Leaving Las Vegas

Amazon.com

One of the most critically acclaimed films of 1995, this wrenchingly sad but extraordinarily moving drama provides an authentic, superbly acted portrait of two people whose lives intersect just as they've reached their lowest depths of despair. Ben (Nicolas Cage, in an Oscar-winning performance) is a former movie executive who's lost his wife and family in a sea of alcoholic self-destruction. He's come to Las Vegas literally to drink himself to death, and that's when he meets Sera (Elisabeth Shue), a prostitute who falls in love with him--and he with her--despite their mutual dead-end existence. They accept each other as they are, with no attempts by one to change the other, and this unconditional love turns Leaving Las Vegas into a somber yet quietly beautiful love story. Earning Oscar nominations for Best Director (Mike Figgis), Best Adapted Screenplay (Figgis, from John O'Brien's novel) and Best Actress (Shue), the film may strike some as relentlessly bleak and glacially paced, but attentive viewers will readily discover the richness of these tragic characters and the exceptional performances that bring them to life. (In a sad echo of his own fiction, novelist John O'Brien committed suicide while this film was in production.) The DVD features uncut, unrated footage that was not included in the film's theatrical release. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Best Actor OscarÂ(r) winner* Nicolas Cage and Best Actress nominee* Elisabeth Shue set the screen ablaze in this profoundly moving love story. Nominated* for two additional Academy AwardsÂ(r)Director and Adapted Screenplaythis emotionally charged powerhouse of a film graced over 100 10 Best Lists including Roger Ebert's #1 Movie of the Year. Ben Sanderson (Cage) is a career alcoholic who has hit rock bottom. Trashing all personal and professional ties to his L.A. existence, he sets off for the lights of Vegas on a mission: to drink himself to death. There he meets Sera (Shue), a beautiful, seen-it-all hooker. From the moment Ben and Sera connect, they form a unique bond based upon unconditional acceptance and mutual respect that will change each of themforever. In the words of David Thompson of Los Angeles Magazine, Leaving Las Vegas is a masterpiece. *1995

Customer Reviews:

See how hard you make me angel?.......2007-09-08

-So the movie's about a man played by Nick Cage who decided to drink himself to death. He sells all his possessions and moves into a motel. One night he meets a prostitute played by Elizabeth Shue and he asks her to stay with him for one night of just talking without sex and that leads to her falling in love with him and vica versa.

-I think ultimately what appeals the most to me about this movie is just the idea of how no matter who you are you still have a chance of finding true love. Whether you're a drunk destined to kill himself, or a prostitute you still have a chance of meeting someone that will love you no matter what problems you have. This is not a wholesome romantic movie that everyone ends up happy in the end, this is a painful, heartbreaking and sad tale of a drunk who is destined to die and a prostitute who falls in love with him. Their relationship isn't sexual despite her profession, it's pure 100% not fooled with love. The kind that can make a guy do anything for the girl and the type that makes the girl do anything for the guy.

-Throughout this wonderfully crafted tale of doom we get to see each of the two as they lead their lives. We see the effects that the drinking is having on Nick Cage and how he loses his temper uncontrollably due to the drinking and how it causes him to make the wrong decisions at times. We also get to see Elizabeth Shue leading her life as she continues on to be a prostitute whose the only one that still loves this doomed man. It's really sad to watch the two of them because we know that their love story will soon end.

-The whole story is told as if it were an interview with Shue's character. She lets us know from time to time what's happening but the interview segments seldom occur so it never really gets in the way of the story. There's a horrible scene in the movie where Nick Cage's drinking leads to them splitting but then after they both go through their own personal hell they get back together even if it is a brief moment they have to be together again.

-Elizabeth Shue really broke my heart with her performance here. She does a great job of playing a woman whose life is so sad that Nick Cage asking her to simply hang out and talk to him instead of sex is to her an act of kindness. In her whole life the happiest she's ever been is with a drunk whose intent on dying and that just brings tears to my eyes every time. The last time we get to see her with Nick Cage is perhaps one of the most beautiful moments in movies ever. Too bad Cage's character didn't use her love for him as an inspiration to sober up, they would have made a lovely couple. Usually when you're suicidal, finding someone that loves you is meant to keep you going but it doesn't happen in this movie which makes it all the more heartbreaking.

-Watching this movie really makes you loose some respect for the recent roles that Nick Cage has taken on recently. He was so brilliant in this movie that you buy the character completly. From the mood swings to the shakes that occur when he needs to drink, Cage captures it all magnificantly and without blemish. Hope he does something like this again soon and abandons the forgettable action movies that has been pollutiing his career lately

-Freaks and the dysfunctional really do make the best couples

Leaving Las Vegas.......2007-07-13

Filmed on a shoestring by Figgis, who also contributed the haunting jazz score, "Vegas" is a fearlessly downbeat love story about desperation and despair that was rapturously received at the box office in 1995. Cage won an Oscar for his gritty, go-for-broke portrayal of the suicidal Ben, and Shue made the leap from TV's "Melrose Place" to the big screen with her convincingly raw, Oscar-nominated performance--especially in one horrific motel scene. Adapted from John O'Brien's novel, "Vegas" is one cinematic bender that leaves a strangely blissful hangover.

A one-sided love story.......2007-06-28

I watched this movie for the first time last night. While digesting my own impressions, I decided to see what others have thought and so hopped onto Amazon. Reading other reviews today out of curiosity, I am struck by the repeated assertions that this is a mutual love story of Shakespearian proportions.

To me, this love story is entirely one-sided.

When we first meet Sera, she seems very much like a high-priced 'call-girl' who commands hundreds for her services. She describes being routinely abased and abused on the 'job,' but asserts that she's in control. Then we meet her boyfriend/pimp, from whose abuse she has already fled once only to be tracked down. Despite Sera's self-delusion that she's in charge and living a good life, we see evidence of despair and hopelessness as she not only submits to her pimps degradation, but even tries to defend it.

When she encounters Ben, who is introduced as an incredibly self-aware and self-destructive alocholic, it is his treatment of her as a person that finally reveals her own despair to herself. He doesn't want sex--in a touching and rare moment of lucidity, Ben recognizes his own lonliness and will pay a 'hooker' to talk to him for an hour. Sera ends up staying the whole night. With the pimp conveniently killed a few scenes later (my only quibble with the plot in general), Sera decides to 'rescue' Ben. The only problem is, he refuses to be rescued and bluntly demands that she can not ask him to stop, or he will leave.

We know from the outset that Ben won't stop drinking, he doesn't want to stop. Indeed, it seems his body is so enthralled that he can't stop. We see fewer and fewer moments where he is in command of his senses and actions, his compulsive need to drink just to stay conscious--and yet the incredible volumes of alcohol frequently rendering him incoherent--providing a tragic paradox. He drinks to live and lives to drink.

Sera watches his downward spiral, at first enabling in the guise of acceptance, but then with increasing distress. No matter how she tries, she can't break through. At one point she has to douse herself with alcohol to break through his drunken self-absorption, and even that ends in failure as he staggers, falls, and injures himself. Towards the end she begs him to see a doctor, the only time that comes close to her actually breaking her promise about not asking him to stop. And he refuses.

Sera admits that she's 'using him,' and I think that could be true. In saving Ben from himself, Sera finds a purpose in her own meaningless life. But as her failure to reach him becomes more obvious and his selfish course continues unabated, we see Sera's self-confidence waver. We see criticism from others that at the start wouldn't even have registered, now pummeling her. A new despair sets in as Sera realizes Ben can't be saved despite her love, because he doesn't love himself.

And while he says he loves her, he can't pull himself out of the bottle enough to really feel anything at all. Their last moments together are tragic and quiet.

To say that I 'enjoyed' this film is not the right word. I am haunted by it. I see redemption, somewhat, but only in Sera's character and not really enough to save her. The two lead actors are outstanding. Nicholas Cage is utterly convincing and revolting as a drunk. Elisabeth Shue brings out a curious combination of dignity and helplessness in her protrayal of Sera, the more sympathetic of the two characters. A haunting film, to be sure, but not an enjoyable one.

Arriving in Trite Town.......2007-04-16

Mannered acting and an agglomeration of late 20th century cinematic cliches -- the tart with a heart; the pimp with half a heart; the interminable cutesy-gawky therapy sessions -- grab an Oscar jury by the throat...and choke it.

One of the Greatest Movies in The World!.......2007-03-07

That's saying a lot by me, since that would be the second movie I've ever said that about. This brilliant picture, which when you first watch it, you'll think you'll never watch it again. It will ebb at you, demand of you to watch it again, reexamine it, watch the words spoken, look at the facial expressions. WHy this film did not win Best Picture, is only evidence of a stupid decision by the Academy Awards. This film was brilliant, this film was wonderful, this film was great. Buy it and buy it now!

Average customer rating:

The beauty of balmy nights and dirty windows
A Love Song for Bobby Brown
Quite a Love Song for Bobby Long
SLOW AND STEADY
Better than you've heard

A Love Song for Bobby Long
Starring: John Travolta , Scarlett Johansson , Gabriel Macht , Deborah Kara Unger , and Dane Rhodes
Director: Shainee Gabel
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
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ASIN: B0007Q6VY6
Release Date: 2005-04-19

Amazon.com

A misfit drama in the grand Southern (by way of Hollywood) tradition, A Love Song for Bobby Long takes its cue from Carson McCullers's The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter. Re-establishing his indie-cred, John Travolta adds Bobby Long to his gallery of colorful characters. Hobbled by an infected toe, the 50-something Bobby is a white-haired, unshaven, vodka-soaked mess. But he's also a former English professor, and the piles of books in his ramshackle house, and the authors he drunkenly quotes give him a wounded dignity. Just how wounded will be revealed over the course of this atmospheric tale of redemption and penance. Bobby lives with Lawson Pines (Gabriel Macht), his former teaching assistant who is writing a book about his mentor, a project deferred by drinking, sitting around with the locals, or engaging in quotation oneupsmanship. Scarlett Johansson (Lost in Translation, Ghost World) holds her own against Travolta ("You are such a shameless ham," she chastises the loquacious Bobby) as Pursy, the estranged daughter of Lorraine, a recently deceased singer-songwriter in whose house Bobby and Lawson reside. A battle of wills between the two men and the headstrong young girl gives way to the formation of a tentative family unit. Pursy agrees to return to high school if Bobby and Lawson quit drinking. There will be the expected revelations, recriminations, and dramatic confrontations, but what makes this Love Songresonate are the performances by a cast that rarely hits a false note. --Donald Liebenson

Customer Reviews:

The beauty of balmy nights and dirty windows.......2007-09-10

This film is awesome, using the original meaning of the word which is awe- inspiring. I've always been a John Travolta fan and anyone that is I think would agree with me when I say he brings to mind eternal youth. So to see him playing a jaded and bitter character with white hair is a tribute to the true natural talent of the man. I think he's one of the bravest actors we have to take parts that are physically unflattering but unexplainably beautiful because of the amount of spirit and pure joy that went into becoming 'unflattering.' Even Hairspray it looked like he was having a ball and I know he must have been thinking "the reporters will start back up with the 'he's gay' bit, as if saying someone's gay enough times will turn them gay. John Travolta is wonderful in everything he's done because when you wake up every morning and say "I can't wait to get to work!" it shows. He's like Southern comfort food, something that you grew up with and you know will always be around.

A Love Song for Bobby Brown.......2007-08-23

John Travolta has never been better. This is his best work. I'm not even a huge fan of his but, good golly miss molly, this is a stand up and cheer performance. Scarlett Johansson is always a sure fire hit in my book and this movie continues to support my admiration for an exceptional performance. Do yourself a favor and buy this DVD. It is utterly amazing.

Quite a Love Song for Bobby Long.......2007-03-30

I loved this film! Some critics knock the movie for using some clichés and there are some aspects of New Orleans in particular that are romanticized. Romanticism aside, the cinematography is beautiful and the film features many of New Orleans great attractions such as the Café du Monde, the old mansions of the garden district, and the dreamy Audubon Park. Of course, what is New Orleans without music? The soundtrack is a wonderful mix of jazz and twangy southern blues that is nicely incorporated into the plot. If that doesn't do it the acting alone makes the film worth seeing. The script is well-written, and the actors do a good job of making it seem spontaneous and real. I never felt like they were reading from a script. John Travolta's performance as the washed-up Bobby Long, an alcoholic former English professor who reminisces about his glory days is magnificent and one of his better performances. Gabriel Macht, plays Lawson Pines, the brilliant, guilt-ridden writer who can't seem to write anything good. Macht, best known for independent films, is one of the better kept secrets of the film world. His allegiance to Bobby is touching and also leaves you wondering, "Why?" His performance is very well done. Scarlett Johansson who plays Pursy Will completes the package and is the powerhouse of the film, but does so without overshadowing the other cast members. Her portrayal of a lonely, strong-willed young woman who reminds her two has-been roommates that they are still alive and capable of much more than drunken lechery is superb and believable. Overall, I think the film is very well done and entertaining. It is a story that highlights many human frailties and struggles and it demonstrates that redemption can be found through friendship and family in the most unlikely places.

SLOW AND STEADY .......2007-03-28

I do love exciting cliff-hanger types of movies, but I also love character studies and marvelous acting. That's what A Love Song For Bobby Long is all about!

If you're an adrenilin junkie, you probably should pass. But if you like a solid cast and a quirky but solid story, try this movie!

Better than you've heard.......2007-03-26

Damaged characters in NOLA. Before Katrina. Makes it even more interesting than anticipated. Travolta works well. Worth a look.

Average customer rating:

Excellent purchase
One of my favorite Kung-Fu Movies
I know you have to take the dialog and acting......
An Amazing Chan Adventure
Jackie at his best

Drunken Master
Starring: Jackie Chan , Siu Tien Yuen , Jang Lee Hwang , Casanova Wong , and Kien Shih
Director: Woo-ping Yuen
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
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ASIN: B00005YUNV
Release Date: 2002-04-02

Amazon.com

Though it wasn't Jackie Chan's first film, Drunken Master is the film that cemented his stardom. Jackie plays the rebellious son of a kung fu master. To teach Jackie the value of discipline, his father apprentices him to another master named So Hi, who has a unique "drunken" fighting style. Jackie chafes at So Hi's rigorous exercises and runs away--only to be brutally humiliated at the hands of a hired killer named Thunderleg. Chastened, Jackie becomes So Hi's devoted student. He soon discovers he will need everything he's learned when Thunderleg is hired to kill his father. In Drunken Master, Jackie is only beginning to cultivate his mixture of action and comedy; here the emphasis is on kung fu acrobatics. But the kung fu is astounding. The final fight is dizzying and amazingly choreographed by director Yuen Woo-ping (now famous as the fight choreographer for The Matrix). --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews:

Excellent purchase.......2007-07-03

arrived in a month, which is normal for me. And the dvd was in excellent conditions.

One of my favorite Kung-Fu Movies.......2007-04-12

If you are looking for an old school 80's style Kung-Fu movie with great choreography, a variety of styles (crane, snake, tiger claw, etc), and the English dubbing with Chinese mouth movements (sometimes continuing after an English sentence is completed), then this is the movie for you. The only thing missing is the high flying acrobatics such as jumping on the roof of a house. In addition to the above, the movie includes the amazing stunts and use of remote items (chairs stunts, buckets, brooms, etc.) that are common among Jackie Chan films. Drunken Master is a great movie that shows Jackie Chan's skills as a marital artist and the breadth of styles he is familiar with. Bravo!

I know you have to take the dialog and acting.............2007-02-05

.....with a grain of salt but, except for the amazing final fight scene and the hilarious Drunken Master himself, this movie was un-funny and almost unwatchable at times. Too bad, because we loved Chan's second Drunken Master movie but this one left us very disappointed.

An Amazing Chan Adventure.......2006-11-10

This was truly a classic martial arts film. It combined the prowess and acting ability of Jackie Chan with the excellent direction and choreography of Yuen Wo Ping. If you've seen "The Legend of Drunken Master", that's only the second half of the story. I strongly suggest you see how it all starts with this movie.

Jackie at his best.......2006-11-01

This is probably my favorite Jackie Chan film of all time. Disregard the recycled story line and focus on his amazing athletic ability and the expertly choreagraphed fight sequences - this is what made Jackie great. The one trait I most admired about him was his very clever use of props during these scenes. He would take a seemingly ordinary object and use it to his advantage during a fight. But also in less violent moments as well...a lighthearted chopstick duel over a piece of chicken. Excellent. In this age of blue-screen and CG, I am so glad we have these early films when everything was done right then and there on the set. Film making at it's best.

Average customer rating:

Oldies but goodies!!
The Harvey Girls
Not historically very accurate, but a good western/musical
The Harvey Girls review
An engaging and nostalgic musical, with a fresh-faced Judy Garland (and Angela Lansbury, who almost steals the movie)

The Harvey Girls
Starring: Judy Garland , John Hodiak , Ray Bolger , Preston Foster , and Virginia O'Brien
Director: George Sidney (II)
Manufacturer: Turner Home Ent
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ASIN: B00005Y71M
Release Date: 2001-04-30

Product Description

Musical western about a mail order bride who ditches her bashful suitor and joins a group of women intent on opening a remote whistle stop restaurant.

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

Sometimes lively, sometimes pokey, this Technicolor MGM musical inspires mixed feelings in aficionados of the form--except on one point. No viewer will question why "On the Atchison, Topeka, & the Santa Fe" won the best song Oscar for 1946. This is a brilliant, inventive song given an epic staging. Director George Sidney pulls out all the stops for this wowser--even Marjorie Main sings, an eardrum-testing sound. The real-life Harvey Girls were waitresses imported to the far-flung Fred Harvey Hotels, civilizing oases along the railroad lines out west. The fictional Harvey Girls is set in Sandrock, where the traveling waitresses are joined by a sort of mail-order bride (Judy Garland) whose prospective husband is a bust--he's a roughhewn rancher played by Chill Wills. Garland is in fine spunky form; unfortunately, her romance is with John Hodiak (as the owner of a dance hall), that uninspiring World War II-era lead. The film's other great Johnny Mercer-Harry Warren song is the unexpectedly melancholy "It's a Great Big World," performed in a lovely trio by Garland, Virginia O'Brien, and the young Cyd Charisse. The tall, deadpan O'Brien also does a comic take on "The Wild, Wild West" while shoeing a horse. With kewpie-faced Angela Lansbury as a bespangled dance-hall gal and Ray Bolger high-stepping through a dance solo, there are enough good people on board to keep the wheels a-turning "all the way to Californ-eye-yay." --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

Oldies but goodies!!.......2007-02-24

Absolutely loved it !! I love any movie with Judy Garland in it!

The Harvey Girls.......2007-01-22

A must see for any Judy Garland fan. Home of The Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe - a classic!!

Not historically very accurate, but a good western/musical.......2006-12-30

I probably saw The Harvey Girls when I was much younger, but if I did, I don't remember anything about it. The movie was released in 1945, a year before I was born. The movie has aged better than I have!

I bought the DVD after reading the book "The Harvey Girls" by Lesley Poling-Kempes. The book gives a fascinating look at the Harvey Girls and the Fred Harvey hotels and restaurants that helped civilize the wild west. If you watch the movie expecting to see a historically accurate depiction of Harvey houses and Harvey Girls, you'll be disappointed. The movie gives at best a very superficial view of the Fred Harvey system and his Harvey Girls.

Having said that, however, I enjoyed the movie. It's an old fashioned musical with a wild west setting, and it's pretty good to boot. Judy Garland is at her absolute peak, as are a screenful of other superb actors and actresses. The musical numbers are mostly good, but "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe" is a classic (and it was the Academy Award Best Song in 1946).

The story line involving Judy Garland and John Hodiak is fairly predictable, but it's still fun to watch it develop. And this movie can be watched by everyone in the family without any embarrassment.

No, they don't make 'em like this any more, and maybe that's a bad thing.

Some additional material, including deleted musical numbers and a director commentary are nice touches to the DVD.

The Harvey Girls review.......2006-11-04

I really enjoyed the movie. The story background is the Fred Harvey restaurants and concessions at train stations. My father worked for Fred Harvey at the Chicago and Cleveland facilities.

Regarding the movie and Judy Garland - The movie is great and Judy was one of my favorite entertainers.

Lane Hansen

An engaging and nostalgic musical, with a fresh-faced Judy Garland (and Angela Lansbury, who almost steals the movie).......2006-07-05

The Harvey Girls is hard to beat for sheer corny, likable nostalgia. Is it one of the great MGM musicals? Not in my opinion. The narrative is too long, John Hodiak isn't an intriguing romantic lead and some of the comic relief is too broad. Still, the movie carries with it such a high degree of good-natured professionalism that it's easy to like. The story itself is uncomplicated. A group of Harvey girls arrive at Sandrock, Arizona, to open a Harvey House, one of many restaurants Fred Harvey was establishing along the western rail lines. A Harvey House offered good, wholesome food and good, wholesome company. Susan Bradley (Judy Garland) joins them when she and her groom-to-be (Chill Wills) decide in a friendly way that their mail-order marriage arrangement wasn't such a good idea. Determined to stop the Harvey House girls are Ned Trent (John Hodiak) and Sam Purvis (Preston Foster), owners of the Alhambra, a wide-open saloon, dance hall and gambling establishment across the street from the new Harvey House. Em (Angela Lansbury), the dance hall star, doesn't like the competition, either, especially when Susan and Ned begin to notice each other.

Great movie musical or not, there are many things to enjoy. Judy Garland dominates the movie. She was 23 when she made it. Despite her immense talent and almost unnatural professional skills (I mean this as a compliment), there is an innocence about her in this movie which seems fresh and unforced. She handles the comedy and pratfalls in a very winning way. Angela Lansbury steals the scenes she has with everyone except Garland, and comes close even there. Lansbury moves from a woman with a mercenary heart who is more complex than we first think to a woman who not only is willing to concede defeat to Susan when it comes to Ned, but who is instrumental in finally bringing the two together. Lansbury was 21, doesn't seem that young for an instant and was already proving her skills as an actress. The songs by Harry Warren and Johnny Mercer, with one exception, never became well known on their own but they serve the story extremely well. As usual, Mercer's lyrics capture the style of the characters and are worth listening to carefully. He was among the very best at writing lyrics that were character-driven and conversational. One particularly nice song is "It's a Great Big World," a charming combination of ruefulness and romantic hope sung by Garland, Virginia O'Brien and Cyd Charisse:

I had no petticoat trimmed with lace,
My angel cake was a pure disgrace,
My face was my fortune, my mother said,
And my dancing slippers of bright, bright red.
A million miles I have danced, or more,
In hopes Prince Charming would cross the floor,
I can't understand it, I've waltzed and I've whirled,
But my goodness me it's a great big world.
And it's cold, cold, cold,
And we'll soon be old.
But I'll keep on knitting and doing it well,
My slippers are one thing I never will sell,
My petticoat's waiting because who can tell?
It's a great big world, it's a great big world.

The big hit, "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe," is featured in an eight-minute production number at the start of the movie. It's just about worth the price of the DVD.

Do you hear that whistle down the line?
I figure that it's engine number forty nine,
She's the only one that'll sound that way.
On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe.
See the ol' smoke risin' 'round the bend,
I reckon that she knows she's gonna meet a friend,
Folks around these parts get the time o' day
From the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe.

The number is an fine example of the full-throttle MGM style...hundreds of extras taking part, different characters telling in song their stories as well as the story of what the Harvey girls were all about, the introduction of nearly all the main or featured characters, plus cowboys, horses, buckboard wagons, lariats and a giant, polished steam engine moving down the tracks...all wrapped up in this memorable and catchy song. The featured characters all have their own stories and are used in different ways. Some, such as Ray Bolger, Marjorie Main, Chill Wills and Virginia O'Brien, are used as comedy relief, some with their own numbers, others such as Cyd Charisse and Kenny Baker bring low-key subplots to the story. The look of the movie adds immeasurably to its charm...bright, Technicolor sets and costumes, perfect outdoor scenery, cowboys in immaculate pastel shirts, the bargirls in ostrich feathers and risque (but not too risque) costumes and the Harvey girls in their prim dresses and starched aprons. And all the girls, whether they work in the dance-hall or in Fred Harvey's restaurant, are gorgeous.

There's also one other bit of nice nostalgia. Six years previously, when Garland was 17 and made to look like she was 12, she and Ray Bolger as her friend the scarecrow were skipping down the yellow brick road on a wonderful adventure. With The Harvey Girls, Garland has become a young woman on the brink of romance, and Bolger is still next to her as her friend.

The DVD presentation is excellent. The extras include an interesting, perceptive commentary recorded 50 years after the movie was made by the director, George Stevens.

Average customer rating:

You can't get your life back
A highly recommended version of the classic!
Boring
Ciaran Hinds at his best
Superb Film !! Don't Miss Out !!

The Mayor of Casterbridge
Starring: Ciarán Hinds , Juliet Aubrey , Jodhi May , James Purefoy , and Polly Walker (II)
Director: David Thacker
Manufacturer: A&E Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0000AQS3P
Release Date: 2003-09-30

Product Description

Destitute and drunken, Michael Henchard is an itinerant farmhand who sells his wife and daughter to a sailor in a moment of alcohol-fueled desperation. So begins THE MAYOR OF CASTERBRIDGE, Thomas Hardy s enduring classic.

This lavish new adaptation from A&E and Britain s ITV stars Ciaran Hinds ("Road to Perdition," "Jane Eyre")as the tragic, tormented Henchard. Decades after his fateful decision, now reformed and respectable, he is offered a chance at redemption when his wife reappears with her daughter. But the reunion s promise is soon tarnished by a web of jealousy, deceit, and wounded pride.

Adapted for the screen by Ted Whitehead (A&E s "Tess of the D Urbervilles") THE MAYOR OF CASTERBRIDGE features powerful supporting performances from Jodhi May ("The House of Mirth"), Polly Walker ("Emma"), and James Purefoy ("A Knight s Tale," "Mansfield Park").

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

Common sense suggests that no good can come of auctioning off your wife in a drunken fit, but Thomas Hardy's classic novel The Mayor of Casterbridge turns this dark story, set in rural England in the mid-1800s, into a compelling, compulsive ride. The discarded wife (Juliet Aubrey) returns after 19 years with her daughter (Jodhi May) in tow, only to discover that her former husband, Michael Henchard (Ciarán Hinds) has risen as a merchant and a politician. But though he welcomes her back and arranges to renew their bond without public shame, Henchard's pride and fear remain intractable; the struggle for love and happiness collides with shame and secrets as Hardy's complex tale unfolds. While the 1978 miniseries with Alan Bates is much less abridged and gives a fuller immersion into the novel and life at the time, the swiftness of this two-part adaptation makes it more immediately emotionally engaging, and the superb, compact performances by the entire cast (including Polly Walker and James Purefoy) give this version a potent punch. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews:

You can't get your life back.......2007-02-18

Drunkenly auctioning off your wife and baby is reason enough to despise someone, but the "Mayor of Casterbridge" gives us plenty of other reasons to despise and pity him. The A&E adaptation of Thomas Hardy's novel is an all-around solid one -- solid scripting, solid directing, solid acting from Ciarán Hinds and Jodhi May.

At a county fair, Michael Henchard (Hinds) gets drunk, and auctions his wife and baby daughter off to a kindly sailor. So he swears off booze for the next twenty-one years, and works hard to become a pillar of the community.

Nineteen years later, the sailor is lost at sea, and the wife Susan (Juliet Aubrey) and grown daughter Elizabeth Jane (Jodhi May) return to Casterbridge, and find that Michael has become the mayor and corporate head of the town. He's also incredibly sorry for what he did, and asks Susan to remarry him quietly so his crime never needs to be known. She does.

But Michael soon feels threatened by his brilliant new manager Donald Farfrae (James Purefoy), who is also falling in love with Elizabeth Jane. Michael's corporate power begins to slip, and when Susan dies he discovers a shocking fact about his daughter -- sending him into a spiral of lies, jealousy and misery.

Basically, it's all about watching someone's life go down the drain. There have been more complete adaptations of the Thomas Hardy novel, but this one is just fast-moving and tense enough to give it a feeling of urgency.

The big lesson: Henchard's life isn't wrecked because of alcohol, or even because he auctionied off his wife -- he ruins his own life with his lies, viciousness, and the ugly flaws that makes him try to control the people around him. It has some cute scenes between Purefoy and May in a rainy barn, but other than that it's a relentlessly dark movie.

The whole thing is set in a picturesque English village in a pretty green countryside. David Thacker doesn't neglect the nastier, grimier side of life, but he peppers the story with beautiful visuals (Elizabeth in the graveyard) and moments of merriment or friendship. Then they get ruined by confrontations with Henchard.

Hinds and May give the best performances here -- Hinds gives us a solid performance, as a man who tries to do the wrong thing, but is led astray by his temper. He can flip from miserable repentence to cold cruelty in a moment. And May gives a wonderfully sensitive performance as a confused young girl whose romance and job are derailed by her "father's" resentment.

"The Mayor of Casterbridge" is an all-around solid miniseries, with two really outstanding performances by May and Hinds. Melancholy and bittersweet.

A highly recommended version of the classic!.......2007-02-06

I just finished watching this, and I actually felt that I HAD to come and recommend it to someone thinking of watching it. I have read the book, and I felt that this adaptation was fairly faithful to the story. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any other film/T.V. adaptations, so I can't compare on that score. However, I loved the acting in this version--Ciaran Hinds gives an especially amazing performance, making you loathe and pity the character of Michael Henchard. By himself, he makes this movie worth the watching, but everyone else does a great job too. I watched the entire dvd in one sitting--I loved it. It won't make you leave happy, but that's Thomas Hardy for you.

Boring.......2007-01-11

Being a fan of this type of literature, I couldn't wait to watch this. But I hadn't read the book. About 15 minutes into it, I couldn't stand the boredom and never finished watching the movie.

However, if you are a fan of the book and a Thomas Hardy fan, it's probably a must for your collection.

Ciaran Hinds at his best.......2006-11-23

This film adaptation of Hardy's most seamless tragic novel is superb, with Hinds leading the way. James Purefoy is also excellent. Jodhi May has her problems (see earlier reviews) but she does know how to cry. The supporting cast of villagers, the wonderful art direction, and the scene direction all make this very watchable, despite the sadness from beginning to end. Like Ethan Frome, this is not something to rent if you want lots of weddings at the end, but as a work of art based on another work of art it is well worth the time. One of the very greatest modern tragedies.

Superb Film !! Don't Miss Out !!.......2006-08-16

A wonderful adaptation of this memorable & tragic story by Hardy. It is casted well and remains true to the author's work. I would highly recommend this film as an addition to your collection of great films.

Average customer rating:

Good acting
Perversely amusing, although the novel is better
Why wasn't this in the theaters?
so-so dark film...
WELL DONE AND WORTH SEEING

The Ice Harvest (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: John Cusack , Billy Bob Thornton , Lara Phillips , Bill Noble (III) , and Brad Smith
Director: Harold Ramis
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000DZ7YN8
Release Date: 2006-02-28

Amazon.com

Holiday movies don't get much darker, or more darkly humorous, than The Ice Harvest, an offbeat comedy that defies expectations. The involvement of director Harold Ramis might lead some to expect a straight-up comedy like Groundhog Day or Analyze This, but despite Ramis's fine and atypically subdued work here, it's the writers (Robert Benton and Richard Russo) who put a stronger stamp on their adaptation of the novel by Scott Phillips. Benton and Russo previously collaborated on Nobody's Fool and Twilight (with Benton also directing), and those films are similar in tone and spirit to this quirky, modern-day film noir, set on a freezing Christmas Eve in Wichita, Kansas, where mob lawyer Charlie Arglist (John Cusack) has a lot on his mind. He's just stolen $2 million from his boss (Randy Quaid), he can't trust his partner Vic (Billy Bob Thornton), he's secretly in love with the manager (Connie Nielsen) of the strip bar he owns, and his best friend (Oliver Platt, giving yet another terrific performance) is married to his ex-wife. Before the night's over, several murders will complicate matters even further, and throughout it all, The Ice Harvest is anchored by Cusack's good-natured presence in a bad-natured story that dares to combine double-crosses and bloodshed with elusive yuletide cheer. It's a strange but oddly appealing combination, not for all tastes but refreshing for that very same reason. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Good acting.......2007-08-08

Ever since "High Fidelity" came out, I've been a big John Cusak fan. Before "High Fidelity" I had never really heard of him (I can be a bit out of it sometimes), but after "High Fidelity", he has been one of two actors whose face on the box alone can be enough to make me rent a movie. (Kevin Spacey being the other one).

Of course that can be a dangerous policy because John Cusak has been in as many stinkers as successes, but fortunately this time around "The Ice Harvest" is highly watchable. It's a suspense about a mob lawyer who tries to steal money from his boss, and then finds he can't trust a lot of his friends as well. A lot of dark comedy is thrown in as well. The dark humor aspect of it reminded me slightly of "Things to do in Denver when you're Dead." And Billy Bob Thornton is pretty good in this movie also.

Not anything I would recommend you go out of your way to see, but if you're looking for a video on a slow Wednesday night, you could do a lot worse.

Perversely amusing, although the novel is better.......2007-06-29

Judging from the few dozen reviews I perused, not too many people read Scott Phillips' novel upon which this movie is based. Phillips has a great ear for dialogue, which by & large survived the transition into screenplay form. However, there are some significant differences between the novel and the film, not the least of which is the ending. Scott Phillips was involved to a certain extent in the production of the film, and I have to assume that he was OK with these alterations --- but I can't help but think that the movie would have been more effective if it had remained faithful to the novel all the way through.

Additionally, although I like John Cusack generally, I wasn't entirely satisfied with his portrayal of Charlie Arglist, who comes off as a doofus way in over his head. The Charlie Arglist in the novel may be in the dark on a lot of details, but he is not an idiot, nor is he out of control of his own destiny --- something which the novel's end makes all that much more poignant. This poignancy was missing from the movie, and while reviewers may not have realized it, perhaps this is one of the reasons that this film was not well-received.

So --- even though I enjoyed it, I would give it a very qualified four stars, owing largely to some solid performances from Billy Bob Thornton & Oliver Platt. But I understand why the opinion of others might be more harsh.

Why wasn't this in the theaters?.......2007-06-15

I caught 1/2 this movie on HBO. Got up went to Amazon and bought it! Great dark comedy. John Cusack is really good in this and Billy Bob is,, you know... Billy Bob!!! Simply put, it's a great movie. The outakes are even great. Billy Bob rehearsing a scene as "Carl" (Sling blade)is a perfect ending to a great movie.

so-so dark film..........2007-05-15

*The Ice Harvest* was an alright dark-humor film. The other reviewers here have pretty much said everything about this movie.

There's so many things going on. A stripper and her abusive boyfriend. Charlie's drunken friend who is married to Charlie's ex-wife. A cop who keeps pulling Charlie over but lets him go with the hope that he'll get recommended. A councilman is trying to buy back incriminating photos of him in a compromising position. Charlie and his infatuation with the owner of a club.

However, the main thing is that Charlie Arglist and Vic Cavanaugh have stolen over $2 million dollars from their boss, Bill Guerrand. They plan to act cool by sticking around town, Wichita Falls, for Christmas eve/Christmas. After that, they'll escape. Of course, things go wrong when Bill discovers that money is missing and knows that Charlie and Vic are involved. While Charlie and Vic are doing their best to stay alive, some truths are spilled out.

All I can say is that this movie was alright. There's nothing here that is memorable. I do not believe I'll recommend this movie to others.

WELL DONE AND WORTH SEEING.......2007-04-20

Good acting and cinematography combine in a stylish crime noir tale set on Christmas Eve in Wichita, Kansas during an ice storm. John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton star in this excellent sleeper about a couple of guys who rip off two mil plus (the "ice harvest") from a mobster but then have to wait out the storm before catching a plane to someplace warmer and far away. The perfect crime? Or a very, very bad idea? It starts seeming to be a bad idea pretty quickly and then bobsleds downhill in a hurry on the winter ice. In THE ICE HARVEST you are treated to nice performances from the entire cast which includes Randy Quaid. Director Harold Ramis does a good job keeping things moving and he is working with a tight script. Throughout THE ICE HARVEST you are wonderfully reminded of the cold, dark, icy night of the story that helps sustain that noir feeling. Notable is the excellent photography, costumes and visually pleasing sets, elements not always appreciated enough in good movie-making. Well done and worth seeing.

Punch-Drunk Love (Two Disc Special Edition) (Superbit Collection)

Average customer rating:

Wish there was a "0 Stars" Button
Took Time to Grow on Me...But This is a Great Movie.
Different side of Sandler that I like, but others don't
one of the worst movies i've watched
Sadistic Sandler....

Punch-Drunk Love (Two Disc Special Edition) (Superbit Collection)
Starring: Adam Sandler , Emily Watson , Philip Seymour Hoffman , Luis Guzmán , and Jason Andrews
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00000G02H
Release Date: 2003-06-24

Amazon.com

Adam Sandler takes a shot at critical respectability with Punch-Drunk Love, a movie by director Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, Magnolia). Sandler plays Barry Egan, a lonely small businessman who calls a phone sex line one night, only to find himself the victim of an extortion scheme the next day--the very same day on which he goes out on a date with the woman who may be the love of his life (the utterly delightful Emily Watson). Barry is a lot like Sandler's popular comic characters--socially maladept, prone to violence, always on the brink of embarrassment--but here Sandler plays it real; the result is both off-putting and sympathetic. Anderson's writing skills, unfortunately, are not as strong as his visual sense. Punch-Drunk Love has many strengths (including great supporting actors Philip Seymour Hoffman and Luis Guzmán), but ultimately fizzles out. --Bret Fetzer

Description

The Superbit titles utilize a special high bit rate digital encoding process which optimizes video quality while offering a choice of both DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. These titles have been produced by a team of Sony Pictures Digital Studios video, sound and mastering engineers and comes housed in a special package complete with a 4 page booklet that contains technical information on the Superbit process. By reallocating space on the disc normally used for value-added content, Superbit DVDs can be encoded at double their normal bit rate while maintaining full compatibility with the DVD video format.

Customer Reviews:

Wish there was a "0 Stars" Button.......2007-09-14

Wow....what a waste of Adam Sandler's considerable talent. As a diehard Sandler fan, I can safely say that when I saw this 'film' I decided it was time to stab my eyes out with a rusty fork. Fortunately, someone nearby took pity on me and turned the DVD player off, sparing me my sanity and my eyesight. Poor Sandler. This must have been a hard blow; while he did great with what he was given for a script, the movie itself packed no PUNCH, blew chunks like a DRUNK, and I would LOVE to ask whoever's idea that was, "Just what in the hell were you thinking?! How am I supposed to get that two wasted hours of my life back?!"

Took Time to Grow on Me...But This is a Great Movie........2007-08-24

Paul Thomas Anderson is like Quentin Tarantino in the way that he's able to design his own world and the characters in it and convince you that this place might actually exist. He's taken us into the world of porn stars and into a town where frogs fall from the sky; Now he takes us into the world of "Punch-Drunk Love" the only Anderson movie I didn't enjoy upon my first viewing. I loved Hard Eight, Boogie Nights, and Magnolia immediately...But when I first saw "Punch-Drunk Love" I turned off my television with so many questions running through my head. Even as I write this, having now seen the film 5 times and loving it,
I still have questions. Anderson's energetic, anxiety-filled, almost ADHD world doesn't seem realistic for a minute. His protagonist Barry Egan (played by Adam Sandler) is either odd, insane, or retarted. Anderson presents us with Barry but makes no judgement about him and leaves it to the audience to decide. Barry obviously has a lot of problems, but whether he's mentally disturbed or mentally challenged is never quite approached. In many moments, I wondered if maybe the events were just occuring in his head. I'll get to that in a moment. The basic plot structure breaks down like this: Barry is a business owner who is enjoying a cup of coffee outside his wherehouse when there is a sudden car wreck and a taxi appears, dropping off a small piano. Barry takes it into the wherehouse and begins working on it. Meanwhile, he finds a marketing campaign with a big marketing error in it, that he begins using to his advantage. After Barry calls a phone-sex line, he finds himself being harrassed by the girl he talked to...At the same time, he meets Lina (Emily Watson), who may be the girl of his dreams. We learn early on that Barry has extreme anger problems. He's got 7 sisters who continually, ceaselessly harrass him. When he goes to a party with all 7 of them present, he ends up kicking in the sliding glass door...Which apparently he already did earlier in life with a hammer, although he frequently claims not to remember although it's obvious he does. That's what makes Sandler's performance so brilliant. He completely buries himself in this character. While Barry has the same violent outburts that we've seen come from Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, and Dave (from Anger Management); This is hardly the same Adam Sandler we've seen since SNL. Just like a person knows when their friend is lying or tired or getting angry, we sense when it's happening to Barry. This has to do with the combination of two things. Sandler's performance and the way Anderson directs the scenes. By the time Barry kicks in that sliding glass door, you're ready to kick in your television set. Anderson is amazingly skilled at creating a feeling of anxiety or anger for his audience. Since his films are either love it or hate it, this talent goes two ways. It either makes you FEEL the anxiety and anger of the character or it makes you act it out. The big question about this film that still plagues me is whether this is all or mostly occuring in Barry's head. The car wreck scene in the beginning looks like a pretty serious wreck, but there's no sounds of anyone reacting and it doesn't seem like anyone points it out later. Later in the film, Barry rips a phone headset out of the base and appears in Utah with the phone still in his hand. Did he run to Utah? And back!!!??? This is not a structured plot at all; Much of it is meant to be taken metaphorically, so maybe what's actually happening and what's not is irrelevant. "Punch-Drunk Love" is a film that has grown on me. I hated it the first time around and love it now. It's a love story/dark comedy that strays far from convention is a brilliant piece of filmmaking.

GRADE: A

Different side of Sandler that I like, but others don't.......2007-07-17

This is one of those movies that the actor gets more attention to his casting role then the movie itself. Yes we all should know that when you think of Adam Sandler, you think comedy right away, so maybe that's why so many hardcore "Happy Gilmore" fans didn't "get" this film. They were probably too clouded with how Sandler played his dark, yet quirky characters roll. This movie is certainly not for everyone but I thought it was well written and directed. I admit it was a little slow at the start, but you soon got into the movie and the plot and that's what made it so entertaining to me.

You should watch this movie if: You have an open mind to Sandlers "out of the box" acting past and want to see an unpredictable love story.

You should stay away if: You are looking for the comedian version of Sandler. You won't find it here.

one of the worst movies i've watched.......2007-07-10

i just don't get it. i thought this was terrible. it was boring, uncomprehendable, dull, slow paced. i was wondering if this movie was made as a joke. i watched it for less than 30 mins then left the room (was at a friend's house). adam sandler is not that attractive to look at. maybe if it had a handsome guy or beautiful girl in it i could have watched it more.

Sadistic Sandler...........2007-03-20

This is the only Adam Sandler film I have sat through from beginning to end (I have seen SNL sketches and snippets of his work), and the film is certainly interesting, though it is not as mind blowing as many critics said it was. I always felt there was a sadistic side to Sandler in a lot of his comedy, a love of being cruel and malicious to people. Granted, many comedians are very angry people, but Sandler seems to have a vicious streak in him 3000 miles wide, and this is brought to the fore in Punch Drunk Love. Sandler seems like he could lose it at any moment, with 7 annoying sisters and a horrid job. I think we're supposed to find sympathy for Sandler, but we don't, because he isn't really a nice guy, but a guy who lets people walk all over him, and seems poised to take revenge by going on a shooting spree. The film itself feels disjointed, and as many others have pointed out, one doesn't believe when the Emily Watson character falls in love with Adam's character. She's relatively normal, and he is teetering on complete insanity. If she had been a tad more insane, it may have worked. Sandler's performance, while good, was not Oscar worthy (as critics were screaming "Oscar buzz! Oscar buzz!"). This is an OK film that is really kind of a mess. Sandler gets a point or two for trying something new, but it's still not very good....

Average customer rating:

Edgy, Real, Superb
Head-On
Top film
Are You Turkish? Well, yes I am!
The meeting of two solitudes!

Head-On
Starring: Cem Akin , Philipp Baltus , Meltem Cumbul , Francesco Fiannaca , and Stefan Gebelhoff
Manufacturer: Strand Releasing
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0009VND0E
Release Date: 2005-09-13

Amazon.com

Head-On, Fatih Akin's gritty drama, is like a great punk-rock song-- rough around the edges, but filled with heart. Cahit (Birol Ünel) is a middle-aged drunk whose apartment looks like the toilet in Trainspotting. Sibel (Sibel Kekilli) is a suicidal woman half his age, stuck at home with repressive relatives. They're two troubled Turks, adrift in Germany. A chance encounter at a psychiatric hospital represents a way out. If Cahit will marry her, Sibel can flee her family. They'll accept him, because he's Turkish. As for Cahit, he won't be alone anymore, left to mourn his dead wife and drink his life away. At first, things go as planned. Sibel moves into Cahit's dump and spiffs it up. The two live, eat, and party together, while continuing to see other people. Gradually, their marriage of convenience starts to resemble the real thing--until Cahit's violent tendencies get the best of him. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Customer Reviews:

Edgy, Real, Superb.......2007-08-16

This was a suberb movie. At Germany's equivalent of the Oscar's it won every major prize, including best movie and actor. Once you see this movie, you'll understand why. It's a rollercoaster from start to finish with such real, flawed characters. The performances are some of the best ever and the story is so heartbreaking. These are people you just keep cheering for and cheering for even as they are screwing up their lives. I recommend this movie to anyone who likes foreign films. Even if you don't like subtitles, this is one to check out.

Head-On.......2007-07-17

This is the best Foreign language film I have ever seen. The director/writer uses characters who may be bi-polar to accentuate the differnces between our Western culture and the Near Islamic East. This turns into one of the most beautiful tugs of war ever portrayed on film. This film has made me appreciate the Turkish culture and Turkey as the place where "East Meets West".

Top film.......2007-07-04

Great film, pity amazon didnt leave us much to say about it after their review but hear goes.

Wouldnt realy describe it a 'punk rock' apart from Cahits vague connection with punk music this is a great little insight into life of Turks in Germany. Two people both going their own way in life come together by chance but both have more baggage than they originally thought.

Cahit with his sadly passed away wife who he still morns and Sibel with her 'conservative' family who are filled with their own contradictions (My favorite scene is when Cahit is playing cards with Sibels brother and a few others, while they are sitting chatting about how they sleep with prostitutes behind their wives backs and the pros and cons of various women of differing nationalities Cahit shouts out "why dont you go and f*** your own wives? Sibels brother of course is outraged at intimacy between him and his wife being discussed)

As their marriage of convenience spirals out of control with Sibel continuing to sleep around and Cahit begining more and more to feel something for her it comes to a horrific conclusion resulting in Cahit being jailed and Sibel returning to Turkey.

Some wonderful scenes in Turkey such as when Sibel goes into a cafe and sits next to two young men chatting amongst themselves; first there is the shock from the both of them that she should come and sit next to a strange man then her question "You know where I can get any drugs" Their reply "Are you mad or something girl" Just sums up the cultural gulf between Sibels hedonistic life in Germany and even the most secular of Turks who still leads a reasonably respectable life.

There is just so much that this film captures of life both in Germany and Turkey of young people living there and the contradictions they encounter.

Recomended film.

By the way; its called "Against the Wall" In Turkish. In my opinion a far better title than "Head On"

Are You Turkish? Well, yes I am!.......2007-05-21

Am I the only Turk who has reviewed this film? I surely hope not. It has taken me ages to finally rent this. I am extremely depressed right now but it was well worth it. Please, don't classify this as a German movie. Let this be a Turkish movie. It was nicely done, a bit predictable at times but no big deal. The acting was above expectations. As for the story line, believable enough. I found it ironic that the heroine Sibel needs to marry a Turkish guy in order to get peace from her family according to the plot (which is very believable, mind you) but that in reality she used to be a porn star before this film.

As a minor negative, the Turkish being spoken was whiny and got on my nerves quite a bit. To their defense, I have been away from my precious homeland for almost 10 years now and for all I know, this could be the way modern Turkish is being spoken right now.

The meeting of two solitudes!.......2007-04-18

This minimalist picture has to do with a delicate state of things around the figure of the immigrant into a new universe, absolutely unknown. Two lonely human beings besieged by their inner demons and the ineffable trace of his condition of exiled, permeates and defines several aspects to be taken intro account. The necessity of living and be loved increases in both of them; but with distinct rate speed. He is widow, but she tries to escape from her particular familiar hell, and searches in the marriage a device to emancipate herself once for all.

They will meet in an institution, and the fixed idea of be married really scares this lonely man, who begins to doubt about that issue. The frame is done because at last her dreams come true, and so she will know the delights and penuries of this relationship, which was born from her imagination to idealize a blue prince1 but the initial encounter with that huddled home will be the beginning of an agreement between them, there will be no sex and will live in different rooms.

But as you and me will guess the love will make its inevitable triumphal appearance, against the odds.

A curious melodrama that certainly rides between the nostalgia and the humor; trying to get an exit door into an overwhelming world.

Average customer rating:

A 5-star script but Richard Lewis was a poor choice; a solid "B" nevertheless
Too melodramatic and unrealistic to be taken seriously
Realistic Recovery
A GREAT START BUT, JUST A LITTLE TOO SCRIPTED, FLAKY & FAKE FOR ME!
drunks made me wanna get drunk

Drunks
Starring: Richard Lewis (II) , Liza Harris , Liam Ahern , George Martin (II) , and Sam Rockwell
Director: Peter Cohn
Manufacturer: Fox Lorber
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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