Such a frustrating disappointment

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Fresh and Exciting

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Barbara played splendidly,as a young initiator , lovely.

Friendless, bitter history teacher at a bustling British high school is at first appalled by--and then strangely drawn to--a new arrival: the lovely, earthy young art teacher who wants everyone to fall in love with her. The flirtatious nature of this ethereal newcomer draws a strapping 15-year-old student into the picture, a sticky situation of which the spinster becomes well aware, eventually using the turn of events to her advantage. For the better part of an hour, director Richard Eyre hypnotically weaves an intriguing web of mismatched lives intersecting within secret complicity and, ultimately, tragedy. Working from Zoe Heller's novel "What Was She Thinking: Notes on a Scandal", screenwriter Patrick Marber creates an absorbing whirlpool of emotional characters and private feelings, while Judi Dench's elderly Barbara alternately seethes and smiles like a Cheshire cat. Both Dench and Cate Blanchett are amazing, however Eyre allows a few of the supporting players too much slack, and the melodrama which takes over in the final third becomes overwrought as a result. Still quite good, with a dangerously dreamy ambiance sweeping its dueling divas up in a cloud of conflict and little gold stars. *** from ****

Even though the setup is rather formulaic, NOTES ON A SCANDAL is a well-executed story about secrets and manipulative relationships, while also slipping in some commentary on gender and class. Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett star as high school teachers who become friends when the former finds about the latter's illicit relationship with a student. However, Judi Dench's character has motives of her own that are gradually revealed as the film progresses. For all of the film's trappings as this "friend becomes a stalker" type of story, Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett's performances anchor it in reality and give it a classy feeling that a lot of other similar films lack. I must say that I completely bought Judi Dench as an aging schoolteacher. Cate Blanchett also did a nice job in a role that I haven't really seen her play before, and a degree of vulnerability that she didn't really show in something like LORD OF THE RINGS. Seeing as her character gets caught doing something rather stupid, it would be easy to just dismiss her character as unlikeable from the get-go, but the way the plot develops actually makes her quite sympathetic (at least compared to Judi Dench's character). If there's anything I can find fault with, it's that the plot really doesn't aspire to be anything other than a melodramatic thriller. Thankfully, the performances and overall execution of the material, along with the direction and cinematography lend it some much-needed credibility. I also loved Philip Glass' score. Overall, NOTES ON A SCANDAL is quite predictable, but it sets itself apart by its pedigree in front of, and behind, the camera.

"Notes on a Scandal" is one of my all-time favorite films. In my mind, it's perfection. Directed by Richard Eyre, and adapted by Patrick Marber from the novel by Zoe Heller, it's a film that I can never get enough of. It's as sensational and (pun intended) scandalous as a soap opera but is written with great intelligence and nuance, as well as features first-class acting. This London-set story of a lonely, bitter high-school history teacher, Barbara Covett (Judi Dench), and her twisted friendship with the school's fragile yet deviant new art teacher, Sheba Hart (Cate Blanchett), has all sorts of layers to plumb.It was nominated for four Oscars, after its 2006 release, and one of them was for Marber's Adapted Screenplay. It was very well-deserved and he probably should've won. Eyre directs the film well, striking a balance between a minimalism that shows his theatre roots and a subtle gift for keeping the pacing alive. Yet, the true foundation of the film is the script. "Notes on a Scandal" is not only wildly entertaining and gripping but full of classic dialogue. Marber is, after all, the same man who gave us the line "Lying is the most fun a girl can have without taking her clothes off, but it's better if you do" from his play/film "Closer." So, there's not only zingers here, mostly through Dench's impeccably delivered, acerbic voiceovers, that will make you howl but evocative lines that will make you think. For example: "It takes courage to recognize the real from the convenient." It's quite rare to see a story that is not only woman-centered but so unsentimental and brutally honest in its depiction of said women. In this, Marber sticks faithfully to Heller's novel. Barbara and Sheba are both fleshed out in three-dimensional ways, given sympathetic qualities at the same time that their unlikable, appalling, or absurd traits aren't glossed over. Some reviewers seem to have taken issue with Sheba, in particular, and why we aren't given a clear answer as to why this bright, attractive, happily married woman would sleep with her 15-year-old student, Steven Connolly (Andrew Simpson). But, I think that's the essential point. It's all too complicated to sum up so neatly and logically.Blanchett, who was Oscar-nominated for her performance, does a fantastic job at playing Sheba's ambiguity and complexity. She is full of yearning, vulnerability, and confusion, while also keeping us guessing, as well. Sheba has to be as much of a mystery as she is a bleeding heart and Blanchett nails this balance very well. Bill Nighy shines in his smaller role as Sheba's husband and Simpson brings a roguish, boyish charm that makes him dangerously appealing.And then there's Dench. The Great Dame received an Oscar nod for this role and many would agree that she should have won (no offense Helen Mirren). She does so much with Barbara. First off, she's utterly hilarious, dishing out dry English wit like nobody's business. Second off, she's appropriately unsettling and horrifying, not holding back from the character's creepy, controlling nature. Yet, she is also deeply empathetic. The more the film progresses, the more you forget Barbara is such a "monster". The loneliness and need that Dench grounds her in is superb.Now, Philip Glass was also Oscar-nominated for his Original Score, which I have to mention, as it seems to be quite polarizing. I personally loved it. A bit over-the-top? Yes. But, it adds to the juiciness of the movie. It kept me on the edge of my seat, in certain moments, especially during a climactic showdown between Barbara and Sheba. It helped make the film seem like an actual psychological thriller, not just a drama."Notes on a Scandal" is a movie you truly experience. One minute you're laughing, the next you're gasping, and the next you're feeling deeply for two people who you might otherwise simply judge.