The White Countess review

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

The last film of recently deceased producer Ismail Merchant, The White Countess is a fitting epitaph to his career of making quality, if cold, period dramas starring Britain's finest. In the torrid Shanghai of 1936, the Countess of the title is a chic nightclub set up by blind British diplomat Jackson (Ralph Fiennes). Having employed penniless Russian countess Sofia (Natasha Richardson) as his star hostess, it's not long before politics, war and romance sneak into Jackson's stiff-upper-lip life.

As expected from a Merchant Ivory production, '30s Shanghai is richly realised, James Ivory's direction elegant and both Fiennes and Richardson prove accomplished at portraying internal maelstroms raging beneath glacial exteriors. But much like Sofia herself, the whole enterprise is beautiful and well presented yet emotionally unavailable.

The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.