Whatever quantity of soap froths up Thomas Vinterberg's presentation of Thomas Hardy's novel, it does nothing to fade out the lush colors that stain his gorgeous depiction of the author's English countryside. A lean and dimpled Carey Mulligan plays Bathsheba Everdene, a woman comfortable with solitude who still finds herself courted by a rugged farmer (Matthias Schoenaerts), a wealthy bachelor (Michael Sheen), and a handsome soldier (Tom Sturridge). All that attention gets in the way of her effort to carve out her own life for her own self as the head of an inherited estate, and yet...well, a girl likes to be noticed. And maybe befriended. And maybe... There is a certain softening of the Hardy hammer here: tragedies abound, but the story tends to move on before the pain has time to register. And while Bathsheba's pluck and spunk are obvious and admirable, her romantic maneuvers sometimes threaten to spill over from mysterious into simply maddening. (2015) — Matthew Lickona
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