It’s true that Nicole Kidman doesn’t fare too well playing Hollywood (and actual) royalty in Grace of Monaco.
But really, she didn’t stand a chance.
Similar to Naomi Watts in the abysmal Diana, Kidman signed onto a film filled with wooden, clunky dialogue. Add to that, its frustratingly messy direction and sweeping, distracting score and Grace of Monaco comes across as a poor melodrama instead of a gripping political tale.
As most are aware, Grace Kelly was a Hollywood actress-turned-princess who married Monaco’s Prince Rainier III (played by Tim Roth) in 1956.
Her life came to a tragic end in a car crash in 1982, but this is not mentioned in the film, which instead concentrates on a specific period in the early 1960s.
Grace of Monaco tells of the “truth” behind the fairytale, that Kelly was having marriage trouble and considering returning to Hollywood to appear in a new Hitchcock film, Marnie. Meanwhile, political tensions between France and Monaco were reaching breaking point.
Princess Grace’s three children by Rainier have denounced the film as “needlessly glamourised” and “riddled” with inaccuracies and fiction.
Perhaps in response, a title appears in the opening of the film stating it is a fictional account inspired by real events.
Directed by Olivier Dahan and written by Arash Amel, this is one big mess. The direction by Dahan, who helmed La Vie en Rose, feels awkward and all over the place, with annoying wavering close-ups and baffling unnecessary shots.
What’s more, you just don’t care about any of the characters.
Scenes that are meant to be emotionally rousing, are instead just puzzling or unintentionally funny.
Frank Langella comes off best as a priest and Grace’s confidante, but others, such as Parker Posey’s dour lady in waiting or Roger Ashton Griffiths as Alfred Hitchcock, don’t feel at all realistic. Nor do the plot’s schemes or betrayals.
This is definitely not Kidman’s best role. While the costumes are lovely, her breathy, teary portrayal is neither credible, nor transformative.
Grace of Monaco held a lot of potential. It could have been an intriguing portrayal of the life and politics surrounding the iconic Hollywood princess. But this cheesy film never manages to achieve such heights.
* Grace of Monaco is released in New Zealand tomorrow.
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– AAP
