Terence Davies' Picture "A Quiet Passion" an Emily DIckinson Biopic Is a Pathetic Portrayal of the Poetess

A screening of Terence Davies' "A Quiet Passion" was held at the Morgan Library in tandem with an exhibit of Emily Dickison's writings & artifacts.   British dir. Terence Davies ("The Deep Blue Sea" 2011) was there to introduce the film.  His pompous self-promotion & declaration of Dickinson as "America's greatest poet of the 19th C," portended a picture destined to be fawning.  The film starring Cynthia Nixon as the elder Emily Dickison had me yawning.  The film begins with a younger depiction of Dickinson as a rebellious, strong minded student while at Mt Holyoke.   The lyrical transition to the mature, poetess was as comical as Simba's.  This poorly directed film felt forced and disjointed.  Where Davies strove to demonstrate the unflappable determination of Dickinson to write and her steadfast beliefs within a rigid, religious & sexist society, the end result was an unflattering, churlish & unworldly personification.   The  coquettish & bumptious antics didn't serve to delve into an intellectual, creative mind or the momentous issues of slavery & repressive, societal conventions. The always exceptional actress Jennifer Ehle was wasted as Dickinson's younger sister (as the elder Lavinia) with little do but bash her eyelashes.  I wasted my time on this sophomoric historic snore.  I was out the door early as I had already overstayed my decorum.