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The Duchess

The Duchess

Drama · History · Romance · 2008

A chronicle of the life of 18th century aristocrat Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, who was reviled for her extravagant political and personal life.

Movie details

The Duchess

“Based on the incredible true story.”

2008 Drama · History · Romance 1h 50m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.0 / 10

Community rating

A chronicle of the life of 18th century aristocrat Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, who was reviled for her extravagant political and personal life.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Duchess?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Saul Dibb

Written by

Jeffrey Hatcher · Anders Thomas Jensen · Saul Dibb

Keira Knightley

Keira Knightley

Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire

Ralph Fiennes

Ralph Fiennes

Duke of Devonshire

Charlotte Rampling

Charlotte Rampling

Lady Spencer

Dominic Cooper

Dominic Cooper

Charles Grey

Hayley Atwell

Hayley Atwell

Bess Foster

Simon McBurney

Simon McBurney

Charles Fox

Aidan McArdle

Aidan McArdle

Richard Brinsley Sheridan

Court is in session

Put The Duchess on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.