Mr. Malcolm’s List review – derivative but mostly charming Regency romance
Emma Holly Jones’ adaptation of the 2009 novel is a little on the limp side, though is propped up by delightful supporting turns
After a fallow period over the last decade, Regency romance has returned with its quietly tortured heroes, heaving bosoms and sharpened quill pens. Anya Taylor-Joy sparkled in Autumn de Wilde’s Emma in early 2020, but, of course, it was the huge success of Netflix’s Bridgerton that must’ve made executives’ ears prick up. Netflix tried it again with their misguided Fleabag-ified Persuasion starring Dakota Johnson, and now it’s the turn of Mr. Malcolm’s List, adapted by Suzanne Allain from her own 2009 novel, and which also employs Bridgerton’s colour-conscious casting approach.
Writing an original story set in a period so closely associated with one author presents a challenge. How do you nod to Jane Austen without aping her style? Expanded from a 2019 short film, director Emma Holly Jones’ feature take does struggle to thread the needle, with a plot that borrows mostly from Austen’s Emma and Oscar Wilde’s play An Ideal Husband, with an unsurprising healthy dose of Pride and Prejudice thrown in there, too.
The Honourable Mr. Jeremiah Malcolm (Sope Dirisu) is the season’s most desirable catch, courting and casting aside every young woman in London when they can’t meet the requirements on his secret list (beautiful, knowledgeable about politics, a talented musician, etc). The device appears to be inspired by Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett’s barbed conversation about the attributes of “an accomplished woman” – there undercut with sexual tension, here stretched tenuously to about two hours.
The headstrong, ambitious Julia Thistlewaite (Zawe Ashton) doesn’t make the cut, and after she’s humiliated by a caricature in the society papers depicting the rejection, Julia learns of Mr. Malcolm’s secret list and is out for a little light revenge. Cue the historical makeover montage as she transforms her penniless and principled childhood friend Selina Dalton (Frieda Pinto) into the perfect match for Malcolm, who’ll then reject him and ruin his reputation just as he did to Julia. Inevitably, Mr. Malcolm is not quite the cad at first appears to be, and Selina is in danger of falling for him for real.
Sope Dirisu and Frieda Pinto certainly make for a visually pleasing pair, and perhaps predictability doesn’t matter all that much when the source material is a romance novel whose readers expect rather than reject familiar tropes. And yet its unsurprising plotting combined with mostly uninspiring characters and lacklustre cinematography does render the whole affair rather limp.
The film’s most entertaining moments largely come from its supporting cast: Zawe Ashton is a delight as Julia, perfecting the devious smile and flounce of a spoiled but still sympathetic heroine at the mercy of the marriage market. The Haunting of Hill House’s Oliver Jackson-Cohen also shines as her fussy, gay-coded best friend/cousin Lord Cassidy, who gets most of the funniest lines. Theo James also swoops in as dashing Captain Henry Ossory, sporting an east London meets 18th century moustache, and who also has his eye on Selina.
As safe and inoffensive as a Sunday night TV drama, Mr. Malcolm’s List can’t hold a candle to what it’s imitating but, for those who love a Regency romance, its largely charming performances are enough to keep the whole thing afloat.
Mr. Malcolm's List is released in UK cinemas on 26 August.
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