Rating: 
Summary: FATHERS AND SONS....GREENAWAY STYLE
Review: Typically bizarre and challenging Greenaway film about a man whose wife suddenly dies and can't get past the grief stage. His son moves in with him and they "reestablish" their relationship in a most unorthodox way. Literally. So the son concocts a way to help his father snap out of it. They turn the father's estate into a brothel of sorts with a strange array of women they "collect". This creates a rather Fellini-esque atmosphere and causes some friction among the ladies as well as a couple of their deaths. One woman challenges the rules and turns the tables on the men leading to the father's ultimate death wish and the son's turn to grieve. Greenaway allows the film to run from outlandish black comedy to sadly depressing---a gamut that kind've negates everything we've seen and experienced thus far. There's ample male nudity, bizarre costumes, a truly odd turn from Amanda Plummer as one of the women, striking color and rampant symbolism throughout which makes it a feast for the eyes. If you're a Greenaway fan it's an unusual ride. But I wouldn't recommend it for first time viewers who may find it heavy going.
Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat lacking in usual complexity
Review: In most of his films, Peter Greenaway has at least an undercurrent of suggestion that the prime function of women is to ruin mens' lives, usually with the help of the men in question. This film, more than any of his others (with the possible exception of the excellent "Drowning By Numbers", brings this suggestion to the fore, by using it as a primary message, rather than as a symptom of the unravellings of the plot. Unfortunately (probably due to this approach), there are not many subplots present, and thus, the film lacks somewhat in complexity, as compared with some of his earlier work. An interesting nod to Bunuel's "That obscure object of desire" is present, in the form of earthquakes which happen at key points in the development of the film. The overall character setup (father and son, adjusting to the loss of theit wife/mother) is similar to the that of the twins in "A Zed And Two Noughts", but the surrounding ensemble of characters is less varied, since in this case, it consists entirely of the women that the two bring to live at their house as concubines, and who gradually reverse the roles during the course of the story. Like all Greenaway films, this one is beautifully filmed and intrinsically disturbing; unlike most, it becomes actively involved in discussing film as a subject in itself, from the onscreen descriptions in text of each major scene, to the characters' habit of discussing the motives of various directors, most notably Fellini. I preferred this film to "The Pillow Book", most probably because I despise Ewan McGregor, but I cannot see it as being up to scratch with any of his earlier work, although for Greenaway enthusiasts, it is nevertheless a "must have". The sound and video on this DVD are outstanding.
Rating: 
Summary: Allow me to defend "8 1/2 Women"....
Review: I've recently found myself being pulled into a swirling vortex of obsession with the works of Peter Greenaway. The man creates such a distinct atmosphere with the staging of his films, the cinematography, and the sets embodying a lavishness and beauty that clashes against dark, audacious, perverse, and indeed evil themes to cause a fascinating cacophony. Much of his output could be classified as surreal simply because of this instantly palpable dissonance.
"8 1/2 Women" is no different. Yes, it doesn't have the viciousness of "The Cook, The Thief...", or the delicious puzzlement of "Drowning By Numbers", but what it does have is the unmistakable Greenaway atmosphere and an air of utmost dream-like elegance, once again grinding against frank sexual obsession and perversion and an uncontrollable spiral of loss and grief.
I'll leave the plot details that are to be found in other reviews, but will say that I found this film a joy to watch. From the very beginning (particularly the experimental and kinetic sequence that opens the film), I was enthralled. With Greenaway, sometimes you don't want to look, but you can't turn away (to spoil the surprise a bit, the infamous incest incident is not shown...only very strongly implied). As the film wears on, it does take on a more fragmented, slice-o-life type of approach, but the episodal manner in which the progress of the bordello is documented actually conveys the chaos well. In such an arrangement, the only way to really give an idea of the vibes surrounding the downfall of the house is to give examples, then tell us how it finally came to self-destruct... which is done. Those who complain about lack of closure can only be speaking about the question of what becomes of the son after the house empties itself, but how much do you want handed to you? The movie is 2 hours long! A case of "The meal was terrible.. and the portions too small!"
Speaking of which, I'll end the review saying that those who hated it.... give it another chance? You know by now that half of the magic of Greenaway's idiosyncratic films is visual. Nobody has denied the beauty of "8 1/2 Women". So let yourself sink into that odd beauty, and maybe you'll be able to appreciate the distinct and conscious style that the characters execute.
Rating:
Summary: Lukewarm Greenaway
Review: I think I have to start by noting that I'm a biased reviwer, due to the fact that I'm a hardcore Greenaway fan. That said, his latest, 8 1/2 Women is interesting at best. I've always said that painters make some of the best "visual" movies, from Julian Schnabel to Peter Greenaway here. He's created some of the masterpieces of cinema, from Cook the Thief His... to The Draughtsman's Contract. But here he just doesn't seem to be trying anymore.This still isn't a bad movie, though. In fact, I bought in on DVD after I saw the movie in theaters, and I still watch it every once in a while, but this definitely is NOT for Greenaway virgins. His visual sense is once again in full force, though not as much so as in some of his 80's films. But there's a lot less on the screen here than there is in his better films. I can honestly say that one of the major themes here is sex, which is a major step down from most Greenaway films. True, sex is a dominant image in his work, but he's never made a film ABOUT sex, until now. Still this isn't as bad as the misfires Baby of Macon and Drowning by Numbers. But even those films were interesting, and they explored subjects thoroughly, though somewhat ambiguously. 8 1/2 Women is a must for any major Greenaway fan, but anyone not interested in his work should probably avoid this.
Rating:
Summary: Very challenging film
Review: When I consider the state of sex in American films today, "American Pie 2" comes to mind. The sex here is treated in the usual leering, juvenille manner. All of the people are young, and it's the women who are expected to disrobe, and hint at lesbian encounters. The scene where the two coeds demand that the two men kiss each other before doing each other treats anything from this norm as aberrant behavior. As long as the subject is treated in this cookie-cutter manner, our country will show sex, and not actually explore it as the strong human emotion it is. The strong point of "8 1/2 Women" is that is challenges our thoughts of what sexuality can be in ways that are ignored in this country. The movie hits the ground running as we encounter the two main characters, a middle-aged man and his twenty-something son shortly after the older man's wife dies. We not only see full-frontal male nudity, a rarity in this country. But what is also somewhat shocking is not that they are interested in man-on-man encounters, but encounters between father and son. Sons wanting to sleep with their mothers have been explored before, but dad and son is something to think about. After this eye-opening scenario, the movie continues to challenge. Faced with seemingly unlimited wealth, the two decide to build a sexual playground to try and appease what must be a major league middle-age crisis by the father. They encounter and recruit a handful of women to come live with them and play out their fantasies. This is also where the film has it's strong points. The closest I can remember to this film is "Sirens", the Australian film that featured an artist surrounded by nubile females, among them Elle McPherson. But even that film was probably too hot for America to touch, and even this film filled it with very good looking women of the same cut. "8 1/2 Women" brings in all kinds of women from beautiful to hideous, dominent to submissive. Once again, it shows that while Playboy magazine shows an attractive cut of women, it is not the only source for sex in the world. I'm not saying I agree with all the choices, and they are diverse enough where most people also would not go for all of them. But that's the good point of the movie. By busting through cinematic stereotypes of how we think about sex, it shows that it is a subject that can be pursued by anyone, not just the "beautiful people" class.
Rating:
Summary: Thrillingly good
Review: I didn't enjoy watching this film at the cinema so,
although I wanted to complete my collection, once I
had bought the DVD I put off watching it for 9 months.
But when I did, I found it compelling - witty, fast-paced
and intriguing. But best of all was the image quality.
Far from suffering from noise filtering artefacts like
most DVDs, it manages to retain what looks very much like
film grain. The colour rendition is also amongst the best
I have seen on a DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: 1 1/2 Stars.
Review: Most of the time I love Greenaway â€" probably for the same reasons most people seem to despise him. This one bit mightily, though. It got a surprisingly positive critical response when it hit theatres, however. My theory is that normally deadly hostile critics who hate Greenaway were waiting for him to make a really bad movie, which they would then recommend as highly as possible - thus ensuring that viewers would be put off ever going to another of his films after seeing this stinkbomb. It does have one or two funny lines - but there's not enough here to warrant sitting through the whole thing. See "A Zed and Two Noughts" instead.
Rating:
Summary: Not Greenaway's best...
Review: I have found that Mr. Greenaway has been forgetting plot altogether in many of his more recent films. All's well with that if you replace plot with visuals so stunning as to make the film a moving painting or sculpture. It's something else entirely when you start to rely on clever "in" jokes with your long-standing audience. Peter, we know you're clever and funny and brilliant so stop trying to prove it. Just my two cents. It's still twenty times the better than any other film released in '99.
Rating:
Summary: Don't watch this with your parents! Shockingly boring!!
Review: The gloves are taken off for this limey video, as it breaks new ground in everything from male frontal nudity to unnatural sex acts. As avant' guard as they would like to seem, the characters are unrealistic, their reactions to situations unbelievable. 2 hours is way too long for this flick, I had to watch this movie in 3 chunks, to keep from falling asleep. Save your money for a better movie.
Rating:
Summary: I couldn't believe it
Review: Never could I have imagined a more interestingly put together story. The characters were fabulously written, each one more bizarre and entertaining than the last. The imagery was surreal. Anyhow, I was blown away.
|
