#julia thistlewaite

[gifshistorical]

REGENCY LADIES + pink

[apinchofm]

MY FAVOURITE DUOS - PERIOD DRAMAS

[fuckyeahcostumedramas]

Zawe Ashton as Julia Thistlewaite & Oliver Jackson-Cohen as Lord Cassidy in Mr. Malcolm’s List (Film, 2022).

[diversehistorical]

Mr. Malcolm's List: Love Stories Through Newspaper Cartoons

[edtype]

Zawe Ashton Appreciation Moment

If there’s any justice in this world, Zawe should be getting out of jail about now (instead of only out of the house) because she straight-up stole Mr. Malcolm’s List. She embodied the role of Julia Thistlewaite to a degree that one would’ve thought the movie was made to showcase her skills. And here she was a last-minute replacement. As you’ll see in the gifset that follows (as well as the gifset for St. Trinian’s 2: The Legend of Fritton’s Gold), she’s showing frustration in two different classes and timeframes. She has an enviable range and displays it with a kind of elegant grace (even when she ain’t being elegant). If they ever want to redo My Fair Lady with her (and Tom Hiddleston as the Professor Henry Higgins), I’d be there day 1.

[edtype]

Graceful Machinations

Recognizing her graciousness here.

Mr. Malcolm’s List (2022) dir. Emma Holly Jones

[wfhandwatchingtv]

Meet cute alert 🚨 (Mrs. Thistlewaite's head tilt is hilarious)

[justzawe]

Zawe Ashton Covers AMAZING Magazine | Issue 4

Actor, author, playwright and new mum Zawe Ashton adds another string to her bow: supervillain. As she joins the Marvel Cinematic Universe, she tells AMAZING about her love of poetry, getting physical on the set of The Marvels and the unwavering support of her own parents.

Zawe Ashton is no stranger to playing the antagonist. From her very first film role as rude schoolgirl Bianca in 2009’s St Trinian's 2: The Legend Of Fritton's Gold, to playing the intimidatingly cool Violet “Vod” Nordstrom in four seasons of student sitcom Fresh Meat and – more recently - as the rejected Julia Thistlewaite in 2022 period drama, Mr. Malcolm’s List, Ashton has a knack for taking on characters who appear unlikeable on paper… and making audiences fall in love with them. However, for her latest role as Dar-Benn in The Marvels, she had to go full villain.

“Very little can prepare you to have to embody an antagonist at this level, in a Universe that is literally not known to anyone – like our Space - and to make it real and impactful,” says the London-born actor, a new recruit to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. “There's something deeply humbling about having to return to the sandbox; you have to go back to the playground and that was something I was not expecting. You have to indulge in adult play and it’s surprisingly vulnerable. I know that there are gamers out there, there are cosplayers out there, there are adults who have managed to keep that level of childlike play going and I respect it so much. There's a self-consciousness that can take over if you are not careful. Trying to react realistically to a laser coming towards you is not something I’d done since I was seven years old, and I had to get to that level of childlike confidence to just delve into the imagination. Once that was all clearer, the villainous elements came so much from the physical world, with costume and hair.”

For 39-year-old Ashton, adult play will likely become a more frequent fixture in her life, thanks to her most exciting new role – as a mother. She welcomed her first child in 2022 with fiancé Tom Hiddleston, her co-star in the 2019 revival of Harold Pinter's Betrayal on London’s West End, later transferred to Broadway. “What has genuinely surprised me about motherhood is how much I don't feel ready to talk about it,” she laughs. “And this isn’t to shut down the conversation. I have gained so much insight from public people who have this incredible candour and this disarming, relatable dialogue about it very early on, but it's something that I am just dedicating time to absorbing. I’m listening rather than expelling energy. That genuinely has surprised me, because it's something you want to shout from the rooftops about; it's the most unparalleled, most important role in my life. The surprise has been how quiet I want to be about it. Maybe that's also me as a writer and this is something that will come through the pen at some point.”

Ashton attended London’s Anna Scher Theatre School from the age of six and was a member of the National Youth Theatre, before getting her degree in acting at Manchester Metropolitan University, but writing has always been significant in her life. She won the London Poetry Slam Championship in 2000, becoming the event’s youngest winner, at 17. “I may have been knocked off that pillar long ago, but in my head I'm still the youngest,” she laughs. “I love poetry. I had not written for a really long time; during the pandemic I lost a huge chunk of my creative soul when it came to putting pen to paper, which was really scary and was clearly the fallout of being in survival mode and feeling quite fearful. People's attention spans just went all sorts of different ways, didn't they? It was very hard for me to read, and it was very hard for me to write, which is very strange for me.

“More recently, a friend of mine from drama school who I used to do open mic nights with in Manchester – I used to perform poetry and she used to sing - asked me to write a poem for her wedding. I had a few moments where it was really tough, but I did it. I love her and I'm so happy for her, and being inspired enough to get a poem out and read it aloud really opened the floodgates. So, weirdly enough, I've been writing a lot of poetry recently and found a new love for it. I will always continue to use poetry as a way to understand the world. It's just so much part of who I am.”

For Zawe's full interview and shoot, order your copy of AMAZING issue 4 now. The Marvels is out now.

[rgal3x]

zawe ashton as julia thistlewaite in mr. malcolm's list (2022, dir. emma holly jones)

[zawescource]

Actor, author, playwright and new mum Zawe Ashton adds another string to her bow: supervillain. As she joins the Marvel Cinematic Universe, she tells AMAZING about her love of poetry, getting physical on the set of The Marvels and the unwavering support of her own parents.

Zawe Ashton is no stranger to playing the antagonist. From her very first film role as rude schoolgirl Bianca in 2009’s St Trinian's 2: The Legend Of Fritton's Gold, to playing the intimidatingly cool Violet “Vod” Nordstrom in four seasons of student sitcom Fresh Meat and – more recently - as the rejected Julia Thistlewaite in 2022 period drama, Mr. Malcolm’s List, Ashton has a knack for taking on characters who appear unlikeable on paper… and making audiences fall in love with them. However, for her latest role as Dar-Benn in The Marvels, she had to go full villain.

“Very little can prepare you to have to embody an antagonist at this level, in a Universe that is literally not known to anyone – like our Space - and to make it real and impactful,” says the London-born actor, a new recruit to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. “There's something deeply humbling about having to return to the sandbox; you have to go back to the playground and that was something I was not expecting. You have to indulge in adult play and it’s surprisingly vulnerable. I know that there are gamers out there, there are cosplayers out there, there are adults who have managed to keep that level of childlike play going and I respect it so much. There's a self-consciousness that can take over if you are not careful. Trying to react realistically to a laser coming towards you is not something I’d done since I was seven years old, and I had to get to that level of childlike confidence to just delve into the imagination. Once that was all clearer, the villainous elements came so much from the physical world, with costume and hair.”

For 39-year-old Ashton, adult play will likely become a more frequent fixture in her life, thanks to her most exciting new role – as a mother. She welcomed her first child in 2022 with fiancé Tom Hiddleston, her co-star in the 2019 revival of Harold Pinter's Betrayal on London’s West End, later transferred to Broadway. “What has genuinely surprised me about motherhood is how much I don't feel ready to talk about it,” she laughs. “And this isn’t to shut down the conversation. I have gained so much insight from public people who have this incredible candour and this disarming, relatable dialogue about it very early on, but it's something that I am just dedicating time to absorbing. I’m listening rather than expelling energy. That genuinely has surprised me, because it's something you want to shout from the rooftops about; it's the most unparalleled, most important role in my life. The surprise has been how quiet I want to be about it. Maybe that's also me as a writer and this is something that will come through the pen at some point.”

Ashton attended London’s Anna Scher Theatre School from the age of six and was a member of the National Youth Theatre, before getting her degree in acting at Manchester Metropolitan University, but writing has always been significant in her life. She won the London Poetry Slam Championship in 2000, becoming the event’s youngest winner, at 17. “I may have been knocked off that pillar long ago, but in my head I'm still the youngest,” she laughs. “I love poetry. I had not written for a really long time; during the pandemic I lost a huge chunk of my creative soul when it came to putting pen to paper, which was really scary and was clearly the fallout of being in survival mode and feeling quite fearful. People's attention spans just went all sorts of different ways, didn't they? It was very hard for me to read, and it was very hard for me to write, which is very strange for me.

“More recently, a friend of mine from drama school who I used to do open mic nights with in Manchester – I used to perform poetry and she used to sing - asked me to write a poem for her wedding. I had a few moments where it was really tough, but I did it. I love her and I'm so happy for her, and being inspired enough to get a poem out and read it aloud really opened the floodgates. So, weirdly enough, I've been writing a lot of poetry recently and found a new love for it. I will always continue to use poetry as a way to understand the world. It's just so much part of who I am.”

For Zawe's full interview and shoot, order your copy of AMAZING issue 4 now. The Marvels is out now.

[gifshistorical]

"There is a female friendship in this movie that plays as strongly and as powerfully as any of the romances. If feels very real and very nuanced" —Zawe Ashton "(...) As much as this film is about the love story of Mr. Malcolm and Selina, it is as much a story about female friendships, and about Julia and Selina's bonding — and also the ups and downs in a female friendship as well." —Freida Pinto

· MISS SELINA DALTON & MISS JULIA THISTLEWAITE · Freida Pinto and Zawe Ashton · Mr Malcolm's List (2022)

[books-to-add-to-your-tbr]

Title: Mr. Malcolm’s List

Author: Suzanne Allain

Series or standalone: standalone

Publication year: 2009

Genres: fiction, romance, historical fiction

Blurb: The honourable Mr. Jeremy Malcolm is searching for a wife, but not just any wife; as the target of matchmaking mothers and desperate debutantes, he’s determined to avoid the fortune hunters and find a near-perfect woman, one who will meet the qualifications on his well-crafted list. After years of searching, he’s beginning to despair of ever finding this paragon...until Selina Dalton arrives in town. Selina, a vicar’s daughter of limited means and a stranger to high society, is thrilled when her friend Julia Thistlewaite invites her to London...until she learns that it’s all part of a plot to exact revenge on Mr. Malcolm. Selina is reluctant to participate in Julia’s scheme, especially after meeting the irresistible Mr. Malcolm, who appears to be very different from the arrogant scoundrel of Julia’s description...but when Mr. Malcolm begins judging Selina against his unattainable standards, Selina decides that she has some qualifications of her own, and if he is to meet them, he must reveal the real man behind the list.

[fuckyeahcostumedramas]

Zawe Ashton as Julia Thistlewaite in Mr. Malcolm’s List (Film, 2022).

[storytime-reviews]

Mr Malcolm’s List Movie Review

When she fails to meet an item on his list of requirements for a bride, Julia Thistlewaite (Zawe Ashton) is jilted by London's most eligible bachelor, Mr. Malcolm (Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù). Feeling humiliated and determined to exact revenge, she convinces her friend Selina Dalton (Freida Pinto) to play the role of his ideal match. Soon, Mr. Malcolm wonders whether he's found the perfect woman...or the perfect hoax.

Well...at least it wasn’t as boring as the book. This time, the characters weren’t bland, though I cannot say that I particularly enjoyed most of them. And the storyline is only as good as the investment you feel with the characters.

 At first I liked Selina, but then felt she became a little insufferable. Lord Cassidy and Captain Ossory were quite fun and injected some great humour into the film, although I must admit that Julia was by far the standout in Mr Malcolm’s List. Zawe Ashton did an incredible job with a character that could very easily have appeared as a kind of one dimensional cartoonish villain. Instead, whilst Julia makes many questionable decisions, she is also immeasurably amusing and also someone I could sympathise with. For the most part, it is the fun she has that keeps the narrative from dragging too much, and I really enjoyed her scenes with Lord Cassidy and Captain Ossory. I felt that out of all the characters, those three had the most chemistry with each other. I just didn’t feel connected to any of the other relationships, whether platonic or romantic because I don’t think they had any chemistry.

Mr Malcolm was by far the worst character of them all. Every time he was onscreen I felt like I was enduring something painful. Not only did I not feel any chemistry between him and Selena, I found him to be a truly unbearable character. And unlike Julia, I don’t feel like there were any positives to make up for it. He appeared arrogant, rude, selfish, egotistical and condescending. With the way Julia acted I perhaps shouldn’t have felt so sorry for her, and yet I did. At no point did I feel bad for Malcolm. Not to mention that Selina could’ve done way better.

I think I disliked this version of Mr Malcolm more that I did in the book, but for the most part, I preferred the film. Whilst largely lacking in wit and romance, it was much easier to finish the film than the book, though it could have done a bit more on the satire side of things. The dialogue didn’t make me roll my eyes and immediately wish I was reading Austen instead as opposed to the book, and the narrative was somewhat well constructed. However, again, I found myself thinking that this particular idea could have been improved by a better writer.

I wouldn’t say I regret watching Mr Malcolm’s List, but it’s certainly not a film I’d bother revisiting.

My review of the book here           

[mccleans]

julia thistlewaite my women's wrongs lover girl

[claudia1829things]

"MR. MALCOLM'S LIST" (2022) Review

"MR. MALCOLM'S LIST" (2022) Review

I have a confession to make. Aside from the novels of LaVyrle Spencer, I have never been a consistent reader of romance novels. And the constant output of movies and television series set during the Regency Era seemed to be never-ending, ever since adaptations of Jane Austen novel had gained popularity years ago. But I could never avoid the opportunity of viewing a period piece in the theaters or on television and I found myself watching the 2022 movie, "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST".

Based on Suzanne Allain's 2009 novel, "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST" told the story of how a vicar's daughter named Selina Dalton helped Julia Thistlewaite, her former classmate and a wealthy debutante exact revenge on a suitor, who rejected her for failing a requirement on his list of qualifications for a bride. Set in 1818, the movie began with Julia being escorted to the opera by the Honorable Jeremy Malcolm, the wealthy younger brother of a peer. Unfortunately, Julia fails to impress him. Her failed efforts to impress Mr. Malcolm are mocked in the press, causing her great embarrassment. But when Julia learns about Mr. Malcolm's list of requirements for a wife, she becomes offended and decides to seek revenge against him. She invites Selina to join her for the London season and recruits the other woman in order to train and present the latter as the perfect potential bride . . . and set up Mr. Malcolm for humiliation in the long run.

Allain's novel caught the attention of filmmaker Emma Holly Jones after she had listened to a podcast reading of script, submitted through the website in 2015. She then brought on producer Laura Rister and Laura Lewis to co-produce a feature film adaptation. I never read Allain's novel, so I could not compare it to this film adaptation. As for the latter . . . well, I might as well get to my review.

For a good number of minutes I tried to think of something about "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST" that did not sit well with me. I really gave it my all. But my only complaint - so far - seemed to be the movie's score. I have always believed that a movie's score is one of the few elements that served as a backbone for a good movie or television production. I hate to say this, but I found Amelia Warner's score for the movie rather dull. Almost unmemorable. I believe the movie was lucky to rise above its mediocre score and be memorable in its own right. And yes . . . I have another complaint about "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST". The ending. I cannot deny that I found Selina Dalton and Jeremy Malcolm's resolution of the conflict romantic. But I believe the actors should be credited for this. I found the actual narrative - namely the latter jumping on his horse and racing after her departed carriage rather clichéd. I have or read it one too many times in other productions and novels. I wish Suzanne Allain, who also served as the movie's screenwriter, could have produced another setting for their resolution.

Otherwise, I really enjoyed "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST". In fact, it became one of my favorite movies released back in 2022. It is a pity that it never became a box office hit, because I believe it deserved to be one. At least for the summer season. Thanks to Allain's screenplay, the performances and Emma Holly Jones' direction, "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST" struck me as a witty, charming and surprisingly funny movie to watch. More importantly, I found it very original for a period piece set during the Regency Era. Have there been other movies or novels in which the protagonists initiate or participate in a major deception. One could easily exchange the early 19th century costumes and manners for those from the mid 20th century and "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST" could easily become a romantic comedy from that era.

More surprisingly, the movie did excellent job in conveying the pathos behind the comedic narrative. Although Julia Thistlewaite's social humiliation had been presented in comedic form early in the film, the latter eventually revealed just how traumatic and humiliated she had felt by society's reaction to Jeremy's rejection of her. The movie's second half also delved into the emotional drive that led Jeremy to create that ludicrous list and use it judge potential mates. This was conveyed in an interesting conversation between him and his mother, the Dowager Countess of Kilbourne.

The movie's production values struck me as very pleasing - elegant and colorful, yet not over-the-top. Ray Ball's production designs did an excellent job in conveying the movie's late Regency setting, especially during the London scenes. Tony Miller's photography beautifully reflected the movie's colorful, yet elegant visuals. He also did a marvelous job in exploiting the movie's Irish locations. I especially enjoyed Pam Downe's elegant costumes that properly reflected the movie's setting and characters, as shown in the images below:

The color and elegance of Ms. Downe's costume designs seemed well reflected in the costume ball sequence in the movie's second half.

No amount of witty dialogue, refined manners or beautiful scenery can make a movie without a decent cast. Thankfully for "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST", it possessed a first-rate cast who gave excellent performances. The movie featured charming, yet funny performances from the likes of Divian Ladwa and Sianad Gregory as Julia Thistlewaite's servants, Paul Tylak and Dawn Bradfield as Selina Dalton's parents; Naoko Mori as Julia's charming mother; along with Sophie Vavasseur and Danielle Ryan, who portrayed socialites with eyes on Mr. Malcolm and his fortune. Ashley Park was a hoot as Selina's gauche cousin, Gertie Covington. Oliver Jackson-Cohen was equally hilarious as Lord Cassidy, Julia's self-involved cousin whom she had dragged into her scheming. And Doña Croll gave a cool, yet witty performance as Mr. Malcolm's wise and observant mother, the Countess of Kilbourne.

Theo James portrayed Captain Henry Ossery, the relative of Selina's former employers and a potential suitor for Julia. He had the thankless task of portraying one of the least flawed characters in this story. But Captain Ossery managed to remain interesting, thanks to James' witty performance. However, my vote for the most interesting character would probably be Julia Thistlewaite, the wealthy socialite whose ego had taken a bruising from Mr. Malcolm's disinterest in her. Thanks to Zawe Ashton's sharp and humorous performance, Julia proved to be rather likeable and almost relatable. The second most interesting character in this story proved to be the leading male character, Mr. Jeremy Malcolm. Sope Dirisu did an excellent job of projecting Mr. Malcolm's conflicting personality traits - his gentlemanly behavior, reserve, arrogance and penchant for romantic passion. Like Ashton, Dirisu had to walk a tightrope in projecting Mr. Malcolm's many traits and remain likeable, at the same time. Superficially, Freida Pinto seemed to have an easy time portraying the likeable and intelligent Selina Dalton. But she also did an excellent job in delving into Selina's distaste for arranged marriages and being torn between her desire to participate in Julia's questionable scheme and her attraction toward Mr. Malcolm.

It seemed a pity that "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST" was not a box office hit. I never saw it in the theaters. But if I must be honest, I have seen less than four movies in the theaters during the past four years or so. I do wish I had seen "MR. MALCOLM'S LIST" in a theater, because I enjoyed it very much, thanks to Suzanne Allain's screenplay, Emma Holly Jones' direction and an excellent cast led by Freida Pinto and Sope Dirisuu.