The Draughtsman's Contract
Release date: 1982-11-12
Votes: 256
Genres: History, Mystery, Comedy
R. Neville, a brash young draftsman, is hired to make a dozen landscape illustrations at the estate of Mr Herbert and his wife Virginia. Aside from monetary compensation, the arrangement includes a sexual liaison offered to Neville by Virginia while her estranged husband is away. But when the murdered body of Mr Herbert is discovered at the estate, mysterious clues found in Neville's drawings point to the identity of the killer.
Reviews
CinemaSerf
Anthony Higgins is artist "Neville" who attracts the eye of the unhappily married aristocrat "Mrs. Herbert" (Janet Suzman). She concocts a plan to have her wicked way with him by commissioning him to sketch twelve aspects of their modest stately home in return for £8 per drawing and unlimited "access" to her person. When "Mr. Herbert" has to go away, that proves convenient for all and their contract is agreed and applied. Midway through his task, her daughter "Mrs. Talmann" (Anne-Louise Lambert) approaches our virile artist with another proposal. She is saddled with the foppish "Talmann" (Hugh Fraser) who would appear to be no use whatsoever in begetting an heir. Her deal with "Neville" however is more on her terms - and he thinks he is in clover. Is he though, or is he being played buy one or both of these women - and where has "Mr. Herbert" got to through all these shenanigans? Peter Greenaway gives this a sort of Regency look to it, the costumes - especially the wigs - are exaggerated to fully illustrate the vacuousness of their petty but privileged existence and there is some humour that just about stays on the satirical side of bawdy! Suzman is great, as is Lambert and though I found Higgins just a bit weak to sustain the title role, this is still a great and entertaining ensemble effort well complimented by Michael Nyman's lively and Handel-esque score. Forty years on, it has lost little of it's power to ridicule and shame, is pithily written and is well worth a watch.
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