Shekhar Kapur

With a better pacing than the first one and a more specific romance plot that few other stories could do, this is the rare case where I find the sequel slightly superior to the original. I'm still feeling a lack of "oomph" as far as the plot-driving intrigues go -- there are some fun, clever twists here (the unloaded pistol in particular), but the payoffs are so muted and passed so nonchalantly that they never really get to shine. Decent fun for idle historical fiction enthusiasts like myself, but sadly never particularly memorable.… (meer)

The film is carried by splendid actors, but the plot feels oddly thin and surface only. To my tastes, at least, the intrigues that drive the film are underplayed and underdeveloped, with its payoffs feeling oddly subdued when they arrive, while the fairly standard romance plot is slow and largely uneventful. The film has some great moments, but they are much too far between. That said, the ending lands very solidly -- as everything else in this film, in large part due to Blanchett's impressive performance.… (meer)