Lepidopterism and lesbianism abound in Peter Strickland’s new feature, THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY. Both are treated with near equal screentime, but it’s the ritual sado-masochist relationship between Cynthia and Evelyn that will draw more attention than their fascination with butterflies and moths.
The Duke of Burgundy is a rather attractive and quite rare little springtime butterfly, mostly found in the South of England – and the colour palette for this film seems to have drawn inspiration from its orange and brown wing patterns. The setting is a vine covered villa on the edge of some spooky woodland, which would not seem out of place in a film like Luca Guadagnino’s I AM LOVE (were it not for the fact everyone speaks English, but dresses like they’re in the 1970s). One can only hazard a guess, though, at the location and the era, as there’s a strangely fantastical, out-of-time sense pervading the film which makes it hard to pin down (ok, no more lepidopterist jokes).
It’s a brilliantly bonky and tender study of the dynamics of a relationship…
A maid and mistress relationship is introduced between the central protagonists. This is quickly revealed as more of a domination and subordination role between the two women, who are quite obviously in a relationship and enjoy kinking things up a bit. The fluidity of these roles, and the constant subversion of audience expectation towards the couple, are fascinating to watch. From the opening scene of the film, the characters bring to mind Nicolas Roeg’s 1990 adaptation of Roald Dahl’s THE WITCHES. Cynthia and Evelyn both have an Angelica Huston look about them, and what with the black capes, black hats, autumnal woodland setting and all the moths, the film is clearly proud of the association that witchcraft and lesbianism share. These witchy tropes add an element to the relationship that is distinctly darker than, for instance, that which Adele and Emma share in BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOUR.
Produced by Rook Films, who were last seen releasing Ben Wheatley’s A FIELD IN ENGLAND (Wheatley is co-producer on this film), this film will quickly garner a cult status amongst the cineaste population of the UK. It’s a brilliantly bonky and tender study of the dynamics of a relationship, that manages to also be unnerving and filled with as many, if not more moths onscreen per minute than THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (but without any of the nasty serial killing going on). It’s also part of the Official Competition at this year’s BFI London Film Festival, so there’s a strong chance it could be walking away with a smattering of awards in a few days’ time.
httpvh://youtu.be/BJI6QduAey0