The Duchess

Given the storyline and the fact that Georgiana was an ancestor of Princess Diana, parallels between the film and real-life events ("there are three of us in this marriage") are inevitable and, indeed, feature in advertising for The Duchess.

The film stands up even without the Diana connection, in large part thanks to Knightley, who looks stunning, as usual, in period costume and vividly brings Georgiana to life. Fiennes too puts in a compelling performance, brings depth to his buttoned-up and heartless character. The pair are aided by a well-cast gallery of supporting players including Atwell and Charlotte Rampling - who suddenly seems to be everywhere these days - as Georgiana's marriage-broking mother.

Co-writer Saul Dibbs's direction makes much of his, Jeffrey Hatcher's and Anders Thomas Jensen's adaptation of Amanda Foreman's best-selling biography. Fine cinematography (Gyula Pados), Michael Carlin's beautiful production design and immaculate costumes (Michael O'Connor) all help to deliver a gorgeous drama whose good looks should not be held against it.