The Importance of Being Earnest
2002·Comedy·1h 37m
6.8
★
Two young gentlemen living in 1890s England use the same pseudonym ('Ernest') on the sly, which is fine until they both fall in love with women using that name, which leads to a comedy of mistaken identities.
Directed by Oliver Parker
new love
beguilement
country house
country estate
fake identity
relatives
victorian england
pleasure
Rank
#78 in 2002·#4023 overall
Trailer
IMDB
N/A
Where to Watch
Cast
Rupert Everett
Algernon “Algy” Moncrieff
Colin Firth
John “Jack” Worthing
Reese Witherspoon
Cecily Cardew
Judi Dench
Lady Bracknell
Tom Wilkinson
Dr. Chasuble
Frances O'Connor
Gwendolen Fairfax
Anna Massey
Miss Laetitia Prism
Edward Fox
Lane
Patrick Godfrey
Merriman
Charles Kay
Gribsby
Marsha Fitzalan
Dowager
Cyril Shaps
Pew Opener
Crew
Oliver Parker
Director
Oliver Parker
Screenplay
Tony Pierce-Roberts
Director of Photography
Barnaby Thompson
Producer
Oscar Wilde
Theatre Play
Paul Ghirardani
Art Direction
Peter Swords King
Makeup & Hair
Mark DeSimone
ADR Mixer
Popular Reviews
244 reviews
meowpants
10.0★ · 06/15/26
Colin Firth should be in every period piece rom-com ever
Colin Firth should be in every period piece rom-com ever
1
pleiades
5.0★ · 02/22/26
❝I can hardly eat muffins in an agitated manner. The butter would probably get on my cuffs.❞
❝You must not laugh at me, darling, but it has always been a girlish dream of mine to love a man named Ernest.❞
⊱ ──── . ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁. ──── ⊰
I haven't read the original play by Oscar Wilde, so I can't comment on whether this is a good adaptation or not, but The Importance of Being Earnest is a painfully average historical comedy, and to be honest the only reasons I watched it were Colin Firth and Rupert Everett. The costumes and sets were beautiful, and I liked the soundtrack, but for a film that's reliant on dialogue it felt very stilted, and I wasn't a big fan of any of the characters. Performance wise, no-one really stood out to me as doing anything particularly spectacular apart from Dame Judi Dench, and in fact Reese Witherspoon's acting was very subpar. All being said and done, I'd need to read the play to understand the intended effect, but I don't think I'd rewatch this any time soon.
❝You must not laugh at me, darling, but it has always been a girlish dream of mine to love a man named Ernest.❞
⊱ ──── . ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁. ──── ⊰
I haven't read the original play by Oscar Wilde, so I can't comment on whether this is a good adaptation or not, but The Importance of Being Earnest is a painfully average historical comedy, and to be honest the only reasons I watched it were Colin Firth and Rupert Everett. The costumes and sets were beautiful, and I liked the soundtrack, but for a film that's reliant on dialogue it felt very stilted, and I wasn't a big fan of any of the characters. Performance wise, no-one really stood out to me as doing anything particularly spectacular apart from Dame Judi Dench, and in fact Reese Witherspoon's acting was very subpar. All being said and done, I'd need to read the play to understand the intended effect, but I don't think I'd rewatch this any time soon.
❝I can hardly eat muffins in an agitated manner. The butter would probably get on my cuffs.❞
❝You must not laugh at me, darling, but it has always been a girlish dream of mine to love a man named Ernest.❞
⊱ ──── . ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁. ──── ⊰
I haven't read the original play by Oscar Wilde, so I can't comment on whether this is a good adaptation or not, but The Importance of Being Earnest is a painfully average historical comedy, and to be honest the only reasons I watched it were Colin Firth and Rupert Everett. The costumes and sets were beautiful, and I liked the soundtrack, but for a film that's reliant on dialogue it felt very stilted, and I wasn't a big fan of any of the characters. Performance wise, no-one really stood out to me as doing anything particularly spectacular apart from Dame Judi Dench, and in fact Reese Witherspoon's acting was very subpar. All being said and done, I'd need to read the play to understand the intended effect, but I don't think I'd rewatch this any time soon.
❝You must not laugh at me, darling, but it has always been a girlish dream of mine to love a man named Ernest.❞
⊱ ──── . ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁. ──── ⊰
I haven't read the original play by Oscar Wilde, so I can't comment on whether this is a good adaptation or not, but The Importance of Being Earnest is a painfully average historical comedy, and to be honest the only reasons I watched it were Colin Firth and Rupert Everett. The costumes and sets were beautiful, and I liked the soundtrack, but for a film that's reliant on dialogue it felt very stilted, and I wasn't a big fan of any of the characters. Performance wise, no-one really stood out to me as doing anything particularly spectacular apart from Dame Judi Dench, and in fact Reese Witherspoon's acting was very subpar. All being said and done, I'd need to read the play to understand the intended effect, but I don't think I'd rewatch this any time soon.
chalrto
Jack is so me (hes literally nothing like me at all)
Jack is so me (hes literally nothing like me at all)
Sam
7.0★ · 05/09/26
Posh white people the movie
Posh white people the movie
EILIDH
9.0★ · 05/04/26
I WAS TERRIFIED THEY WERE SIBLINGS FOR A MINUTE
I WAS TERRIFIED THEY WERE SIBLINGS FOR A MINUTE