The Favourite

The Favourite is a 2018 period black comedy film directed by Yorgos Lanthimos and written by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara. A co-production between Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States, the film stars Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, and Rachel Weisz. Set in early 18th century Great Britain, it examines the relationship between cousins Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough and Abigail Hill as they vie to be court favourite of Queen Anne. Principal photography took place at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire and at Hampton Court Palace, lasting from March to May 2017. The film premiered on 30 August 2018 at the 75th Venice International Film Festival, where it won the Grand Jury Prize and the Volpi Cup for Best Actress for Colman. It was released theatrically in North America on 23 November 2018 by Fox Searchlight Pictures, and in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 1 January 2019. The film was a box office success, grossing $95 million worldwide on a $15 million budget. The Favourite received widespread critical acclaim, with particular praise drawn to Lanthimos's direction, the screenplay and performances of the lead cast, and it won or was nominated for numerous awards, including ten Academy Award nominations, tying Roma for the most nominations of any film at that year's ceremony. It won ten British Independent Film Awards, seven BAFTA Awards, and eight European Film Awards, and Colman won Best Actress at each of those ceremonies, as well as the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes, and others. The American Film Institute named The Favourite one of the top ten films of 2018 and since its release, it has been assessed as one of the best films of the 21st century.

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Madame Tournee. You may have the tapestry budget you asked for. Spend one penny more and I will take your fingernails in lieu.

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TOURNEE: Merci.

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Abigail, get a platter of oysters sent to the Dutch ambassador. Yes, Your Ladyship.

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SARAH: Colonel Masham.

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Lady Marlborough. The queen will ride on Wednesday.

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Yes, Lady Marlborough.

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Would you like a bite of my new maid before you leave?

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[MUSIC FADES] [DUCK QUACKS]

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Must the duck be here? Fastest duck in the city. Horatio is a prize worth stealing. He does not leave my side. Keep him away from me, or I will pull his liver out and eat it with a cornichon.

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Charming.

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You should know I've canvassed my party. They're waiting for us to announce an attempt at peace.

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We shall both make our case to the queen. Yes, where is the queen? We've been waiting an hour. - FOOTMAN: Lady Sarah Marlborough. - I'm here.

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HARLEY: Might I remind you you're not the queen? No, she has sent me to speak for her. She is unwell. PRIME MINISTER: What says she? That Harley is a fop and a prat and smells like a 96-year-old French whore's vajuju. Oh?

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Well, I really doubt you're quoting.

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She has decided to continue with the war.

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She feels another victory in will put us in a stronger position for a treaty. Her letters.

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HARLEY: And how are we going to pay for this? The land tax is to be doubled.

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This is madness.

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The war you will be fighting will be in our own countryside. She relies on you and your love of England to hold the Tories together. - There are limits. - SARAH: The love of your country? To me, there is no limit on that.

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Our last farthing to protect England if we must. HARLEY: And our last man, too? Look, the dead pile up, as do the resentments. - Or that does not concern you? - SARAH: I grieve them all. In my heart, a scar for each, and I send my own beloved with them, chest bared. So do not lecture me on the cost.

The Favourite