying infectious diseases. Soon bored, Kitty meets Charles Townsend (Schreiber), a married British diplomat who is a serial womanizer, and has an affair with him. When Walter finds out, he gives her an ultimatum: come with him to the Chinese interior to assist with a cholera epidemic relief effort for which he has volunteered, or face a divorce on the grounds of her adultery. Kitty turns to Townsend to persuade him to divorce his wife and marry her. When Townsend, to Kitty's surprise but not Walter's, refuses to leave his wife for Kitty, she chooses to travel inland with her husband. At first, Walter and Kitty barely speak to each other. Kitty is miserable, with nothing to do. She decides to volunteer at a local orphanage run by French nuns, which her husband visits often outside of his lab work. In this setting Kitty begins to see her apparently-cold husband in a new light, as she learns what a selfless and caring person he can be. The Fanes' marriage blossoms into love. She grows to care about the children at the orphanage, while Walter tends to the sick and looks for a way to stop the spread of the epidemic despite resistance from the populace and the local warlord in the politically torn China of the 1920s. After their reconciliation Kitty learns she is pregnant, but is unsure whether Charlie or Walter is the father. Just as the local cholera problem is coming under control, diseased refugees from elsewhere pour into the area, forcing Walter to set up a refugee camp outside town. Walter contracts cholera and dies, devastating Kitty, who returns to London. Five years later, walking with her young son Walter, Kitty runs into Townsend on the street. Townsend makes small talk with them both for a short while and begins to suggest a meeting with Kitty. However, Kitty rejects his overtures and walks away.

[edit] Production

[edit] Development

Prior to 1999, producer Sara Colleton sought to develop a script for The Painted Veil. The script was frequently redrafted, being written to be close to the source material, to take liberties with the source material, and to create a feminist version. Actor Edward Norton became involved with the project in 1999.[1] Norton explained his attraction to the project, "It's very much a story about people getting beyond the worst in themselves and figuring out how to look at each other honestly, forgive each other for their failings and get to a better place... When I read it, I was very affected by it because in it I saw my own failings."[2] The actor suggested casting Naomi Watts for the role of Kitty, which did not happen until Watts proved herself a bankable star with her performances in Mulholland Drive (2001) and 21 Grams (2003). When Watts joined the project, she recommended director John Curran, with whom she had collaborated on the 2004 film We Don't Live Here Anymore. The director's expertise with We Don't Live Here Anymore convinced Watts and Norton that he would be capable of depicting the dysfunctional relationship in The Painted Veil.[1] The project began development at producer Bob Yari's Stratus Films, but when Stratus executive Mark Gill left to start Warner Independent Pictures, he brought the project with him. Gill began production of the film in partnership with Yari. Gill was later fired before the film's completion by Warner Bros. production president Jeff Robinov, which later led to the film's marketing difficulties.[3]

Yari and Warner Independent Pictures collaborated with a Chinese partner who was granted approval over the script and the finished film. The partnership permitted a budget of $19 million for The Painted Veil. When the Chinese production company reviewed the film, it was unhappy with the depiction of the Chinese uprising and the cholera victims, requesting for the scenes to be revised. Norton and Curran expressed concerns that their studio accepted the censorship too quickly, with the director threatening to remove his name from the film. Their pressure resulted in limiting cuts from the film to only 38 seconds' worth.[3]

[edit] Writing

Screenwriter Ron Nyswaner and actor Edward Norton collaborated on the screenplay for the film. The 1925 novel by author W. Somerset Maugham was considered one-dimensional, so Norton altered the story so the character Walter Fane had a more enhanced role. The character was also rewritten to make his peace with his wife Kitty, leading to them falling in love with each other. Norton explained, "I like to think that we didn't change the book so much as liberate it. We just imagined it on a slightly bigger scale, and made external some of what is internal in the novel." Norton described the novel as "almost unremittingly bleak" and believed that the author had thought that British colonials were unlikely to change. The actor explained of the change to the story, "I went on the assumption that if you were willing to allow Walter and Kitty to grow... you had the potential for a love story that was both tragic and meaningful."[1] Norton considered The Painted Veil to be in the spirit of films like Out of Africa (1985) and The English Patient (1996), seeing it as "rooted in really looking at the way that men and women hurt each other".[2]

Director John Curran suggested setting the film during 1925, when the events of the Chinese nationalist movement were taking place. Norton, who had studied Chinese history at Yale University, agreed with the suggestion. To detail scenes from the time period, Curran, Norton, and screenwriter Ron Nyswaner relied on excerpts from historian Jonathan Spence's 1969 book To Change China, which covered the inept efforts of Western advisers during these years. Norton described the character Walter Fane served as "the proxy for the arrogance of Western rationalism", explaining about Fane's confusion at the lack of gratitude for his help, "Walter means well, but he's the folly of empire, and that adds a whole new dimension to what happens in the story. It's a metaphor for the way empires get crushed."[1]

[edit] Filming

Filming took place on location in China. The director did not want to build a set for the cholera-stricken village, instead seeking out an untouched parcel of land in China. He found Huang Yao, which served as the location for the village. The director described the location, "Even the Chinese crew members were amazed at the place we found... It was like going back in time." According to Ron Nyswaner, half of the time was spent negotiating for the successful completion of the film, working against suggestions by "powerful people". The screenwriter spoke of the Chinese government's involvement, "In the script there was a prose description of some mountains as gloomy, and the government said, 'We don't have gloomy mountains here -- our mountains are joyous.'"[1]

[edit] Reception

[edit] Marketing

The film's post-production schedule was initially slated to conclude in late summer 2006, but did not finish until November. According to Laura Kim, the marketing and publicity head of Warner Independent Pictures, the delay slowed award and media recognition for the film. Other studios were duplicating DVDs of their films for awards organizations, so The Painted Veil was unable to get first priority in processing. When The Painted Veil experienced a limited release in the United States on December 20, 2006 in the cities Los Angeles and New York City, the meager marketing campaign for the film was criticized. The lack of attention caused a half dozen people associated with the film to complain about how Warner Independent Pictures was conducting the marketing campaign. Film critic Rex Reed of The New York Observer wrote, "Nobody can understand why Warner Independent Pictures is keeping this movie such a secret; it is filled with Oscar possibilities that should be shouted from the rooftops."[3]

The firing of Mark Gill, one of the initial producers of The Painted Veil who brought it to Warner Independent Pictures, was cited as a reason for the small scale of the film's marketing campaign. Director John Curran explained about the move to Warner Independent, "Any transition is not going to be ideal. When the guy who has gotten you on board is gone, you're kind of exposed." Others also criticized the studio for not providing a large enough marketing budget, pointing out that the previous year's Good Night, and Good Luck. had a more successful campaign with television and newspaper ads. The Painted Veil was eventually able to expand to 23 more markets on December 29, 2006 with additional cities in January 5, 2007. Warner Independent Pictures also hosted 80 screenings of The Painted Veil in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and London as well as various Hollywood guilds to promote the film.[3]

[edit] Box office performance

The Painted Veil initially had a limited release in four theaters in the United States on December 10, 2006, grossing $51,086 over the opening weekend. The film gradually expanded its showings in the United States and Canada, peaking at 287 theaters on the weekend of January 26, 2007.[4] The Painted Veil ultimately grossed $8,060,487 in the United States and Canada and $14,525,904 in other territories for a world wide total of $22,586,391.[5]

[edit] Critical reaction

On the film review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes, The Painted Veil has received a Fresh rating of 75% based on 133 reviews.[6] On the similar website Metacritic, the film has received a metascore of 69 out of 100 based on 33 reviews, considered generally favorable reviews.[7]

[edit] Awards and nominations

Composer Alexandre Desplat won the 2006 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score.[8] Desplat also won an award for Best Original Score from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association for both The Painted Veil and The Queen (2006).[9]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e Charles McGrath. "Another Encore for the Most Adaptable of Authors", The New York Times, 2006-12-10. 
  2. ^ a b Terry Armour. "Edward Norton concentrates his passion on performing", Chicago Tribune, 2006-12-30. 
  3. ^ a b c d John Horn. "Trying to Get People to See 'Veil'", Los Angeles Times, 2006-12-20. 
  4. ^ The Painted Veil (2006) - Weekend Box Office Results. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
  5. ^ The Painted Veil (2006). Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
  6. ^ The Painted Veil. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
  7. ^ Painted Veil, The (2006): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
  8. ^ The 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards (2007). Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
  9. ^ 2006 LAFCA Awards. Los Angeles Film Critics Association. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.

[edit] External links

[edit] Los Angeles Times (2)

[edit] Poughkeepsie Journal

[edit] Poughkeepsie Journal (2)

[edit] Links