Issues
I see from glancing at this film’s board that many arguments are afoot, the main one being (yet again.....yawn) the ‘inappropriate’ multi-racial casting choices.
I don’t agree with the casting choice for Lestrade as it was not correct for accuracy purposes of portraying that time period. However, it didn’t detract from the entertainment value of the film for me. I was already aghast by a few other things, namely the ridiculous story and premise of this errant 16 year old girl running amok in London, alone.....but the film was entertaining enough.
It was good to see Sam Claflin in something where he was almost unrecognisable; a good character piece.
This article below may be of interest to some, regarding the casting/ inclusion of black women in that time period as some think that black people weren’t around in 19th century England then, let alone a black woman who was working in a cafe!
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/history/news/2019/oct/uncovering-black-women-eighteenth-and-nineteenth-century-britain
A stand out problem for me was the fact that Enola’s initial dress purchased and worn when she first got to London! No self respecting female would wear a red dress; that’s a whore’s colour! Plus the style was not on trend at all!
This was set in 1900.....her dress was not a dress worn then, especially not be a young woman.
For example.... https://www.thevintagenews.com/2016/01/11/45164/
Was that a deliberate choice or an accident by the film makers?
I can’t imagine a book written for young people would involve a sub current of a nefarious shop keeper who a) sold her a whore’s dress that was 20 odd years out of fashion and then b) took her to a low class boarding house where she could probably BE a prostitute!
Surely Enola’s clever and progressive mother would have taught her only daughter about sex, sex workers, gender roles, dangers to women etc.