Vanity Fair [WS]

Director: Mira Nair

Overview

"William Makepeace Thackeray's witty assessment of the British class system, as seen through the experiences of one young woman, is brought to the screen with some serious star power in this period comedy drama. Becky Sharp (Reese Witherspoon) is a bright

Product Details

Release Date:	08/22/2006
UPC:	0025192500121
Original Release:	2004
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	UNIVERSAL STUDIOS
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:21:00
Sales rank:	49,195

Special Features

The Women Behind Vanity Fair: the predominantly female cast and crew reveal how they flawlessly portrayed women of the time in London; Director's commentary: Mira Nair shares her unique vision and personal inspiration in this insightful discussion; Deleted scenes; Welcome to Vanity Fair: a behind-the-scenes look at bringing this timeless story to the big screen

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Reese Witherspoon	Becky Sharp
James Purefoy	Rawdon Crawley
Rhys Ifans	William Dobbin
Romola Garai	Amelia Sedley
Eileen Atkins	Miss Matilda Crawley
Jim Broadbent	Mr. Osborne
Bob Hoskins	Sir Pitt Crawley
Tony Maudsley	Joseph Sedley
Gabriel Byrne	The Marquess of Steyne
Geraldine McEwan	Lady Southdown
John Franklyn-Robbins	Mr. Sedley
Deborah Findlay	Mrs. Sedley
Douglas Hodge	Pitt Crawley
Angelica Mandy	Young Becky
Roger Lloyd Pack	Francis Sharp
Ruth Sheen	Miss Pinkerton
Kate Fleetwood	Miss Pinkerton's Crone
Lillette Dubey	Ms. Green,Ms. Green
Paul Bazely	Biju
Charlie Beall	Gambler
David Sterne	Queen's Crawley Mail Coach Driver
Meg Wynn Owen	Lady Crawley
Georgina Edmonds	Young Rose Crawley,Rose Crawley
Emilie Richardson	Young Celia Crawley
Tim Preece	Horrocks
Natasha Little	Lady Jane Sheepshanks
Kathryn Drysdale	Rhoda Swartz
Kelly Hunter	Lady Steyne,Maria Osborne
Camilla Rutherford	Lady Gaunt
Alexandra Staden	Lady George
Helen Coker	Firkin
Tim Seely	Doctor
Paul Bentall	Coalman
Sean McKenzie	Auctioneer
John Woodvine	Lord Bareacres
Barbara Leigh-Hunt	Lady Bareacres
Nicholas Jones	Lord Darlington
Sian Thomas	Lady Darlington,`Slave Dance' Dancer
Trevor Cooper	General Tufto
Brian Pettifer	Mr. Raggles
Steven Elder	Curzon Street Footman
Gabrielle Lloyd	Nursemaid
William Melling	Rawdy
Daniel Hay	Georgy
Niall O'Brien	Mr. Moss
Anu Gopalakrishnan	Desert Beauty
Tom Beard	Officer
Gledis Cimque	Celia Crawley
Thomas Grant	Little Pitt
Jonny Phillips	Mr. Wenham
Richard McCabe	The King
Virendra Saxena	Coventry Island Man,Coventry Island Man
Bruce Mackinnon	Casino Boy
Matthew Horne	Casino Boy,Casino Boy
Timothy Bentinck	German Official
Andrew Price	Casino Stranger
Tom Sturridge	Young Georgy
Chloe Treend	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Stefane Sauer	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Nicole Forbes	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Amanda Courtney Davies	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Louise Weekley	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Lene Langgaard	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Sarah Mogg	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Tracey Lushington	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Sandy Borne	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Stephanie McMillan	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Mari Baade	`Slave Dance' Dancer
K. Knight	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Sylvano Clarke	`Slave Dance' Dancer
Jonathan Rhys Meyers	George Osborne
Megan Owen	Lady Crawley
Andrew Shepard Price	Casino Stranger
Nicolas Dodd	Conductor
Mychael Danna	Composer

Technical Credits

Mark Skeet

Matthew Faulk

Julian Fellowes

Julian Fellows

Andy Bradford	Stunts
Howard Cohen	Executive Producer
Pippa Cross	Executive Producer
Janette Day	Producer
Nrinder Dhudwar	Stunts
Donna Gigliotti	Producer
Mark Holt	Special Effects
Lydia Dean Pilcher	Producer
Mary Selway	Casting
Mark Skeet	Screenwriter
Matthew Faulk	Screenwriter
Julian Fellowes	Screenwriter
Loveleen Tandan	Casting
Jonathan Lynn	Executive Producer
Arjun Burji	Key Grip
Drew Kunin	Sound Mixer
Julian Fellows	Screenwriter

Scene Index

Side #1 --
1. Main Titles [1:38]
2. Miss Pinkerton's Academy [6:29]
3. Taste of Chilli [8:06]
4. Blessing in Disguise [7:03]
5. Amusing Miss Crawley [8:51]
6. Social Climber [12:16]
7. Vows and Vanity [8:19]
8. Imprudent Marriage [9:58]
9. A Groom's Indiscretion [11:51]
10. A Time of War [8:25]
11. Bearing the Burden [10:53]
12. Last Will [4:32]
13. Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal [11:04]
14. Queen of the Night [6:46]
15. Intimate Betrayal [6:19]
16. A Love Unreturned [6:57]
17. The Beautiful Mrs. Crawley [5:42]
18. End Titles [4:23]

Menu

Side #1 --
Scenes
Languages
Spoken Language: English
Spoken Language: Français
Spoken Language: Audio Commentary With Director Mira Nair
Captioned for the Hearing Impaired: English
Subtitles: Español
Subtitles: Français
Subtitles: None
Bonus Materials
Deleted Scenes
Welcome to Vanity Fair
The Women Behind Vanity Fair
Audio Commentary With Director Mira Nair: On
Audio Commentary With Director Mira Nair: Off
Play

Editorial Reviews

William Thackeray’s scathing indictment of 19th-century British society has been rendered on the screen before -- most memorably as Becky Sharp (1935), an early Technicolor film -- but never with the flair Indian director Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding) brings to this lavishly appointed version. This is the story of Becky Sharp (Reese Witherspoon): The poor but ambitious daughter of an alcoholic painter, Becky gains access to London’s smart set by dint of self-education and the friendship of upper-class Amelia Sedley (Romola Garai). Steadily ascending the social ladder, Becky weds Rawdon Crawley (James Purefoy), whose family disinherits him for marrying a commoner. That setback might deter most women, but not the fiercely determined Becky, who maintains her lofty ambition and, eventually, suffers for it. At first blush, Witherspoon seems an unlikely choice for this role, but her natural charm and girlish mien make this endearing actress quite convincing as the cunning manipulator whose will and personality enable her to rise above her station. And while Witherspoon anchors the film, Gabriel Byrne, as the enigmatic Lord Steyne, and Bob Hoskins as Pitt Crawley, the shabby peer with whom Becky begins her journey to the top, deliver memorable character turns. Nair occasionally drifts from the story’s focal point, lavishing footage on colorful but relatively minor figures in Thackeray’s novel, but she captures both the essence of his biting satire and the flavor of the period with a perspicacity that’s unusual in contemporary filmmakers.