In a tale of 18th-century aristocratic English society so unlikely it could only be true, Belle, the illegitimate daughter of an English Naval officer and an African mother, is shipped to England to live with her father’s uncle, Lord Mansfield. Belle’s dark skin precludes her dining alongside her aristocratic kin, but that doesn’t stop her circulating after meals, generating shock and amusement as guests realise Lord and Lady Mansfield (delightfully played by Tom Wilkinson and Emily Watson), have a “mulatto” in their midst.
Director Amma Asante concocts a lavish period piece, complete with lush costumes, sumptuous sets and classy character actors. Miranda Richardson and Penelope Wilton add humour and gravitas, whilst the requisite love story comes courtesy of Belle and dashing young lawyer, John Davinier. Of course, there’s upper class opposition to their mixed race match until, in a delicious soap operatic twist, Belle inherits a stack of cash; pitting wealth against race.
With its Downton Abbey echoes, Belle may not pack the brutal punch of 12 Years a Slave, but its subplot’s a heavy hitter. For Lord Mansfield’s the Judge presiding over the Zong case – wherein slave traders drowned 142 sick Africans; claiming damage insurance for their “spoiled goods”. It’s the courtroom scenes and those in which Belle and John attempt to sway Lord Mansfield’s ruling that provide the movie’s dramatic and moral core, in a sumptuous costume drama that deals admirably, within the confines of the genre, with the thorny issues of snobbery, sexism, and slavery.
