Lies, deceit, blackmail, and raunchy rendezvous mixed with a Nabokovian twist set the tone in Richard Eyre’s Notes on a Scandal, out in theatres on Christmas Day.

The movie, based on a novel by Zoe Heller, tells the story through the eyes of Barbara Covett (Judi Dench) a lonely, soon-to-be retiree who falls for new-teacher-on the block Sheba Hart (Cate Blanchett).

Their seemingly innocuous friendship appears to be a classic case of a veteran teacher taking a rookie instructor under her wing, showing her the ins and outs of a school plagued by under privileged students.

But things go terribly astray when Barbara discovers Sheba is having an affair with her 15-year-old art student (Andrew Simpson).

Barbara threatens to disclose her scandalous secret but changes her tune after Sheba delivers a candid confession.

Barbara convinces herself that Sheba will see her as a saving grace rather than an enemy and eventually the two will live happily ever after.

She records every moment in one of an interminable collection of notebooks stacked on her bookshelves.

I’m not sure what I found more disturbing about Richard Eyre’s picture – the salacious
acts between a teacher and her 15-year-old student or a delusional spinster who’s obsessed by her colleague-turned-confidante.

Dench delivers a convincingly superb performance as a regimented teacher who suffers from severe loneliness and borderline insanity.

Her astute portrayal as a lunatic doesn’t come as a surprise considering her (arguable) status as a living film legend.

If any actress can deliver a range of performances it’s Dench.

Take her roles as Queen Elizabeth (Shakespeare in Love), a reputable novelist (Iris) or M in the James Bond spy thrillers.

Cate Blanchett’s overall performance wasn’t as impressive simply because it wasn’t as believable.

Sheba’s married to Richard (Bill Nighy), a lecturer 20 years her senior. They have two children, Polly (Juno Temple) and Ben (Max Lewis), who has Down syndrome.

But she comes across as an older sister instead of a young mother.
The viewer can understand why Sheba snags the exciting prospect of copulating with a testosterone-filled teenager.

The vivacious carefree days of her youth have dissolved into a thankless routine that accompanies a tedious marriage.

However, Blanchett’s performance fails to transmit the sentient of boredom and loneliness that caused her character to walk off the straightened arrow.

The best way to describe this movie is Coronation St. meets Lolita and intersects with Misery.

3* out of 5*






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