This is a good example of what a solid ensemble of strong women actors, coupled with an equally strong story and a creative style of direction (from Sarah Gavron) can do to illustrate really well an historical scenario. Inspired by the sparingly used Meryl Streep as Emmeline Pankhurst, this film depicts the tale of a group of women who decide that they have had enough of being put upon because of their sex, and who put their liberty on the line with a campaign of civil disobedience. The central character is "Maud" (Carey Mulligan) married to the nice but rather ineffective "Sonny" (Ben Whishaw). When she joins what he sees as the rabble-rousers, he chucks her out of their family home and denies her access to their son. She must now take up lodgings with other, like-minded women and take up the cudgels for their suffrage. It is very wordy, the dialogue is actually intrusive at times. We can see what is happening, and we can use our own emotions to empathise - we don't need quite the running commentary we are provided with here, but that said this is still a potent mix of drama and fact that demonstrates the multitude of factors that influenced the politics of the day. Not least that it wasn't just men who wanted to deny women the vote - there were plenty of women who also felt the activity of these "radicals" was downright un-ladylike trouble-making. The film looks good, the attention to details and the costumes add a richness (and, on occasion, quite an effective stuffiness) to the proceedings, and though I am really not a great fan of POV cinematography, it does lend an intimacy as we get into the thick of things. It's probably worth saying that this film really only deals with the start of the struggle for emancipation - not in a ball and chain sense, but of a rebellion against illiberalism of sex, faith, sexuality that is still ongoing a century after this is set. A touch melodramatic at times, but still the contributions of Anne-Marie Duff and a slightly over-cooked Helena Bonham Carter all serve to present us with an entertaining and plausible drama that is enjoyable and informative to watch.
