Overview
A tale of love and resilience set against the backdrop of the English countryside.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- wistful
- passionate
- pastoral
- quiet evening
- romantic movie night
What critics said
Critics broadly found this elegant Thomas Hardy adaptation successful on its own terms, praising its direction, talented cast, and Carey Mulligan's vivid central performance despite some rushed pacing in the final act.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Bathsheba's choices are constrained and enabled by her inheritance, farm ownership, and relationships with men of different social positions.
Bathsheba runs her own farm and resists pressure to accept the marriage and social role expected of her.
The sheep farm, fields, weather, and rural labor frame the characters' changing passions and hardships.
Gabriel Oak's attachment to Bathsheba continues through her attraction to other men and repeated emotional reversals.
Films like Far from the Madding Crowd, and why
Tess
shared victorian romance, rural setting, social restraint, and emotionally serious melodrama
Jane Eyre
shared literary period romance, headstrong heroine, class tensions, and pastoral atmosphere
Atonement
shared sweeping historical romance, difficult relationships, and richly realized countryside setting
Jude
shared Thomas Hardy adaptation lineage, romantic entanglements, and tragic emotional intensity
Movie Details
- Director
- Thomas Vinterberg
- Release Date
- 2015-04-23
- Runtime
- 119 min
- Rating
- 7.0 / 10 (1135)
Cast
- Carey Mulligan
- Matthias Schoenaerts
- Michael Sheen
- Tom Sturridge
- Juno Temple
- Jessica Barden
- Hilton McRae
- Harry Peacock
- Bradley Hall
- Sam Phillips
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Far from the Madding Crowd about?
- A fiercely independent Victorian landowner must navigate three competing suitors while protecting her farm, autonomy, and capacity for love.
- What is Far from the Madding Crowd like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Far from the Madding Crowd as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Far from the Madding Crowd violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Far from the Madding Crowd as mild.
- What did critics think of Far from the Madding Crowd?
- Critics broadly found this elegant Thomas Hardy adaptation successful on its own terms, praising its direction, talented cast, and Carey Mulligan's vivid central performance despite some rushed pacing in the final act.
- Which films are like Far from the Madding Crowd?
- Films with a similar feel include Tess, Jane Eyre, Atonement, and Jude.
- How long is Far from the Madding Crowd?
- Far from the Madding Crowd runs 119 minutes.
- Where can I watch Far from the Madding Crowd?
- In United States, Far from the Madding Crowd is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
