Review of Lady Chatterley's Lover

One of literature's most controversial and secretly read novels ever is given a somewhat shallow, but surprisingly faithful and opulent, treatment in this dewy film. Kristel plays a young woman of high social standing whose husband Briant is badly wounded during WWI. He cannot walk nor, more importantly, make love, and the passionless, lonely world Kristel inhabits on their expansive, but bleak estate begins to take its toll on her. Briant encourages her to take a lover, an idea that she finds unpleasant until one day she chances upon the gamesman (Clay) giving himself a soapy wash behind his shelter. Fascinated by what she's seen, yet aware that he is of another class and manner, they embark on a tenuous friendship that eventually turns sexual. Kristel is physically reawakened and finds much solace and pleasure in Clay's company, sexually and otherwise. However, her relationship with Briant suffers when he suspects that she's done what he asked of her, but with someone far beneath them in the social strata. An overbearing nurse (Mitchell) only adds to the estrangement, taking on a maternal role with Briant and wavering between wishing happiness for Kristel while beginning to take her place at the same time. Kristel, not someone who's ever been known for her incredible acting skills, is decent here if a bit vacant at times. She's on hand primarily because of her exotic looks and her lack of modesty about performing nude. She's undeniably striking and does manage to perform several scenes with freshness and commitment. Briant overacts tremendously, not aided at all by two very obnoxious eyebrows, and plays his role with a lack of dimension. He's annoying, nasty and condescending practically all the time, taking most of the chances for compassion or empathy away. Clay is wonderful. Like Kristel, he was never one to shy away from abandoning his clothes, but he also presents a multi-faceted character, one who knows his station in life, but can't help but wish for more. His bathing scene is a real eye-opener. Mitchell is hard to read, perhaps intentionally, but certainly excels at playing the controlling and overstepping nursemaid aspects of her character. Considering the director and producers (and cast), this could have been a lot worse. A decent atmosphere is established thanks to a truly magnificent house filled with many lovely furnishings and with sizeable grounds. Considering the budget, the makers accomplished a lot with a little. Costuming leans toward the impressive too, with only an occasional misstep (Lady Chatterley in pants?!) Though the film does away with some of the supporting characters of the novel and glosses over some of the deeper aspects of it, this remains a pretty valid representation of the story and manages at least a bit of suspense for those who don't know the outcome. This was a staple of pay cable television in the early 80's, affording many folks to pore over the attractive bodies of it's stars in their extended and frank love scenes.