Far from the Madding Crowd, 12A

Thomas Hardy isn't your standard Victorian author. Here, there are no tea parties, happy marriages and wet shirts in rivers.

Imagine an 1880 Eastenders: suicide, abandoned wives, murder, alcoholism and superstition.

This is the story of a young female landowner and the disgrace of abandonment, the ugly side of a love triangle, and the problem behind respectability.

The love interests in this are more savage, flawed Heathcliff's than squeaky clean Mr Darcy's.

It’s isn't all hard grit, but this isn’t your standard petticoat drama, so their is a chance your husband won’t be asleep in the aisles by the end of the adverts.

Beautifully shot in surrealist hyper chrome, this looks quite a lot like a Turner painting. Think Poldark but with a little less gloss on macho patriarchy.

Did you know? The character Bathsheba plays around with men’s hearts...just like her biblical namesake.

Will I enjoy it? If you are looking for The Notebook or Pride and Prejudice this really isn’t for you. If you like Atonement or Tess of the D’Urbervilles then this is more your bonnet.

Running time: 119 minutes

Showing at: Bluewater De Lux, Ashford Cineworld, Chatham Odeon, Canterbury Curzon, Rochester Cineworld, Maidstone Odeon.