Damsels in Distress
Dir: Whit Stillman
2011
****
Damsels in Distress is a love letter to the decadents and literature of the early 19th century, there is certainly an air of Oscar Wilde about it, albeit with contemporary social issues explored as well as age old problems experienced in youth. It is a celebration of the sincerely superficial, the character of Violet (played brilliantly by Greta Gerwig) being the best example of this as a masterful governess who is only spurred on by the fact she is knowingly hypocritical and self-aware. Violet has to be one of my favourite new characters in film for a very long time, probably since Max Fischer. It's silly, it's nonsense, it's wonderfully superficial and there is nothing wrong with that from time to time. It was a little hard to like at first but once it reached its stride it was thoroughly enjoyable and the lovely ending was the cherry on the top. Good stuff, don't over think it, enjoy it.