Reviews (11)

Finally the best of Fellini makes it to DVD!
Underrated by moviegoers at large, and underappreciated even by Fellini fans, "City of Women" is in my opinion the best movie Fellini has made. With its dream-like but devastatingly accurate script, Fellini has poured into this movie everything he has learned about women... Awesome!

Until now, fans of the movie had to make do with poor VHS tape transfers, since the film never made it into laserdisc. No more; happily, the new DVD anamorphic transfer is quite good! A must have for Fellini fans.

Great movie, good transfer
City of Women is probably the most complete culmination of Fellini's dreamlike film-language aspirations. The DVD is slightly disappointing because the color saturation is slightly low. Also, I had problems with the dvd because I view on a computer screen. I believe this transfer was made from a tape master: scanline artifacting can be seen here and there and it's a bit distracting. But the image is pretty sharp, and what images...! Also, it's nice to be able to turn off the subtitles for once and watch just those potent, dreamlike, dancelike, painterly images play out before your eyes. They could have done a better job with the transfer, but if you love Fellini this is a must have DVD!

Not Fellini's best, but not his worst
First, I have to say that I am a fan of late-period Fellini. If you prefer his earlier work (pre-Juliet of the Spirits), you may not like his later, more indulgent work.

City of Women is about women, specifically feminists. Women were always one of Fellini's favorite topics, and this film is his attempt to understand the various (often contradictory) aspects of the feminist movement (or movements). As such it's rambling, with no real center or plot to speak of. Marcello Mastroianni (Fellini's favorite alter-ego) plays womanizer Snaporaz, who, upon following a woman off of a train, winds up in the midst of a kind of feminist convention. After roller-skating down some stairs and bumming a ride with a nymphomaniac and some junkies young enough to be his granddaughters, he winds up in a kind of temple to womanizing. It's a strange film.

This film doesn't approach the experimental or lyrical depths of its successor, And The Ship Sails On, but in my opinion it's superior to its predecessor, Orchestra Rehearsal.

The DVD has a decent transfer and a few extras: a brief interview with Fellini (always a treat) and a featurette containing interviews with some Fellini associates and scholars. A decent DVD of a decent film.

Late period Fellini
Starting as early as Juliet of the Spirits, Fellini began a trend toward opulence in his films, at the expense of meaningful ideas. I have no qualms with this decision, he was growing as a director, exploring color and production design more fully than screenwriting. We will always have his indisputable classics like La Strada, Nights of Cabiria and La Dolce Vita. Amarcord is perhaps his best color film. Fellini was probably seduced by the stylistic choices that color afforded, allowing his imagination to run rampant. That is exactly what happened with City of Women.
This film is much better by the end than you would have thought had you walked out at the beginning. I almost turned it off finding it lame, and it is rather thin. Marcello Mastroianni gets off at the wrong stop on a train and ends up in a nightmarish and yes, Felliniesque City of Women. The film sends up feminists, and there's even a lone "macho" man who lives in a huge castle.
The film has fantastic visuals, but they overpower any meaning that there might be in them. One memorable exception shows Mastroianni sliding down a huge slide as his sexual history flashes before his eyes.
I have yet to see a noble film featuring sex as its theme. City of Women is eye candy, and understanding that, you'll probably have a good time.

WHAT CAN I SAY - FELLINI+MASTROIANNI
Fellini and Mastroianni... What an unbeatable combination of tallant. This is history. ... Read more

Reviews (11)

a MUST for lovers of the book.
Ruiz's version of Proust's monumental work probably comes as close to a faithful interpretation of the spirit of the original work as a film can get. While the movie focuses on the last volume of the novel, key elements of the whole are interwoven throughout, to brilliant effect. Ruiz's surrealistic touches are at times so achingly beautiful that it takes your breath away. Ruiz made some interesting (and brave) choices regarding the plot: Swann and Albertine are jettisoned entirely, and believe it or not, it still works. The casting is uncannily on the money, with the one exception of John Malkovitch as Charlus, who appears not to have the foggiest conception of the character as written by Proust. If you haven't guessed already, this film will be tough going for those unfamiliar with the book. For Proustians: an unmitigated feast.

A Worthy Interpretation Of The Classic On Film
Director Raul's version of Marcel Prousts' Remembrance Of Things Past is captured beautifully and faithfully on film. It was made only recently in 1999, but it is essentially timeless. The strength of the film lies in the many dimensions it has, as with the novel. Proust's vision and world comes to life through the cinema, through good performances by the actors, period details and such beautiful, wistful music. The music and the way the film changes time frames, different perspectives, and the Impressionist, sensory images in memory that Proust created in the book are captured with great effect.

For those who have read the long book, and for those who are Proustian, this film is a sumptuous cinematic feast. You don't have to appreciate French literature and film interpretation, you can just love costume dramas. The French are a different breed. They love their champagne, their waltzes and always, Paris. The frivolous lifestyle depicted in Odette's courtesan climate is but one element of French society, at least as it was in the late 19th century. Swann, as we know, is the author himself. Proust put himself in Swann, and became the restless, troubled youth searching for himself but unable to find peace of mind in a corrupt world of money and societal conventions, a world who looks innocent and glossy but hides a dark secret of prostitution and frail morals.

The cast is superb. The music is delightful. What a great idea they had to cast a now older Catherine Deneuve as the courtesan whom Swann loves devotedly, Odette. This DVD is a great experienc e and I recommend this film to fans of French classics. One note: the film takes place in the latter portions of Proust's epic novel, and some of the characters and side stories were cut off due to time. Like Gone With The Wind for America, Remembrance Of Things Past is an epic masterpiece of French literature. Only there they call it "Au Recharche du Temps perdu" which literally means, in Proustian symbolism, "In Search Of Lost Time".

Great Film, Not So Great DVD
I have been a fan of Proust's novel for a long time, and I eagerly awaited this movie, having read articles about its making and, later, reviews of it. Yet I managed to miss it during the, oh, three days it played in the theater here. So I ordered the DVD the minute it became available, and I had two reactions: 1) For the Proust devotee, this is an amazing, beautiful film, probably the best that ever could be done in capturing the complexity and haunting quality of the novels. But 2) The DVD is a real disappointment: the subtitles obscure the image itself (instead of appearing below it), and they're white, set against what often is a dazzlingly white background. And of course you can't turn them off. So you can't get rid of the damn things, and you can't read them either. The image itself (the parts you can see) is pristine and gorgeous, and the sound is superb. And the movie itself--well, it's a masterpiece. Will you be able to follow it if you haven't read the books? I think so--parts will seem enigmatic, but then that's not such a bad thing. The overall story and point will, I think, be quite clear, and quite moving.

Incidentally, I agree with the reviewer who said Malkovich is miscast. I love his work in general, but he seems out of place here, and it's all too clear that he had to re-loop much of his French dialogue. Still, the role he plays, and the way the director defined that role, are so interesting that you can overlook his performance somewhat.

Proust, Captured on Film
Suffice it to say that Chilean-born director/screenwriter Ruiz tackled a monumental assignment. Reducing Proust's lengthy Trilogy (Remembrance of Things Past), to a few hours of screen time would have been beyond the capabilities of most filmmakers. That he has succeeded so well is a great credit to him and to his creative crew.

The film is told in a series of flashbacks as Proust lies on his deathbed. The flashbacks are not sequential, so at points one has to pay attention to follow along. The rewards are numerous, however. This is one of the most beautifully filmed works that I've seen in ages. The director is particularly adept at pan-shots. The moving tableaux are breathtaking, like living impressionist paintings. This is particularly true in a scene of a music recital at a country chateau. The various figures are situated on moving platforms, so in addition to the moving camera pans, the platforms also slide slowly back and forth, which makes for a kaleidescopic montage unlike anything I've seen in cinema. Ruiz and cinematographer Jorge Arriagada are artists in the truest sense.

Ruiz also managed to collect a top notch cast for the enterprise. Marcello Mazzarella is elegantly stoic as Proust. He is the artistic, calm eye of the storm as the hurricane of WWI France swirls aound him. Emmanuelle Béart, is stunningly beautiful, as always. Catherine Deneuve is a perfectly cast Mme De Crecy, though her on screen time is relatively brief. John Malkovich's French sounds pretty fair to my untrained ear. He definitely has the juiciest role as a jaded, decadent Baron of the Boulevard. Pascal Greggory chews up some scenery, as well as a boefsteak, as the gung ho, effete warrior, St-Loup (well named, as the guy really is quite loopy).

The movie is slow going at times, which well befits an adaptation of Proust, who's not exactly known for his frenetic pacing. This is a film to savor with several repeated viewings. The DVD is an excellent transfer and the English subtitles are accurate and legible. Highly recommended.

BEK

Breathtakingly beautiful
Well, I had only ever heard of Proust before this film from a Monty Python sketch of the "Summarise Proust competition" (contestants had to summarise In Search of Lost Time once in evening wear and once in bathing suit). I was worried I might hate this film, not knowing anything about Proust other than he wrote a multi-volumed masterwork about time and memory. Then I saw it...wow! I cannot praise Mr Ruiz enough for what he has achieved. The camera work, sets, and lighting are stunning. As Marcel's memory takes him back and forth through his life, the sets and furniture often move around whilst the scene is played out - all emphasising the fragility and hallucinatory qualities of his memory. And there is the music...wow again. It is never intrusive but always creates the perfect background to what is happening on screen. It is not overly sentimental and never tries to force you into feeling emotion (unlike someone like John Williams/S. Spielberg who tries to ram it down your throat). As for plot, many characters and relationships are never fully explained or revealed. Many reviewers seem offended that a film expects them to display attention and interest, but I feel that they're missing the point. Plot is often not the point of the film, instead it is a film about time and memory (hence the title!). Plot is not allowed to dominate the narrative structure, it is the emotions and memory of Marcel. The most offensive thing that some other reviewers seem to find about this film is that it is novel and original - what a crime!! I had never read Proust (and I do not speak French to any degree - I feel I should mention this for the reviewer below who complains that those who can't speak French will have problems) before I saw this film, but I have a long enough attention span and an open enough mind to appreciate the sheer beauty of its images and the wonderful originality of its style. I urge anyone remotely appreciative of excellent filmmaking to see this film. It might even, as it has with me, motivate you to read the book. I am now three and a third volumes in and it is the greatest and most beautifully written novel I have ever read in my life. Thank you Mr Ruiz and thank you Marcel! SEE THIS FILM NOW!!! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

chilling & effective
the movie tells the story of two sisters, working as maids, who through a sad combination of servitude, ignorance, psychological ailments, incest & lack of privacy, brutally murder two of their employers.

the film captured me from the first scene, and i was riveted throughout- i gave it 4 instead of 5 stars, because i wanted more on their early childhood- but as the director comments in the included interview- 'what you leave out is as important as what you leave in'.

highly recommended!!!

TRUE LIFE INCEST AND MURDER
Based on Janet Flanner's 1933 Vanity Fair article, MURDEROUS MAIDS (Home Vision Entertainment) vividly creates a sympathetic but unapologetic account of the notorious Papin sisters life when they are sold into servitude by their self-centered mother. Incest, murder and the haves vs the have-nots are at he heart of the most famous French crime of the 20th century. Memorable, insightful, artistic and chilling.

I'm so far Down it seems like Up to me
If you are depressed, just lost your significant other, lost out on that promotion, just had your car reposessed...do not go see Jean-Pierre Denis' "Murderous Maids." It's a real downer. But a downer with just the right amount of the absurd and the ridiculous to make it viable as entertainment.
"Murderous Minds" tells the story of Lea and Christine, two sisters who are sold into servitude by their mother; into the house of a French Bourgeoisie housewife who literally checks the dusting with a white glove. Madam is very persnickity about the household cleaning and the food bills and for a time forms a bond with the eldest sister, Christine who shares Madam's adherence to the highest standards. That is until Madam finds Lea and Christine "en flagrante delicto." Then the title of this little film comes into play and the tone changes from "A Room with a View" to le grand guignol.
Christine is the lynchpin of this film and she is a great character fulminating with rage and passion that inevitably leads her down the path towards mental illness...or is she merely having a very bad week? Lea the younger sister is a giggly mass of jello more than happy to be molded into a lover by Christine. Both actresses play their roles to the hilt and beyond culminating in the prison scenes in which both come very close to literally chewing the scenery. But it is all such a hoot that we care little and gladly suspend our disbelief; even though we do it with our mouths agape. Anyone remember Ken Russell's "The Devils?"
I suppose one could nit pick the weak psychological and social motivations of the characters and the film: why exactly is Christine so upset? Why does the mother find it necessary to take her younger daughter's wages when she herself is employed?
One of the major set pieces of "Murderous Maids" is Christine in the Mayor's office hysterically demanding that Lea be emancipated from their mother that ends in Christine being thrown out for causing a scene. It is so filled with over-ripe passion and hate it singes your ears and makes your stomach ache. Now that is moviemaking!
"Murderous Maids" is the kind of movie that dares you to laugh it off or ignore it...but it is so fabulously over-the-top in a Douglas Sirk/Roman Polanski way that you won't be able to. ... Read more