Sometimes the greatest journey is the distance between two people The Painted Veil is a sumptuous tale of love, betrayal, revenge and redemption, based on the classic novel by W. Somerset Maugham. Directed by John Curran and featuring a stellar cast headed by Edward Norton and Naomi Watts, Liev Schreiber, Toby Jones and Diana Rigg, you won’t be able to help yourself falling in love with the DVD when it’s released on 20 August 2007 and retail DVD on 3 September 2007. With extras that include the theatrical trailer and Making of Featurette with Edward Norton, Naomi Watts and John Curran, The Painted Veil is stunning epic that exudes sheer class.Set against the exotic backdrop of 1920’s Shanghai, this lavish adaptation is a moving drama of love and human frailty. An outstanding cast give life to W. Somerset Maugham’s complex characters; two-time Oscar® nominee Edward Norton, (Primal Fear, American History X, The Illusionist), arguably one of the finest actors of his generation, plays Dr Walter Fane, a middle class repressed doctor. Playing his wife Kitty is Oscar® and BAFTA nominee Naomi Watts (Mulholland Dr., 21 Grams, King Kong) who gives a convincing portrayal as a spoilt London socialite. Fresh from a brilliant turn as Truman Capote in Infamous, Toby Jones (Finding Neverland Amazing Grace) plays Deputy Commissioner Waddington; actor, director and writer Liev Schreiber (Scream 1,2 and 3, The Manchurian Candidate) is the dashing and witty English Vice Consul Charles Townsend and the legendary Diana Rigg (The Avengers, Mother Love) plays the missionary Mother Superior.Kitty (Watts) lives in an age when a proper lady must find a husband. Bored with her life and stifled by her socially conscious mother, Kitty accepts a proposal of marriage from Dr Walter Fane (Norton), a quiet, serious doctor who specialises in infectious diseases. Relocating to Shanghai, the Fanes are introduced to English Vice Consul Charles Townsend (Schreiber). While Walter dedicates himself to his work, Kitty and Townsend embark on an adulterous affair. Learning of her indiscretion, and in an act of revenge, Walter takes Kitty to a remote village ravaged by cholera. Amid the human wreckage and tragedy, Kitty and Walter discover forgiveness, understanding, a kind of tenderness and possibly each other.
“Superbly written, sensitively directed and brilliantly acted – the finest and most profound picture to have come out of America this year”***** - Daily Mail
“Beautifully played out against an awesome backdrop” - Woman & Home
“Will simultaneously break your heart and reinforce your belief in love” - Grazia The Painted Vile