De-Lovely

Radiant but overly long, De-Lovely is a cumbersome biopic of the composer Cole Porter, encompassing the most interesting and incident-packed years of his creative life. In a brash but likeable performance, Kevin Kline plays Porter, who, when we first meet him, is in a movie theatre, reviewing the major events in his life with a man named Gabe (Jonathan Pryce). Jumping around with a confusing glee, we watch as a younger Porter marries Linda Lee (Ashley Judd) and sees his career blossom as a composer in Hollywood and Broadway's golden age. Porter and Lee's marriage was an unconventional one by any standards, with the composer's open homosexuality established from the very offset of their union.

Porter's life-story is undoubtedly an interesting one, but De-Lovely, despite its sleek, stylish finish, moves with all the urgency of a narcoleptic sloth. Jay Cocks' (Gangs of New York) screenplay never finds a beat or a rhythm, churning out the major incidents in Porter's life with little sense of purpose. To his credit, Kevin Kline manages to escape with his dignity intact, displaying a light touch on the ambiguous character of Cole. Ashley Judd is not quite so fortunate, her portrayal lacking definition and subtlety. It's not all bad news - several of the musical numbers are sung with style (the best of which is Elvis Costello's version of Let's Misbehave), but they are short highlights of this pedestrian affair.