Bill Nighy is brilliant in Notes on a Scandal

The Canadian The Chronicle Herald praises Bill Nighy’s performance in Notes on a Scandal like it should.

“Before we get into the magnificence of Dame Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett, let us sing the praises of Bill Nighy.

For years, Nighy was a staple on the British stage and on British television. Over here, most of us never heard of Nighy until 2003 and Love Actually, with his bawdy, hilarious and spot-on portrayal of a decrepit rocker who scores an unlikely No. 1 hit with the admittedly god-awful novelty tune, Christmas Is All Around. Nighy swiped the movie from seemingly half the major British film stars in the world, from Hugh Grant to Emma Thompson to Keira Knightley.

Since then, Nighy has been a welcome presence in films of the highest sort (The Constant Gardener), complete rubbish (The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy) and even a global blockbuster (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest). Now comes his work in Notes on a Scandal, and though about 99 per cent of the praise you’ll see in the blurbs for this film will be directed toward Dench and Blanchett, it would be a crime to overlook Nighy’s brilliance.

Nighy plays Richard Hart, the sort of decidedly non-rakish fiftysomething college professor whose hair is never in place and whose sweaters by rule must be missing at least one button. He is a man who is completely comfortable in his own skin, and he is keenly aware that most everybody who first encounters him will be stunned that Cate Blanchett’s lovely and much younger Sheba ended up with him. He is also the world’s kindest father, and he is enormously entertaining, and he loves his wife with the passion of a poet.

Then comes the moment when he learns his schoolteacher wife is having an affair with an underage student, and his reaction is so wounded and so real and so explosive that it’s almost painful to watch. This is great acting.”

Yes Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett are great too, read the rest of the article here.

Praises to the reviewer of the Chronicle Herald.

And some more Bill Nighy praise here:

Although “Notes” relies on its female leads, Nighy also deserves a slap on the back for his portrayal of Sheba’s husband. Richard realizes he’s too old for a woman like Sheba, but he makes up for his age with a heavy dose of wit and even more charisma. But Richard’s shell of charm is not impenetrable. The movie features an unforgettable scene where the usually pleasant Richard lets loose as he sees Barbara march forward to crush yet another family outing.
rgj.com