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Notes on a Scandal | 
 enlarge | Director: Richard Eyre
Actors: Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett, Tom Georgeson, Michael Maloney, Joanna Scanlan
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.98
Buy Used: $1.66
You Save: $18.32 (92%)
New (48) Used (92) from $1.66
Avg. Customer Rating:  164 reviews
Sales Rank: 2999
Format: Ac-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Dvd-video, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), French (Dubbed), Spanish (Dubbed)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 92
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: FOXD2243898D
UPC: 024543438915
EAN: 0024543438915
Theatrical Release Date: 2006
Release Date: April 17, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
A pottery teacher enters into an affair with one of her students causing upheaval in her personal & professional lives. Studio: Tcfhe Release Date: 03/04/2008 Starring: Judi Dench Cate Blanchett Run time: 121 minutes Rating: R
Amazon.com
Gold stars to all for this taut psychological thriller based on Zoe Heller's novel that that gets more insidiously twisted as it unfolds. Oscar-nominated for her chilling performance, Dame Judi Dench gives a master class as schoolteacher Barbara Covett, a frumpy, friendless, and flinty spinster who lives with her cat. A formidable presence, Barbara is standoffish with colleagues and not one for students to trifle with (not that they'd dare). Cate Blanchett, also an Oscar nominee and winner of several critics society awards for her impassioned performance, costars as Sheba Hart, the new, overwhelmed art teacher who first becomes enthrall to Barbara after she steps in to help Sheba discipline unruly students. Barbara cultivates a friendship, and insinuates herself into Sheba's chaotic life, which includes her older husband (Bill Nighy), teenage daughter, and a son with Down's syndrome. Then, Barbara catches the reckless Sheba in a compromising position with a 15-year-old student (Andrew Simpson). Seizing her opportunity, the calculating Barbara does not turn her in. Rather, she wants to "help" her. "She's the one I've been waiting for," she writes in the journals she meticulously keeps, and which provide, in voiceover, her corrosive commentary. This all sounds very Fatal Attraction, but no boiling rabbits, please; we're British. Philip Glass's Oscar-nominated score accentuates the growing menace. Though there is little in these characters to admire, (one would think GLAAD would have something to say about the predatory turn Barbara's character takes), Notes on a Scandal is a compelling tour-de-force for its Grade-A cast. --Donald Liebenson Notes on a Scandal Extras 
Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench on their characters in the film |
Beyond Notes on a Scandal 
Book to Movie Adaptations | 
More Cate Blanchett Films | 
What Was She Thinking? Notes on a Scandal: A Novel |
Stills from Notes on a Scandal
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| Customer Reviews: Read 159 more reviews...
 FINE SCANDAL January 8, 2009
A movie starring Dench promises to be a treat, and this one is no exception. Strongly recommended.
Subtle manipulation and obsession frame this drama December 25, 2008
This story of two intertwined characters who suffer in silence and are crumbling under their loneliness. Judy Dench and Cate Blanchett, two ordinarily strong characters unravel in a remarkably genuine and fascinating story of a flawed symbiotic relationship caused by an indiscretion based in the chasing of youth. The characters fill a void within each other, that ultimately leads to their downfall. This film is psychologically fascinating and the two actresses are absolutely brilliant, in an albeit, bizarre story. A must see for those fans of psychological dramas.
 Not What It Could Have Been December 17, 2008
I wanted so much to be enthralled with this film as much as I was with Blanchett and Denchs' performances. They played off each other quite well-especially Dench who is usually such a scene-stealer. Dench plays Barbara, a rather callous loner and a teacher at the same school where Blanchett (Sheba Hart) meets her 15yr old, secret love-interest. Barbara learns her secret but keeps it to herself. Her interest in Sheba goes beyond a friendly protectiveness; she becomes possessive. I liked the basic plotline as it's not a typical story of blackmail like Fatal Attraction. Fatal Attraction worked well because of the fear element-we know Glen Close's character is ruthless and smart-but Barbara's character in this film doesn't come close. She's rather a loose cannon, actually. She doesn't appear to be very good at blackmail so are we supposed to feel sorry for her? She's incapable of having any sort of relationship, and she doesn't appear to have the character confidence, or heartlessness, to inflict harm. The was so much opportunity for this story to be more compelling, but it was incredibly tame. For it to work, Barbara would have to gradually become better at her game and demand more of Sheba. There were already sexual undertones about that relationship and that's where this film could've been more powerful. As it was, I think the film hit a plateau early on and there was no real escalation, not even in the confrontation scene. I would recommend this film for the performances-they were wonderful considering the story didn't give them more opportunities.
 Social decay in film... December 11, 2008
I can't give a film that has brought ruin to several young American teachers a good review. This film is a torch at the edge of our educational system.
I think this may be a British fault as I saw another story about an homosexual British history master.
In any case it was delivered by an American company that should have known better.
As an art film with an X rating , I would approve of such a film as drama and art, but not as a popular widely distributed as we see here.
The acting is first rate British even in the smaller parts.
The film editing and photography is first rate.
The script is gripping and very well written.
It is the subject material that is so suspect
and socially contaminated.
This film is a lot like giving small pox infected blankets to the Indians,
as the modern American is morally unable to see the danger here.
two needy women October 24, 2008
This is a great film and is somewhat of a cautionary tale about two women who are emotionally needy. One woman is a veteran school teacher who commands respect from both the staff at the school and the students. The other is a new school teacher who is extremely attractive, but her looks are a contrast to how things are going in her personal/home life. The former of the two is single, approaching retirment and the only friend she had in her life before meeting the new teacher was her cat. The latter of the two is married to a man old enough to be her father and has two children. One of her kids has Down's Syndrome and the other is a rebellious teen.
The older teacher finds more than she bargained for in the new teacher... she is not only a friend to her, but someone who knows a deep dark secret about her. This secret is the scandel referred to in the title. The story is not just about the scandel, but about how two emotionally needy women deal with things. The older teacher keeps a diary wrtiting about others and tends to be very critical of the people she writes about. She seems to be a person who loves to observe the drama in others lives as if it's an exciting movie or novel. It became clear that all she wants is to be in love and loved by someone. The younger teacher wanted to be loved in a way she was not getting from her husband and family. Therefore, it was very easy for her to bond to a pubescent boy. This ofcourse leads to all kinds of unforseen problems.
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