Most period pieces deal with some royal drama or some military escapade, few look closely at the daily life of the less privileged of the time. But this film tackles that in a couple of ways.
It explores the life of a young woman who had no routes to prosperity, and did what she had to do to survive. It explores the many hazards of her path, from sex work to punishment and consequences of her lifestyle.
But it also attempts to provide a parallel to a man of that time, who has gifts that have yet to gain recognition. But he has more routes than she does. How their paths diverge is quite telling.
It also does a good job of period touches, the clothing and the manners. In fact, I had been aware of this series of prints while doing period clothing research. But I was unaware that there was a film that brought these to life. I sat and looked at the prints as the film played out. I thought it was interesting to have such great story and context for these prints, rather than just the snapshots of the 1730s that they had been to me. The filmmakers integrate the prints into the film and provide interesting historical details with them.
Anyway, it was rough in many ways--but very much worth the time.
