I heard of the movie Girl with a Pearl Earring long before I watched it, but I just figured that it would be one of those overblown movies that would only be popular because it had a Hollywood sex symbol playing one of the main roles. However, after forcing myself to give it a chance recently I enjoyed it so much that I had no choice but to change my opinion.

The film Girl with a Pearl Earring is an on screen adaptation of the book published in 1999 by author Tracy Chevalier. The book itself was inspired by a famous painting of the same name done in the 17th Century by Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer.

The movie is set in the 17th century. A young Dutch girl who we only know as Griet goes to work as a maid after her father, an artist goes blind and is unable to financially support the family with his craft anymore. The household that she works for is that of famous painter Johannes Vermeer, and even though she is treated badly by his wife, Catharina and her daughter Cornelia she continues to work hard to support her family. Nevertheless, she also finds love when the butcher's son Pieter notices her and falls in love with her.

Griet eventually falls into the routine of working as a maid for her new employers. However, things take an unfavourable turn when Johannes Vermeer takes a special interest in her. After experiencing so much unpleasantness from the rest of the family, Johannes' attention seems like the best thing that could have happened to her. Unfortunately it soon becomes clear that Johannes' affection could lead her into a more precarious situation than what she started out in.

I think that one of the most surprising things about the movie was that I realised that the actress Scarlett Johansson did an exceptional job playing the main character Griet. While I've never thought that she was a bad actress per se, I've never really thought of Johansson seriously enough to play a role like that one and make it believable.

To my surprise I when I watched the movie I was impressed at how she made the role of Griet her own. As a result it was easy for me to understand why she made some of the choices she did, as well as why she reacted certain ways in specific situations.

The relationship between the main character Griet and her employer Johannes Vermeer was one that gave me some sort of pleasure and grief at the same time. For one, I was glad that Griet was able to find someone who would indulge her curiosity and love for art in a society and a time that I knew that would not have appreciate someone like her having such interests. I was also happy that after being treated poorly by other members of the household, she was able to gain acceptance from at least one person.

On the other hand I was also wary of their relationship because it had the potential to give her a lot of grief, which it eventually did. The wife became jealous of her and the young daughter hated her as a result. She was also forced into a business arrangement where she was supposed to be the plaything of a lecherous old pervert.

I also liked the actor Tom Wilkinson's portrayal of Van Ruijven. I knew that nothing much was known about the real Pieter van Ruijven, except that he was the patron of the artist Johannes Vermeer. However I do know that he is portrayed as something of a villain and a shameless predator in the movie. I loved the way how Wilkinson's portrayal was able to make his character unsettling to the point where watching him around people who he had some degree of power over, was like watching a cat play with a mouse.

From the moment that the character is introduced on screen his interaction with Griet comes off as inappropriate and discomforting, and I think that's about the time I knew that he might eventually play a much more dangerous villain in her life as a maid.

What was even worse was watching the scene where Van Ruijven attempts to rape Griet in view of the house. I think this shows two things about the character. The first is that he believes he's untouchable and the second is that he does not respect the Vermeer household even though he commissions paintings from them.
The part about this movie that awed me the most was how the filmmaker was able to create a likeness between Scarlett Johansson's image and that of the real painting. It was unbelievable. Their features might not be the same, but it was easy to believe that they might have been the same girl with the actresses full lips and bone structure.

At the same time I was also awed by how the character was exoticised and sexualised while making this picture. It doesn't have anything to do with the headscarf that she was wearing as I've come to realise that such an article was popular in tronies at that time. However, it was how she was arranged to ooze sensuality by wetting her lips to make them "shamelessly" moist and then parting them in lust or some form of invitation.

If you like historical films or films with a historical setting you're probably going to like the movie "Girl with a Pearl Earring". It's gripping in such a subtle way not only because of the characters but because of the predicament Griet finds herself in.