
Apart from the top nominations at the Oscars this year, “The Favourite” has so far opened to phenomenal box-office success overseas and will soon open in PH on February 20 (exclusive at Ayala Malls Cinemas). Directed by Academy award-nominee Yorgos Lanthimos, “The Favourite” is also nominated for Best Picture – a story that traces a time in history when then Queen Anne’s reign was perhaps unfairly dismissed. Such time was when Britain was at war, while in the Queen’s court the absurdities of palace life run rife. Gout-ridden and beset by grief over the loss of no fewer than 17 children, Anne relies on her only confidant, Lady Sarah Churchill (Rachel Weisz), who keeps the Privy Purse and offers much more than guidance in the matters of state. Her relationship with the Queen is as intimate as it comes, but when she introduces her downtrodden cousin, Abigail Hill (Emma Stone), to court, she soon discovers a rival for Anne’s affections, and so begins a struggle for power and love that might threaten the monarchy itself.