A historical film, inspired by real events, with certain romantic and adventurous doses and with a first-class cast: ‘The Excavation’ it had all the ingredients to become a successful title. And so it has been, achieving the top 2 of the most seen in Netflix the day after the premiere, on January 29. Will we be able to see her among the Oscar candidates? Let’s not rule it out.
We are in Suffolk in 1939 Eddy Pretty (Carey Mulligan) is a wealthy widow who lives in a mansion with impressive grounds on which a burial mound has appeared. Hire an Archaeologist, Basil Brown, (Ralph Fiennes) to dig it up: it will be the well-known excavation of Sutton Hoo, a place where a 7th century burial ship was found.
Brown continues to live in the house and shares and starts with Pretty a love for culture and antiques forge an intense relationship – but we expected it, quite platonic. When the treasure is discovered a snobbish scholar named Charles Phillips (Ken Stott) arrives to take control of the project and discredit Brown. Among those who come to help with the dig is the marriage formed by Stuart Pigott (Ben Chaplin) and wife Peggy (Lily James), who maintain a very deteriorated relationship.
It is a film that reminds you of British films like ‘The English Patient’, ‘The King’s Speech’ or ‘Atonement’, but with very strong character work: Mulligan and Fiennes are brilliant. His inspired photography, his way of combining romance and comedy, and the way we deal with history animates the images of 112 minutes of (majestic) melodrama.
Some Curiosities You (Maybe) Didn’t Know About ‘The Excavation’
- Carey Mulligan made the film at the age of 34, but the real Edith Pretty was 56 when the dig began in 1939.
- Another problem with age is found in Ralph Fiennes, who is 23 years older than Mulligan in real life. Basil Brown was actually five years younger than Edith Pretty.
- The actress who would give birth to Edith in the beginning was Nicole Kidman, but she left the project due to scheduling issues.
- Two medieval cemeteries from the 7th to 7th centuries have been found during the excavation; one of them kept an intact ship with an enormous amount of Anglo-Saxon artifacts; most are preserved in the British Museum.
- In real life, Ralph Fiennes has contributed financially to the development of an archaeological site coordinated by his step-brother Mike. The Poulton Research Project, based in Cheshire, excavates dozens of students every spring-summer to excavate a site from different medieval periods.
- The film is set in the same historical time as ‘The King’s Speech’ (Tom Hooper, 2010).
- In the film, the archaeologist is paid a salary of two pounds a week. In real life he only earned 30 shillings for the same shift.
- Photographer Rory Lomax’s character (played by Johnny Flynn) is fictional. The actual photographers of the dig were Mercie Lack and Barbara Wagstaff.
Curios made from information from IMDb.
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