Reviews (22)

Sean and Audrey camp out in the woods
Growing up as a young reader in WASP America, it was inevitable that I should be exposed to the Robin Hood legend. Indeed, it was that tale, along with my young (and imperfect) knowledge of Becket, Henry VIII and his wives, and King Arthur and the Round Table, which first got me to dreaming about visiting England. After my first journey across The Pond in '75 to that green and pleasant land, I was hooked. Thus, it was with great relish that I viewed ROBIN AND MARIAN.

How could one possibly find fault with the casting of this film: Man's Man Sean Connery as the aging, creaky Robin Hood, and the always beautiful Audrey Hepburn as the love of his life, Maid Marian. As a bonus for the viewer, Robert Shaw and Nicol Williamson play the Sheriff of Nottingham and Little John respectively. It doesn't get better than this.

As the movie opens, Robin and faithful pal Little John are off in France attendant to the death of King Richard the Lionhearted (Richard Harris), after having rummaged around with the monarch on the Third Crusade. Richard's funeral over, our two heroes return to Sherwood Forest. Robin soon learns that the new sovereign, wicked King John, has ordered the Sheriff of Nottingham to evict a group of nuns from a local abbey. As circumstance would have it, Maid Marian took the veil in Robin's long absence, and is now the abbey's prioress. Despite his aching bones and stiff joints, Robin sets off to rescue his damsel-in-distress from his old archenemy.

There are so many joys to this movie. One is watching Sean's Robin deal with advancing age. He's still young at heart, but sleeping in the damp, cold forest isn't what it used to be. Both he and Little John are too much "over the hill" for such nonsense, but only the latter, with increasing skepticism, seems to realize it. Then there's Audrey's Marian, who isn't at first sure that she needs the renewed attentions of her old beau. (Audrey is so exquisite! They don't make actresses like that anymore.) The intervening years have even had an effect on Shaw's Sheriff of Nottingham, making him much wiser in his dealings with his rascally nemesis.

Finally, the scriptwriters give their own interpretation to the traditional ending of the Robin Hood story. In their hands, it becomes at least a two-hankie event. Just remembering it now, I'm looking for the Kleenex box. Call me a sucker, but I just ate it up!

Brings Out My Sentimental Side
I liked this movie when it was first released, which answers my sons' challenge that I like Robin Hood as a middle-aged guy because I AM a middle-aged guy. It is everything that a good movie should be. It is well written, well cast and acted, and it holds up as a good story and a good film many years after its theatrical release.I have always thought that Sean Connery was a cocky kid and a not-so-good actor in the James Bond movies, but became profoundly good later in life in "The Rock" and "The Untouchables", and that same developed talent comes through here. He IS the middle aged Robin, a perfectly realized role, as is Audrey Hepburn as Marian. The plot follows Robin's return to England after the death of King Richard in the Crusades. King John (Boo!) is in power and the Sheriff of Nottingham (Robert Shaw)is up to his old larcenous tricks. But now they are "old guys" and their efforts to fuss with each other as in days of yore are sometimes funny and sometimes sad. But the movie is an excellent addition to any DVD library. Technically, the picture has been remastered to modern standards, and if the sound is not DTS, it is acceptable. Good job, but where is the outastanding "Adventures of Robin Hood" with Errol Flynn?? It's long overdue in DVD format.

A wonderful, wonderful movie
This movie is an undiscovered gem. It is not only a beautiful love story, but it is also attempts to present a realistic picture of the age of the Crusades.

The acting is wonderful. The scenery is gorgeous. The audience is treated with respect. The writing is wonderful. You can stop reading now, as this should be enough to make you buy the movie.

Two additional points: the movie contains the best once sentence describtion of the middle age mind set: "he was my king" and watch this movie and you will get Eddie Izzard's joke in his HBO stand up routine.

A great sequel...but to what?
This movie isn't so much a sequel to The Adventures of Robin Hood as it is to The Lion in Winter. James Goldman wrote the scripts for both and he seems to have a fetish for the Plantagenets. This movie opens with Robin and Little John in the service of a very mad Richard the Lionhearted (wonderfully played by the late Richard Harris). They make their way back to Sherwood to find that Maid Marian has become a nun. (A little tip: if, in a British legend, your girlfriend becomes a nun, you just know it is going to end badly.) The only person who seems truly happy to see Robin again after twenty years is the Sheriff of Nottingham (Robert Shaw). Watching him fight Sean Connery again, I felt as if this might also be a sequel to From Russia With Love!

The movie is a very good bittersweet romance between famous lovers in their later years. It is not on the same level as The Lion in Winter, but then, how few things are. Watching it, I was reminded how wonderful it is to see Connery act in a real role - instead of mouthing the inanities they give him now ("Welcome to the Rock!").

It is a very good period piece, made the way the used to make them. For any Sean Connery fan, it is a must.

A CHARACTER STUDY, NOT AN ACTION FILM
In this version of the Robin Hood myth, an aged Robin and Little John played wonderfully by Nicol Williamson return to Sherwood and Nottingham after the death of Richard Lion Heart whom they followed on the Crusades. Upon their arrival, they encounter Tuck and Scarlett, forcibly recruit Marion who's now the Abbotess of a nunnery, and in doing so, re-initiate hostilities with the Sheriff of Nottingham. I can't blame anyone for being disappointed in this film; you hear the name Robin Hood and you automatically expect feats of Zen archery and balletic sword duels between Robin and The Sherriff of N. But while not as dynamic as other Robin Hood films, Robin and Marion is not as facile as those films either. This film is about people; it's not supposed to serve as a visual roller coaster. If you prefer comic books to literature, by all means stick with the Errol Flynn version, because Robin and Marion, while it may not be a great work, is still a good piece of literature. It's about being human and being alive, to which, in this film, the fighting is secondary. And while the fight between Robert Shaw and Sean Connery did look arthritic and clumsy, it was also a lot closer to a real fight than Flynn's bladed flashdance with Basil Rathbone (sp?) ever was. ... Read more

Description

Heaven has sent its best, and the devil has enlisted his worst - VictoriaAbril and Penelope Cruz co-star as agents doing battle for ultimate supremacy.Thewinner is to be decided by whoever can secure the soul of a short-tempered, punch-drunkboxer on earth.These sexy angels pull no punches, using their brains, wiles and ofcourse, sex appeal.Damnation has never been this seductive, and seduction never moreheavenly; he’s not going to know what hit him…he’s only human! ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Heaven/Hell Can Wait
In one clever twist of fate, two beautiful angels -- one from Heaven and one from Hell -- collide on the road of fate to save the soul for their respective kingdoms in the whimsical DON'T TEMPT ME.

The voluptuous Penelope Cruz stars as Carmen, a man turned into a woman upon her arrival in Hell. However, when the corporate kingpins of the Underworld conspire to seize control of the real 'Land Down Under,' she's given a chance to return to Earth (in heavenly form) for a battle of wits against Lola (played by the equally sultry Victoria Abril), an angel starting to grow weary of always serving as a do-gooder who happens to be sent to Earth to claim the same misguided soul. Together, the two have a quirky comic chemistry (watch the scenes of Carmen trying to teach Lola how to hold a gun) that keeps the picture moving, despite some plotholes along the way.

While TEMPT borders on a kind of comic genius, it never quite reaches the pearly gates of comedy. Again, the script (or the story) is the key, and, while many elements are played very tightly against one another in unique parallels, writer (and director) Agustin Diaz Yanes just keeps missing the mark to raise the bar from the predictable to the unpredictable ... the true benchmark of any great comedy.

Excellent Actors in a Bad Flick
That is right, this film features some of the finest Spanish and French actors/actresses out there, as well as the popular Mexican actor, Gael Garcia Bernal. I suppose I was expecting more out of this dud, but the jokes were not funny, the whole concept was a bit corny, the script was uneven, then ending was dumb, this film was trying to be something that it is not.
It attepmted to come off as an Almodovar/Ozon, stylish, artistic comedy. Way too ambitious. This would have been better as a lowbudget indy flick with unknown actors. Seeing great entertainers like Victoria Abril in a flick that does not measure up to her talent just isn't right.
Get the plot, premise from other reviewers. I suppose it is worth a look if you are a diehard fan of some of the actors in it, but otherwise, avoid.

Big Ideas Poorly Implemented
There was a lot of ideas going into this movie, too many ideas. Heaven and Hell battle over the soul of one man, a disfunctional boxer. Tacked onto this relatively simple plot is a lot of trappings -- glimpses of Hell and Heaven that should have been developed more. With Hell being an English speaking corporation and Heaven being Paris is an interesting concept, it actually proved to be more interesting the dismal boxer story. But we got only glimpses of what the afterlife was like and spent too much time focussed on the less-interesting and less-orignal boxer's fate.
Dogma took on similar subject matter and pulled it off much better. In Dogma the glimpses given of Heaven & Hell (Chris Rock, Alan Rickman, Penelope Cruz, the roller skating hockey playing kids) felt realized. I didn't need more time with Alanis Morrisette's God to understand Her or more time with Jason Lee's character to understand him. Here, I didn't understand the inner workings the afterlife. I had a lot more questions even about the main characters: Abril & Cruz. Even they were not developed well enough and felt more like shards of characters than actual people.

I would not say this movie is bad. It should be given credit for the ambitiousness of its subject matter. But it was handled poorly. The filmaker has lots of potential. This movie doesn't live up to its potential.

An embarrassment to all who star in this...
This film wants to be so much more than it is.
It tries to be clever and inventive, but I personally found it to be nothing but poor.
I would think the stars of this film are embarrassed at its outcome.
Not funny, not clever, juts tacky and poorly filmed.

I found Cruz's character annoying (especially her masculine walk - which is explained at some point), Bernals acting off the mark (when in English) and Abril was not on top form. All of these leads have been in and performed better.

The black and white scenes look cheap, and whilst the constant change of languages (from French to Spanish to English) is interesting for a while, it started to get on my nerves.

I really wanted to enjoy the film, but ultimately I found it to be very disappointing and simply boring.
I didn't even find the films interpretation of heaven and hell interesting - just silly.

In summary, vaguely interesting, but no-where near as clever as it wants to be.

A New Spanish Master of Filmmaking is On the Scene!
DON'T TEMPT ME (or SIN NOTICIAS DE DIOS in the original) is a sparkling, surreal, humorous, and meaty bit of filmmaking of the type that we have come to expect form the Spanish School of Cinema. Augustin Diaz Yanes both wrote and directed this absorbing parable and has cast it with some of the finest talent from around the globe. His use of smart dialogue, choices of cinematic technique, and rapid fire pacing drives this delicious tale along the paths of Bunuel, Almodovar, etc.

The plot: the corporate executives (American profiles of course - though played by British actors like Gemma Jones all speaking in English) of Hell have found a strong need to obtain the soul of a living boxer (Demian Bichir) to join them in Hell. The recruiter Jack (in a terrific performance by the extraordinarily gifted Gael Garcia Bernal) agrees to assign worker Carmen (Penelope Cruz, finally in a role that allows her to demonstrate her broad range of acting skills from drama to comedy) to go to earth to finalize this corporate decision. Meanwhile, in Heaven (quite appropriately filmed in black and white in Paris where the one in charge is Marina d'Angelo played with subtle charm by Fanny Ardant and using French as the language) the elected angel to foster the heavenly admission of the boxer is Victoria Abril (more beautiful than ever and pulling off the heavenly role as a chanteuse with aplomb).

Cruz and Abril move in with Bichir, become involved in the struggle over his soul as well as attempting to thwart the results of Bichir's chaotic life as a has-been, in debt boxer. The remainder of the tale is a back and forth pitting of heavenly and Hadean forces and their bungling of both sides of the pitch for Bichir's soul. As the film ends, both the dark and light angels become transiently human, and we learn what their next steps in their respective afterlives might be.

Appropriately, this 'comedy' has many dramatic sides, as is requisite for a true comedy. But rest assured with a cast of this caliber and the quality of direction of this surrealistic tale you will be thoroughly entertained. It is refreshing to have a movie move in many languages while it parodies the source countries of each language used to tell a story of good vs evil - and all that jazz! ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Perhaps only Pedro Almodóvar could come up with a story about a mental patient who stalks and kidnaps an ex-porn star--and turn it into a tender love story. But that's exactly what happens in Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!, a lively installment from the Spanish director's wacky middle period (after the scruffy early films, and before his mature melodramas). Two of Almodóvar's sexiest stars, Antonio Banderas and Victoria Abril, play the leads:a cracked young man with dreams of bourgeois domesticity, and an actress who used to specialize in porno and heroin. Despite that fact that he binds her limbs with cord when he leaves the house, he always returns with a cheerful "I'm home!" For all Almodóvar's outrageousness, there's a touch of classical Hollywood in his construction. And while this movie is not for the politically correct, it does play by its own warped rules. --Robert Horton ... Read more

Reviews (25)

Antonio Banderas Was Better When Euro Film Star
I watched Banderas in his European movies before he became an American movie star. I really liked all of his work then whereas now his work is very uneven in quality. "Evita" is the only work of his I've admired since his "conversion." This film was his very best prior to his coming to America. I'll confess that director Pedro Aldomovar's 2 most commerical films, of which this is one, appeal to me more than his other films. The other is "Woman On The Verge of A Nervous Breakdown." Perhaps this is because these two works involve heterosexual love affairs and are also comedic and satiric. They're broadly played but enjoyable for a bigger audience than Aldomovar's work normally gets. Banderas is incredibly sexy in this film as the patient fresh from a mental hospital who wants a regular married life and seeks to find it with a porno star woman. Bringing these two together for a black comedy was a stroke of genius. The Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down in the title refers to the woman's liking kinky stuff and Banderas's literally tying her up and down to the bed. This is a very sexy, romantic even, film and for those who feel Aldomovar's films typically are aimed to please only gays and not straights, this film should convert them to becoming fans of his considerable talent. It will also make them sad that Banderas decided to become an American movie star.

Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!
Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! (¡Átame!) is one of the two movies by renown director Pedro Almodóvar (the other being Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown) that got wide attention in the US, albeit in the art house scene. Nothing since Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! (made in 1990) has gotten nearly as much attention, despite several efforts since than by Almodóvar. Both movies have a similar style, but Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! is a bit more disturbing as it revolves around a kidnapping.

Marina Osorio (Victoria Abril) is a former porn actor and junkie trying to make a more respectable living as a B movie actor. Ricky (Antonio Banderas), is a troubled youth who has just been released from a mental institution where he had spent the last several years due to his constant running away from orphanages and reform schools. Somehow Ricky has decided that Marina is his future wife and after some very lame attempts to get her attention on the set of her new movie, decides to break into her apartment and "kidnap" her until she is convinced to love him as he does her.

This seems somewhat straightforward, but most would assume that this would be a terror-filled, disturbing film about stalkers and people who's reality is warped. It is disturbing, but not for those reasons, but rather for its very light-hearted atmosphere and slapstick comedy in the face of this rather serious situation. One might call it a black comedy, but the mood is generally so light, that a better term might be "gray comedy." Marina, though occasionally showing some terror, seems more angry and annoyed at being tied up and kept captive than in fear for her life. One thing ran through my mind when watching this - that quote from Die Hard with the expert commentator on the news talking about how kidnapped victims sometimes go through the "Helsinki Syndrom" and start empathizing with their captors. Well, it does not take all that long for Ricky to actually convince Marina to love him. This again, leads to the very light-hearted and surreal nature of the film, and everything in the film seems to have this quality, almost as if what is happening is not real, but being acted on stage. This relates to the film that Marina is acting in at the beginning of this movie, where likewise, everything is pretty fantastic and unreal.

Other than the shear oddity of this film, the main other noteworthy quality seems to be in its steamy sex scenes with Abril and Bandaras. The film actually got an NC-17 rating due to this, which shows the hypocrisy of the MPAA which gives incredibly violent films like Saving Private Ryan an R, but because of a little sexual content will brand a film with NC-17 and make it hard to sell at the box office in most communities.

The DVD is lackluster, containing no special features except for a Trailer. The anamorphic transfer is a good one, very clear with vibrant colors. The audio is the original mono Spanish and is very clear for a mono soundtrack.

If you are a fan of the offbeat, you may enjoy this film for the shear "different" quality it has compared to most mainstream movies, but its light treatment of very disturbing theme may be too much for others.

"You can't be that kinky."
Pedro Almodovar's film "Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down" stars one of the director's favourite leading ladies--Victoria Abril as Marina--a former adult film star with a nasty narcotic habit. Marina is trying to stay clean with the help of her protective, responsible and non-stop talking sister, Lola. Marina has almost finished making a second rate horror film, "the Midnight Phantom." The film's wheelchair bound director, Maximo is obsessed with Marina. There's something about Marina's fragile sensuality that makes men want to protect and possess her. Ricky (Antonio Banderas)--just released from a mental hospital--is also obsessed with Marina. Ricky decides that he will kidnap Marina and keep her tied up until she falls in love with him.

Of course, there's a fundamental flaw in Ricky's plan, but Almodovar's playful script shows how the obstacles to Ricky and Marina's relationship are overcome. Victoria Abril is--as always--splendid, and Banderas is at his best. As with all Almodovar films, "Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down" is full of great, eccentric characters (the pistol-packing pharmacist, for example), and Almodovar's humour, acceptance and generosity towards human flaws always ensures some sort of good outcome.

"Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down" contains a controversial scuba-diving gadget scene, and many Almodovar fans will note a very similar scene in "Talk to Her." (...). I loved the scenes when Maximo's frustration is shown by his endless circling in the wheelchair, and when he dances in his chair with Lola. The film also includes some amazing Spanish music. Almodovar and Abril fans will not be disappointed in this film--displacedhuman

A loving kidnapping drama...
Ricky (Antonio Banderas), a newly released mental patient, enters society with hope of building a family after have convinced the woman in his life that she loves him. This woman is Marina (Victoria Abril), a former heroin addict and porn star, that is filming a horror film with a director who has recently suffered a severe stroke. Ricky enters the film studio and retrieves Marina's keys, which he uses when he breaks into Marina's apartment and kidnaps her. In doing so Ricky wants Marina to get to know him and fall in love with him as they have had a brief affair once before, which changed Ricky's life.

Pedro Almodóvar knows how to make the absurd feel authentic and in this story he does it well as Marina and Ricky get to know each other. The story is planned down to every last detail as both characters have some heavy luggage from their pasts, which serves as a solid foundation for them to relate and understand one another. Almodóvar uses vibrant colors that improves visual representation of the likes and dislikes between Ricky and Marina as it expands on the audience's understanding of what is going on. There are also several interesting shots that are out of the ordinary as they draw attention to the characters and develop the persona around the characters. Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! fades away from the silver screen with a good cinematic experience, which can be pondered over a glass of sangria.

Subverting types!
When originally writing this film, Pedro Almodovar asked himself the question "Can love be calculated or sketched the same way one could study for an exam?" This is certainly the conviction of the Antonio Banderas character who seeks to capture his former lover and eventually convince her of her love for him. Although one could initially interpret the theme of the film as overtly misogynist - man tries to physically force woman to love him - gender stereotypes are typically subverted in true Almodovarian fashion.

It would seem that the women are the figures of power in this film and both Ricky and wheelchair-bound film director Maximo are at a loss in trying to seduce the object of their desire in any conventional sense. They are both addicted to Marina, but the only thing she's ever been addicted to is heroin. By the end of the film the Antonio Banderas character is almost totally domesticated, making food, cleaning the appartment, making sure Marina has enough drugs etc.

There's also the reference to the Sacred Heart at the beginning of the film and masochism has often been perceived in some of the more archaic rituals of our Roman church.

None of these subtleties were apparantly noticed by the American classification board who initially wanted to give this film an 'X' rating because of playing with toys in the bath! (?) ... Read more

Amazon.com

Originally a computer-generated, animated feature presented in 3-D, the French-American Kaena: The Prophecy still looks eye-poppingly spectacular in a regular, two-dimensional format. The post-apocalyptic tale concerns an adventurous young woman, Kaena (voiced in English by Kirsten Dunst), who is a member of a race--one of many--that inhabit an enormous tree called the Axis, rising 100 miles from Earth's surface. While her people's leader, Opaz (Richard Harris), insists his tribe's sole purpose is collecting sap and honoring the gods who provide sustenance, Kaena is more interested in exploring. Signs that the Axis might be dying sends Kaena on a mission to find out why; along the way she encounters a slavemaster race, the Selenites, and their vicious queen (Anjelica Huston). Fantastic to look at, Kaena: The Prophecy is graphically dense, constantly moving, and truly inventive when it comes to designing creatures that appear equal parts vegetable and animal. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Amazon.com

Sexy Spaniard Victoria Abril heats up the wintry city of Reykjavík in101 Reykjavík. Icelandic slacker Hlynur (Hilmir Snær Guðnason) lives onwelfare with his mother, leading a depressed and aimless existence. His motherinvites her flamenco teacher, Lola (Abril), to live with them; while his motheris away for New Year's Eve, Hlynur and Lola have a drunken fling. But upon herreturn, Hlynur's mother tells him that she and Lola are lesbian lovers--and itsoon comes out that she and Lola are going to have a baby together. 101Reykjavík seems to be the contemporary Icelandic version of American moviesof the 1970s like Five Easy Pieces, in which antiheroic charactersstruggle to make sense of a world that doesn't seem to have any place for them.The movie is a bit unfocused, but its urban malaise feels genuine, if notparticularly new. Abril is delightful, as always. --Bret Fetzer ... Read more

Reviews (12)

A Funny, Warm-hearted look at a cold, cold place...
The coolest movie of the year. Great soundtrack, hilarious black-comedy storyline. A birds-eye view into that little place on earth called Reykjavik, Iceland...

The anti-hero protagonist is the King of Slackers who is about to have his lazy/habitual way of life disrupted, with hilarious results! This film is destined to become a sort of cult classic for disaffected youth, who somewhere inside them have the seed for a great future... and it could grow... even in a cold, cold place... check this movie out, you won't be disappointed.

Awsome movie
Wow, I'm lacking of words. This movie is just the best I've seen for a long time. It's a hillarious movie made in a small village on Iceland. While I was watching the movie I think I got the feeling of living in Iceland. It's sort of depressing. Nevertheless because I was feeling it I could really associate with the people there. Everybody should watch this film. All the Islandic actors and acresses and especially Victoria Abril as Lola, the hot, Spanish flamenco dancer make this one of the best movies of the season. I really enjoyed it.

A Great Nordic delivery!
What do you get in a coming-of-age movie when the leading character is 30 years old?
Lets just say you get an excellent movie, where the comedy is driven by the way of life of a slacker in the small and cold town of reykjavik, iceland's biggest city. The drama and motif in the characters rise when Hilmir finds out he's just gone to bed with his mom's partner.
It's a great funny story of similar to films brought by Spanish director Almodovar, without the dramatic gloom and heavy atmosphere.

And to top it off it features and excellent music soundtrack, by Damon Albarn of Blur, which is also a great buy.
All in all, this film is definetively a must see.

The adventures of a slacker
Set in the Icelandic capital 101 REYKJAVIK follows the life of underachiever and slacker Hlynur: he's unemployed, in his 30's, and still lives at home with his mother. What's more, he has absolutely no ambitions for his life, hardly gets up before noon, and loves porn. He certainly didn't have good role models; his absent father is a drunk and his mother smokes hash with him. At first I don't have any sympathy for Hlynur, but there's something about his interactions with the other characters that kept me engaged to keep watching. There are indeed some very funny scenes that certainly made me laugh out loud. As the story progressed I couldn't help but be drawn into Hlynur's predicaments, pathetic as they seem. Though most scenes were filmed indoors the cinematography of Reykjavik and the surrounding areas was gorgeous. This film was entertaining and funny. Recommended.

nothing novel about this movie
I've seen many Foreign Films lately, and I've noticed that most of the ones I've seen are extremely simplistic, and focus the entire story on an average character and his/her daily routines.

The problem with this movie is that the main character is an underachiever, and his life is less than entertaining. True, a character's life CAN be boring, but the story can't. A dull life and dreary routine can make for a good movie (i.e "400 Blows"), but for the movie to succeed, it's got to be shown in an entertaining way.

I seriously felt swindled out of $20 by the time the credits rolled. There was nothing fresh about this movie at all. The characters were not intriguing to say the least. And just looking at the scenery was sending me to an early nap.

And so, visually, this movie also disappointed me: all the audience gets to see of Iceland is the main character's house, a Welfare office, a nightclub, a bazaar, and a few shots of apartment interiors. If there was more scenery in this movie, it didn't leave any memorable impressions.

To sum up, I watched this movie for three reasons:
1) to be entertained by the main character's lifestyle
2) to listen to the Icelandic language
3) to get a colorful glimpse of Iceland

In conclusion, the only good thing I can say about this movie is that most of it is in Icelandic. That said, I seriously doubt anyone will be enthralled by the movie's story. And people hoping to see Iceland or even just Reykjavik in all its glory will be disappointed by the film's choice of locations. The movie does not do Iceland justice, and it does not do the movie industry justice. At its very best, this movie is less-than-average.

Aside from this movie, I've only see one other Icelandic movie, "The Sea." And if you have to pick between "101 Reykjavik" and "The Sea," I definitely recommend the latter. ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Some kind of politically-correct morality play?
OK, so the guy's a jerk, but in the end he accepts his wife's female lover as part of the family --- sounds like a new Disney movie to me!

Actually, Josiane Balasko did a decent job directing this film, but casting herself as the truck-driving lesbian was a bit too much! Yes, it was realistic --- but therein lies the problem! Visually, I'd have much rather seen a hot-looking, sexy, dark-haired woman seducing the beautiful Victoria Abril. I mean, to put it a different way: beautiful bodies a more enjoyable film do make!

An OK but not a Very Good Film
This is not a very good film. It is supposed to be a comedy. Unfortunately, Josiane Balasko, so wonderful as Gerard Depardieu's forbidden love interest in Bertrand Blier's "Too Beautiful for You" (1990), shows here that she can be a heavy-handed director, a comedy screenwriter without wit, and a comic actress who simply isn't funny.

This is a movie with no good lines, unforgivable in a comedy. There are, however, two bright lights in the film, the only actors who do manage to be funny: Ticky Holgado, a supporting actor who plays the business partner and best friend of the humorless male lead (Alain Chabat), and the ever delightful Victoria Abril, one of the two female stars of the love triangle (the other being the humorless Ms. Balasko), whose physical displays almost save the film.

Victoria Abril is a wonderful and underrated actress, still breathtakingly gorgeous at age 36 (recognizable to most viewers from Pedro Almodovar's "Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!"), who displays her physical gifts with wit and abandon. For some people her presence will be enough to justify purchasing this DVD. This writer, in fact, despite his negativity toward the film, purchased the DVD while owning the VHS tape, but he confesses unashamedly to having been secretly in love with Ms. Abril for almost two decades, even with her clothes on.

This film enjoyed an enormous box-office success in France, and has pleased most American movie critics. It is not without entertainment value. But it could have been so much more.

Even a cinnamon twist is not this good!
I had no idea what I was getting into when I got this movie. As a huge foreign film buff there I was taking a gander at this movie and realizing the script was totally hilarious.

Basically it focuses on this married couple who have two children, a French family. And of course, the man, not wanting to offend all of the women he's ever met, sleeps with them all. (Side note, it is actually a compliment when men make passes in France, it is offensive to not do it, it means the female is not worth trying with; interesting huh?)

Anyway, hubby cheats, the devoted wife finds that a dyke passerby can fix things, be there for her, and even have dinner.

A steamy romance ensues with the wife and her new woman and the cheating hubby does not take it to well.

You will laugh your ass off in this movie! I don't want to spoil it, but suffice it to say, I bet the script writer has had a very interesting marriage!

A surprisingly good and funny film...
I've seen this film a few times now. Each time I see it, I show it to a friend who hasn't seen it. They all loved it. Makes me like it that much more when I see them enjoying it.

"French Twist" is about a cheating husband has to deal with the fact that his neglected wife has found another love interest... a woman. That he cheats on his wife on a regular basis is not the issue, to him. His ego and pride being stepped on by the whole situation is the problem and it makes for some very funny material.

The three main characters (Josiane Balasko, Victoria Abril and Alain Chabat) work extremely well together. Just bouncing lines off one another and interacting beautifully. Just when it looks like all will work out another element is added to stir the fire.

The film was written and directed by Balasko who also stars as the "other" woman who's looking for love and destroying a home. Or is she? Chabat is amazingly funny as the philandering husband and Abril is also very good and quite beautiful as the passionate, yet somewhat confused wife.

Check it out for yourself. Don't let the subtitles hold you back. It doesn't take away from the film at all. Get ready to laugh.

Ridiculous Lesbian Fantasy
Anyone who has ever read lesbian erotica will recognize some of the plot elements of this silly movie. The naive, ultrafemme, housewife, who slaves all day for a selfish, uncaring, philadering husband, meets a wonderful, butch lesbian and within a short while (a couple of hours?)is seduced by her charms. Rescuing "straight" women from unhappy marriages is a huge theme of lesbian erotica. It's a rather unbelievable premise, and this movie makes it seem even more implausible. I just did not believe that the homely, overweight, and repulsive Marijo could be irresistable to the gorgeous Loli. It wasn't until I discovered that the director had cast herself in the role of Marijo did I understand- if you were in the position to decide who gets to do love scenes with Victoria Abril would you take one for yourself? Obviously, Josiane Balasko is a smart woman. (It sort of reminded me of a "Seinfield" episode- you know the ones in which ugly, dorky Jerry and ugly, dorky George somehow always manage to get dates with impossibly beautiful women. It's that implausible!)

Overall, this move had some laughs, but its premise was absurd and by the end of the film I detested everyone of these characters. They were just so selfish! As Helen Lovejoy says: "Will someone please think of the children!" ... Read more

Reviews (17)

Bon Produit 3D
Ce film est important surtout pour la 3D, qui est retranscrite sur petit écran de manière plutôt correcte. Bien que la qualité des lunettes bleu et rouge laissent franchement à désirer.( la qualité des filtres est trés mauvaise...)
MAIS, si vous avez les lunettes d'un autre fournisseur le spectacle est plus que FUN, aprés avoir effectué certains réglages sur votre écrans télé ou PC. Uniquement en V.O mais il n'y a pas vraiment de dialogues alors vous pouvez acheter ce DVD pour passer 91 bonnes Minutes.

Worst Movie I Tried to See
Yes, this is the worst movie I ever saw. The only problem is that I didn't see it. Well, I did see it but it was blue and red all over. I could say I saw it twice. What I am trying to say is: THIS 3-D DVD DON'T WORK! The 3-D process on this DVD does not work. It's a real mess. The images don't line up at all, no matter what I tried. I did listen to the story but it is just plain bad. I saw Tony Anthony in A STRANGER IN TOWN which was a good western. He can't save this one. Too bad. I was really looking forward to SEEING it.

Bad 3D Bad Movie
Not only is this movie bad (don't even waste your time) but the 3-D glasses don't even work! All you see is a double red and blue image and it's not even in focus. This DVD will leave you seeing double.

Excellent Package, Set up very important
I'll start by saying that "Comin' at Ya!" is an excellent DVD package. It is a great film for anyone who enjoys either 3-D films or Spaghetti Westerns; it is also the home of some of the best 3-D effects ever seen on the screen. Originally, on the film's release in 1981, it was presented in the Polaroid Vectorgram 3-D process, which meant that the film could be shown from a single projector (other Polarised processes require two projectors fitted with Polarisers). The effect was excellent and provided realistic out of screen and depth effects. Unfortunately, the Polaroid process is impossible to achieve on television or home projection sets, simply because the process requires reflective screens. For the DVD release, Rhino opted for the cheaper, more user-friendly Anaglyphic 3-D system (using the Red and Blue lenses). The effect of this translation is excellent. Looking at other Amazon.com reviews, I can see that some reviewers have used the 3-D process incorrectly. If you intend to get a decent 3-D effect, please consider the following guidelines:

View the DVD on a 13/14-Inch television set

Adjust the color tint on your T.V screen to fit the 3-D lenses

View the DVD with the Red lens of the glasses on the right eye and the Blue lens on the right eye (as the glasses are enclosed)

Watch the DVD in a darkened room

Sit 6-8ft back from the T.V screen

If you have another pair of 3-D glasses, refold them so the Red lens covers the right eye. The glasses that come with the DVD are not very clear

Having looked at some of the Amazon.com reviews, many people claim that the two pairs of 3-D glasses enclosed with the DVD are folded the wrong way. This is not true. The DVD uses reversed Anaglyph 3-D which means that the Red lens MUST be placed over the right eye and the Blue lens over the left. If you wear the glasses with the Red lens over the left eye, you will not experience any off the screen effects.

And finally, we come to the film, is it any good? Well, it depends on what you like, but after you get immersed in the excellent 3-D effects, you won't care much about the movie itself. The film's story is simple, and is used as a vehicle for the 3-D effects (there are a lot of them!) Basically, H.H Hart (Anthony) is about to marry Abilene (Abril). But a few off the screen effects later, evil brothers Pike (Quintano) and Polk (Palacios) interrupt the ceremony and kidnap the bride. Understandably upset, Hart goes on a crusade to free Abilene and punish those responsible for her kidnap. But as the story unfolds, Hart (with the help of an Irish priest, whose presence seems quite pointless) discovers that Abilene's kidnap is only a small part of a bigger operation. Simple, but easy to follow.

All in all, this package is a steal; you get one of the best 3-D DVD transfers available and two pairs of 3-D glasses. This film beats any of the 3-D VHS tapes previously available, including Elvira's presentation of 'The Mask'. I own both and prefer 'Comin' at Ya!' Rhino DVD have done a great job with this one and it is a great buy for anyone who loves 3-D effects. The effects say more than story ever could.

Why didn't it came out in sequential field format?
I remember watching the movie at a cinema many years ago...It may be not the greatest movie, but compared to others I have seen, this one was enjoyable that first time.
I can't see why they didn't release this movie in sequential field format. It would have been a lot better to watch and enjoy.
If you, like me, still want to buy the DVD, be warned. The red and cyan colors on the movie are on the opposite way they should be, so if you don't have the original glasses, follow the instructions provided and wear the glasses the opposite way they should be(wear red on the right eye and cyan on the left).
The movie performed acceptably well on my computer screen, but did terrible on my TV. I still could enjoy it by using a projector and the glasses with the colors inverted though. ... Read more

Description

Sex and murder come together in a steamy romance withHitchcockian twists. A screenwriter, obsessed with phone sex, joins a therapy group for sex addicts, where he meets the wife of a policeman. Their uncontrolled passion leadsto a twisted love triangle and eventually murder! BetweenYour Legs is a tale of passion, jealousy and revenge. ... Read more

Description

In JIMMY HOLLYWOOD a young Jimmy Alto (Pesci) moves to Hollywood from New Jersey to try to make it as an actor. With circumstances progressing nowhere, an unemployed Jimmy resorts to stealing from his girlfriend when he needs money.When someone breaks into his car and steals his radio, he and his friend William (Slater) begin staking out the neighborhood in hopes of catching the thief.This new operation gives birth to the S.O.S. (Save Our Streets) organization that ultimately gives Jimmy a sudden taste of fame. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

slater keeps this at bay
this is really an awful movie but I like it because of Slater's performance which is the best thing in this film. Pesci is ok as Hollywood. but dont find anything special about this piece, only for Slater's work as the blank man who repeats himself over again and he does his character well. the end is stupid. plus its upped a notch by the cameo at the end by Harrison Ford.

Jimmy Alto.."Actor Extraordinaire" or GET A GRIP!
Director Barry Levinson("Rain Man"),brings us this quirky comedy of life in the not so glamorous side of Hollywood. Joe Pesci plays Jimmy Alto, "Actor Extraordinaire". He knows it, his pal William(Christian Slater) knows it, it even says that exact thing on the bus stop ad he has invested in(using his girlfriend's money). Alas no one else in Hollywood has seemed to discover this brillant acting talent yet!

It seems the criminal element in his neighborhood make a much better living stealing car radios and such, then he does. When his girlfriend(Victoria Abril) is mugged and Jimmy's car is broken into("Why does anyone bother rolling up their windows, ya just have to pay to fix em when they rob your radio?"),Jimmy and William, who's a little on the slow side, decide to start video taping the criminals and turning them over to the police.And not just the tapes, the perps are delivered as well.This action turns into the biggest break in Jimmy's career he could ever hope for.

The police assume that some big time vigalante group is responsible for these actions, and Jimmy seeing at as the role of a lifetime makes himself over as "Jericho" the leader of this group, and really gets into "method acting".He's thrilled as he see's himself(in disguise) on all the news shows. He's finally got some attention! Pretty soon the police and the criminals are after "Jericho" and Jimmy must decide on an ending for this story.It's all very "Hollywood" right up to the end,and you should at least stay for the beginning of the credits as there are some great surprise cameos.

Joe Pesci is marvelous as the stuggling actor who is enthralled with the great movie stars of the past. Christian Slater plays the spacey William perfectly, and Victoria Abril has a great chemistry with Pesci and is wonderful as the girlfriend who can only sit back and say in her delightful Spanish accent"Are you out of your mind?!"

The film is alot of fun, the musical soundtrack is great, and the VHS has a nice picture and sounds terrifc in the Hi-Fi Stereo. I would even say 4 and 1/2 stars if the film hadn't been "formatted to fit your screen", but still very much worth the view.

If you've ever had a dream..this film is for you....Laurie

Making It in The Dream Factory.
Joe Pesci stars in this movie as Jimmy Alto an unemployed actor living in L.A. who's originally from New Jersey. Jimmy spends his time like a lot of actors in L.A., auditioning for roles, sitting around watching movies, and sunbathing by a pool. Jimmy dreams of making it big. However, the Hollywood he dreamed of no longer exists. All the greats are gone and the famous locations of old are run down. One day after Jimmy has his car stereo stolen he enlists his mentally challenged friend (Christian Slater) to help find the thief and video tape the crook as he commits a crime. They do so and end up binding and gagging the crook and dropping him off at the police department. From there, the S.O.S. is born and Jimmy decides to take on the role as "Jeremiah" leader of the S.O.S.

Overall I enjoyed the movie. At times it moved rather slow. The pieces of Hollywood trivia strung throughout are amusing. In some ways, the film felt like a modern SUNSET BOULEVARD with two guys and a comic ending.

Awful
This is the biggest piece of junk movie. The NEW YORKER MAGAZINE critic said that Barry Levinson had found his footing again with this film, after failing with RAIN MAN. A movie that is a lot better than RAIN MAN??? Wow, I thought! Gotta see it!! Considering this movie wonderful, while considering RAIN MAN lousy, should get that NEW YORKER critic banned from criticism for life. Barry Levinson's weakness is he LOVES incidental moments. And this movie is one incidental, uninvolving, moment after another. He must have thought Andy Warhol's movie SLEEP, that is literally a film of someone sleeping for six hours, was rivetting. Actually, I think I'd rather watch SLEEP than JIMMY HOLLYWOOD. And I like Joe Pesci. And, no, the Harrison Ford cameo at the very end is not worth sitting through this movie for. This movie is the definition of "tedium."

Familiar but enjoyable story of "making it" in Hollywood
Joe Pesci plays Jimmy Alto, an Average Joe from New Jersey who came to Hollywood to become a star. But Golden Age Hollywood is no more. Instead of glamour, Jimmy found a seedy town. Instead of fame, he's become one of thousands of unemployed actors.

It's an old story, but enjoyable to anyone who's shared Jimmy's dream. Probably less so for anyone who doesn't much care about "behind the scenes" Hollywood.

Then Jimmy Alto (aka Jimmy Hollywood to his buddies back in New Jersey) captures the thief who stole his car radio and dumps him off at police hq -- anonymously. When this inadvertantly makes him a vigalante celebrity, he decides he's found his "role of a lifetime." He continues his vigalantism, upsetting police and criminals alike, while to him it's merely a "role," and the cheering citizens, his "audience."

A bit overlong, and it hits some very old observations on Hollywood past and present, but not a bad film. Spanish actress Victoria Abril is delightful as his girlfriend with dreams of becoming a "hairdresser to the stars." ... Read more

Description

Spain, July 19, 1936. The War has just begun and women as always play their part in this human tragedy. Maria, an innocent young nun, is forced to leave the convent after the arrival of the revolutionary troops in Barcelona. She takes refuge in a brothel, where she meets a group of "Libertarias", who are being "drafted" for the "Free Women" organization under the leadership of Pilar (Ana Belen) a pure feminist warrior, passionate and fiery. Alongside, Charo (Loles Leon) the hooker with the heart of gold and Floren (Victoria Abril) a spiritualist, Maria joins in. Within the brutal realities of war, Maria experiences love with an unexpected character and companionship through those she is fighting with. Libertarias is an epic of six women fight for freedom, their struggle for justice amid their passionate cry for a better world. One of Spain’s best known directors, Vicente Aranda, Winner at the Tokyo International Film Festival, has made 17 previous films including the internationally acclaimed "Amantes". ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Great film; should have been letterboxed!
I own the VHS WIDESCREEN VERSION and was anxiously awaiting the DVD release. To my dismay it's FULL SCREEN. What happened to the WIDESCREEN VERSION? A cinematic film like this (shot in 2:35 anamorphic) that ended up cropped loses a lot of detailed visual information. Bummer!

Guess I'll have to wait for an overseas letterboxed version to be available.

Amazing Film About Spanish Anarchist Militia Women
I heard about Vicente Aranda's magnificent film "Libertarias" ("Freedomfighters") shortly after I first heard of Ken Loach's "Land and Freedom". In this film, instead of the retelling of the George Orwell "Homage to Catalonia" story, we instead follow the lives of a group of anarchist CNT militia women at the opening phase of the Spanish Civil War, some liberated from a brothel, and some former nuns liberated from a church. The two movies have some similarities - both are based around the Spanish Revolution that occurred during the Spanish Civil War... but there as a far greater focus on the anarchist state of mind in this film. It also does not shy away from the issue of free love, of the Revolution's effects on the minds of liberated religious people, or even mysticism, as in one curious scene where an old anarchist ghost is channeled through a woman in a trance - the grumpy spirit criticizes the anarchist militia hero, Durruti, and tells the militants how to defeat a nearby enemy.

This film is a lot of fun. Originally I was a little put off by the less serious "feel" of the characters in the film than I initially expected (Prostitutes? Nuns? Sex?) ...but as the film took it's course I could see how different threads - the war, personal transformation, feminism, catholicism, anti-fascism, sexual feelings, and anarchist direct action - were all woven together quite cleverly.

As with Loach's "Land and Freedom", don't expect a happy ending in this film - we all know who won the Spanish Civil War! But this movie helps us see deeply into the world of the left libertarians who resisted Franco and Fascism and dared to imagine a more free, more libertarian world than the one we have today.

LIBERTARIAS
This film tells the mostly unknown story of anarchist militiawomen in the initial days of the Spanish Civil War, "the last idealist war". It is the story of a nun and a prostitute who join a group of loyalist militiawomen in their fight to resist the rebellion of the majority of the Spanish Army led by General Franco against the Republic and the people's revolution.
Seeing "Libertarias" will be an unforgettable experience and the acting is superb. Famous spanish film actors and actresses like Ana Belen, Victoria Abril, Blanca Apilanez, Loles Leon and Miguel Bose all deliver excellent and convincing performances.
This action packed film is guaranteed to become a favorite of those who see it. I highly recommend it. ... Read more

Description

On the border--a battle of rage, lust and power. International sensation Victoria Abril (French Twist, Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!) stars as the seductive Engracia, a down-on-her-luck prostitute who tears apart two men's lives in this engrossing, fast-paced drama. Directed by noted Spanish filmmaker Jose Luis Borau, this film earned international box office success and worldwide critical acclaim. Inspired by the lyricism of renowned directors Howard Hawks and John Ford, "On the Line" explores the gulf between obeying the law and listening to the heart. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

NOTE:The above review is for a different movie!
Ignore the first review. it is for another movie entirely! ..On the Line is an action flick/love story of a prostitute in "Boystown" on the Texas-Mexico border. It has some fine actors and is pretty entertaining....It was made in Texas & Mexico by a director & crew from Spain! ... Read more

Description

From Pedro Almodovar, the director who brought you the worldwide hits "Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown," "Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!" and "High Heels," comes the offbeat, sexy comedy "Kika." "Outrageous!"--Playboy Magazine "Four Stars! A Sexy Farce... A Joy To Watch!"--Mademoiselle Magazine. ... Read more

Reviews (29)

Very funny movie [5]
This is a very funny movie. The characters are very rich. The actors and actresses does a great job. This is one fascinating movie appropriate for all ages. The interaction between all the characters are fantastic and very interesting. I highly recommended it.

Very funny movie
This is a very funny movie. The characters are very rich. The actors and actresses does a great job. This is one fascinating movie appropriate for all ages. The interaction between all the characters are fantastic and very interesting. I highly recommended it.

"In my own dirty and silent way, I loved you."
"Kika" (Veronique Forque) is a bubbly beautician who has a poor history with men ("I always get the weirdos"). She lives with photographer Ramon who has a few kinky habits. Ramon has never forgotten his mother's suicide, and he has mixed feelings about his sinister step-father (Peter Coyote). Ramon's ex-girlfriend, Andrea Scarface (Victoria Abril) is the bizarre former psychologist-turned-tabloid-crime-TV-host who continues to show a morbid interest in Ramon's life.

"Kika" is probably Almodovar's most misunderstood film. When I saw it in the cinema, many people left during the controversial rape sequence, and I read several professional reviews criticizing this scene. This scene, however, is essential to the film's message. The character of Andrea Scarface exploits tragedy with no respect for the privacy of the victim--the crime against the individual becomes nothing next to the sensationalistic exploitation of the crime converted to entertainment to be enjoyed by the masses. That said, Almodovar fans should enjoy the darkly comic "Kika" but those fresh to Almodovar should start somewhere else.

Guileless, chatterbox Kika is one of Almodovar's greatest characters. Terrible things happen to her, but she remains basically unscarred by events. As with most of Almodovar films, his female characters are more interesting than the males. The darkly malevolent Andrea Scarface--with her fantastic costumes--is a perfect foil for Kika's perpetually sunny disposition. But there are many great minor characters in the film--there's Kika's devoted maid, Juana ("I want to be a prison matron") who would like to be more than just a domestic servant, and Paul Bazzo ("stop drooling on me")--ex-adult film star and prisoner who escapes during a self-flagellation ceremony. Kika is a wild story--dark, wickedly funny, and kinky. Lots of nudity--this film is not for the easily offended--displacedhuman

Very funny movie [4]
This is a very funny movie. The characters are very rich. The actors and actresses does a great job. This is one fascinating movie appropriate for all ages. The interaction between all the characters are fantastic and very interesting. I highly recommended it.

Very funny movie [3]
This is a very funny movie. The characters are very rich. The actors and actresses does a great job. This is one fascinating movie appropriate for all ages. The interaction between all the characters are fantastic and very interesting. I highly recommended it. ... Read more