In 1776, just a day shy of 17 years old, Georgiana Spencer (Keira Knightley) married William Cavendish the 5th Duke of Devonshire (Ralph Fiennes) to become the Duchess of Devonshire. During their marriage, the couple struggled with a long delay in the production of a male heir, almost incompatible temperaments, and the Duke's infamous relationship with his live-in mistress Lady Elizabeth Foster (Hayley Atwell). And so goes the story of Saul Dibb's The Duchess. Think Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette with a darker body and brighter ending, The Other Boleyn Girl with one sister traded for a friend, and an almost pared down, more emotionally raw look at the themes explored in both for a story that is both painfully tragic and subtly inspiring at the same time.

On the surface, The Duchess is a tragic tale of a woman oppressed. It is about a woman denied freedom, love, and passion simply because she is not a man. It challenges us to recognize the liberties that have often been granted to only men and never women. And it dares us to ponder the beliefs that have and still do deny equal freedoms to men and women today.

On another level, The Duchess is a study in marriage. It deals with the problem of unequal standards for men and women when it comes to commitment, fidelity, and contribution to the relationship. It addresses the reality of marriage relationships entered into for the wrong reasons—then, often status, money, and the production of an heir. And in an age where marriages are still entered into for the wrong reasons—now, often passion, money, and convenience—it challenges us to consider the problem of unhealthy marriages today.

From the beginning of The Duchess, we pretty much know Georgiana's marriage to the Duke is not going to be a picnic. The only thing the Duke seems to care about before giving the marriage his go ahead—that Georgiana is capable of bearing him a son. The only question Georgiana asks when she is told the marriage offer has been made—"He loves me?" The problem even from the get go—both of them have different ideas of what marriage is supposed be. And the even greater issue—the very basis of what marriage is supposed to be doesn't seem to be there at all.

On one level, The Duchess could be seen as a warning against marrying for the wrong reasons and an admonition to carefully consider what marriage is supposed to be. Central to the warning is that a marriage relationship is truly unique among relationships. But for the Duke, his marriage might as well be a business relationship. Or as Georgiana puts it, the same as his relationship with his dogs. A little bit of passion would be nice, you say. Definitely. But then the question is: will passion be enough to sustain a relationship that must face anything outside the bedroom? Even saying that marriage is all about love, there still seems to be a problem. "I love you, in the way I understand love," the Duke tells Georgiana. But at least as this girl sees it, the Duke does not understand love at all. Maybe selfishness, maybe power, maybe politics, but nothing even close to love. And unfortunately, false concepts of love seem more abundant today than ever.

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