Rating: 
Summary: Three little gems
Review: "Red," "White," and "Blue" is a trilogy of French films made by Polish-born filmmaker Krzysztof Kieslowski, widely considered to be the one of the greatest European directors of the late 20th century. Each film follows emotionally damaged characters in modern French society, as they try to deal with their own unique angst. The films are presented in such an honest, gritty manner that they nearly create the appearance of a documentary, as we the viewers get the impression that we are somehow intruding on their lives. We get a voyeur's glimpse into their daily activities and experience with them their joy, excitement and most often, pain. These movies have the traditional European feel. They are simple little tales that play out in an unrushed narrative. Sadly, the only films like this we can see in America are found in the "foreign" section of our local video store. An interesting note about this collection is that each film features beautiful actresses who have subsequently found moderate success in Hollywood (Juliette Binoche, Julie Delpy and Irene Jacob). Of the three, I prefer "White," but most critics claim "Red" is the best. Fans of European dramas will love this collection, and anyone with a desire to begin exploring foreign cinema could make no better selection for their first title.
Rating: 
Summary: Three Colours - Five Stars!
Review: .
In the Three Colours Trilogy, the late director Krzysztof Kieslowski poses subtle questions about the nature of our individual identities.
Like Shakespeare, he draws a map of the human soul.
In Blue we meet Julie who has just lost her husband and daughter in a road accident. She seeks liberty from her sadness by attempting reinvent herself and isolate herself from her previous life. But, she is ceaselessly drawn back into the past by the people of her life. No, for Julie there is no escape from who she is or who she was.
In White, oddly enough, a black humour pervades. It is a tale of marital revenge and the strange odysseys that love can often send us on. Our hero Karol Karol must discover the hard way that one does not achieve true equality in revenge, even perfect revenge.
Red deals with the nature of coincidence, parallel lives and unlikely friendships. In this regard it is not unlike La Double Vie De Veronique. It shares the same lead actress (the highly talented Irene Jacob) and the same levels of innuendo and suggestion. One gets the feeling that there are mysteries within mysteries here as the story of our heroine's friendship with a retired judge unfolds.
At the very end of Red, the lead characters from the Trilogy come together for one brief moment. To say more would spoil it - but it's highly satisfying.
If you enjoy good film-making and like stories that put the human condition centre stage don't miss this trilogy. See them in order and see them all!
FIVE STARS for the Three Colours!
Rating:
Summary: The most memorable trilogy of the decade!
Review: After more than a decade, I still consider Krzysztof Kieslowski's Three Colours: Blue, White, and Red to be the most remarkable trilogy I've ever seen. When I saw these 3 films, I was still an adolescent, and I was so moved and mesmerized. Now that I get a repete viewing, I still enjoy them tremendously!
BLUE: "Juliette Binoche rises from the "deep-blue" ocean of trama and depression."
Before Juliette Binoche made her Oscar-winning The English Patient and Oscar nominated Chocolat, she gave a "deep-blue" performance in Blue that won her the best actress award at the Venice Film Festival. When I saw Blue, I instantly became her fan, depite the fact that she played a nasty role in Damage(Jeremy Iron) that same year.
Blue will always be her signature movie, because it's the most challenging role she's ever played, and it's definitely more powerful than the performances from Julie Delpy(White) and Iron Jacob(Red).
She plays Julie, a young French woman who had survived a car accident that took the lives of her famous composer husband and daughter. She was so tramatized that she isolated herself from the world, and gradually leans toward her musician friend(Benoit Regent) for sexual pleasure as she slowly revive herself. I couldn't forget the scene when she rubbed her hand against the wall and it started to bleed. It was so disturbing and emotionally impacting. Eventually, she found out that her dead husband had been unfaithful to her......
I noticed that there was a scene in this movie that was weaved into White. When Julie was looking for someone in the courtroom building, she "accidently" walked into the room where White was being shot. I guessed K.K. wanted to somehow connect Blue to White while he was making both films at the same time, even though the stories are not connected.
Other than the stunning performance from Binoche, the score, cinematography, and art direction were impeccable! Blue is the most depressing of the trilogy, but it's my favorite, because Binoche moved me to tears.
WHITE: "Zbigniew Zamachowski gets even with Julie Delpy."
White is the least complex and it's a revenge comedy. Julie Delpy divorced her husband(Zbigniew Zamachowski) after a 6 month marriage, because she's not fulfilled sexually as result of his impotence. Z.Z. was broken hearted and leaved France and headed home(Poland) to rebuild his life. Eventually, he returned to France after planning a scheme of vengeance against his ex-wife.....
Julie Delpy does a fine job at portraying a bad gir, but her character is underwritten and it's supporting role to the more touching and wonderful Zamachowski. Oh well, if you hate her here, than you'll love her in Before Sunrise and Before Sunset. It was good to see White after seeing the heavy-duty Blue.
RED: "The mystery between Irene Jacob and a stranger old man."
Red may be the most critically acclaimed of the trilogy, but I didn't enjoyed it as much as I did for Blue and White. I found it to be a bit intricate and the story didn't really touch me. Though I was mesmerized by the cinematograph, especially when Irene Jaocob does her runway fashion show and the "bubble gum" photo shoot. I think she was more memorable in The Double Life of Veronica which was also directed by K.K. Red is about the encounter between Jacob and a retired judge whom has a mystery to share with her. Red is K.K.'s final film.
Rating:
Summary: Anything by Kieslowski is worth seeing, but...
Review: All three of the films in this series are fascinating in their own way, and I would most definitely recommend them, since they are far and away superior to most of what you'll find either on disc or the screen these days. I do have to say this, however: the trilogy was not the masterpiece I'd hoped and been led to expect it would be.
First, the positive elements: rare is the time you will ever find a trilogy where so much work and attention have gone into *all three* films. None of these films is a "sequel" (and though there is a "wrap up" of sorts at the end of *Red*, you really could watch them in any order, which in itself is quite neat). Also, Kieslowski has to be one of the most *awake* directors in the history of cinema--every single scene in each of his films is a carefully prepared canvas, with every detail well worth examining and all the backgrounds worth paying attention to (so be sure to see these films on DVD and with a nice-quality screen in front of you). You'll almost feel as if you're breathing the very air of Paris, Geneva, and Warsaw, so vivid and compelling are the settings. Finally, the acting in all three of the films is uniformly expert and fantastic.
Nonetheless, I have finished my first viewing of the trilogy (and I saw it in this order: BRW) with a somewhat empty and even slightly cheated feeling. For one thing, I can't help but think that the "color concept" becomes over-determining and distracting. I wish Kieslowski had spent more time exploring the characters and (particularly in the case of *White*) making the storylines less contrived rather than trying to "create so many cool color connections" (that's the only way I can put it) on the mere surface of the screen. Colors in their most primary form are simplistic symbols rather than meaningful expressions, and they are used far too often throughout these films merely as eye-candy. One has to admit, however, that without the color gimmickry, this trilogy would not have become so well known.
Of the three, *White* is the one I watched most recently and am most disappointed by. Zamachowski's performance is perfectly executed, but his character (Karol Karol) is one that we've seen performed by Dustin Hoffman countless times before (Zamachowski in fact looks so much like Hoffman that I almost want to call his character in this film "Kramer Kramer"). Actually, the entire storyline of *White* is built on shockingly unoriginal cliches and over-used plot devices (the hapless fool who turns out to be capable of building a corporate empire overnight; the world weary acquaintance who first seeks his own death then learns to love and embrace life; the faked funeral where the "dead" can witness the reaction of the grieving; the whole "turning of the tables," etc.). The weakest element of the film turns out to be the role of Dominique (played by Julie Delpy, who deserved a much better part than this), whose shallow and simplistic character belongs on the pages of a comic book rather than in a Kieslowski film. In general, there's a decided lack of psychological verity to *White*.
*Blue*, by great contrast, spends most of its time trying to penetrate the mind and soul of Juliette Binoche's character. The story of this film is also quite contrived--but its atmosphere, mood and ambience more than compensate. For what it's worth, Kieslowski also does "cooler" things with blue than he does with the other two colors.
As for *Red*, while it may be the most perfectly executed of the three films, it has also proved for me to be the least memorable. This is where I found the use of color most distracting and annoying. Or perhaps I'm just allergic to red...
In spite of all the flaws I've mentioned here, there's something undeniably unique about this trilogy--and regardless of where you start, once you've seen one of the films, you'll most certainly want to see the other two as well.
Rating:
Summary: An all time great trilogy
Review: Alow me to put it this way my spelling and writen gramer are so atrocious that i rarely write in a forum where so many can see it first hand. THAT'S HOW MUCH I LOVE THESE MOVIES. I've not viewed the dvd's (because i've been waiting a since 1995 for them to come out) but the movies are some of the best to come out of france. The writeing, character developement, plot development, acting, cinematography, & directing are all just top notch. I have considered this series for some time now to be my favorite non-english european movie/s of all time (untill brotherhood of the wolf. that is a 6 year run.). Ok here it is #1 blue- a sorrowfull tail staring mmmmmmmm juliette binoche (pictured on cover) as a woman who sees her husband & child die before her eyes and is then forced to continue her life w/o them. #2 white a vengeful tail where a wife (pictured on cover) screws over her husband and he gets some awsome revenge but only after haveing to rebuild his life. last but not least #3 red a tail of lonlyness with a nice twist of fate. Staring the beautiful Irene Jacob (ahem ... pictured on cover) this is for some odd reason my favorite of the three despite amazon.com's review saying it is the worst. These moveis are just a great study in psychology. I hope this is helpfull.
Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece of an understudy into human grief!
Review: BLEU (TROIS COLEURS) / France/Poland 1993 (4 STARS) 23 January 2004: The thing that stands out most about Blue is the expression (or lack there of) of grief. How does a woman, seemingly fulfilled by happiness, react when that happiness is yanked away in one telling moment, in a car accident in which both her husband and her daughter pass away? That is the central understudy - a strong woman's attempts at finding purpose in the seeming absence of meaning.
•Mise-en-scene: I watched an interview with Juliette Binoche, where she mentions that Kieslowski refused to make the film unless it had her in it. It's easy to see why. I can't imagine Bleu without Juliette - its not just that she lends her personality to the film...Bleu IS Binoche.
•I was thrown off by the sub-plots of the character's relationships with her mother and the striptease dancer, as I was about the seeming resolution at the end of the film. There were perhaps references that I missed but the 'almost happy' ending left me feeling un-relinquished. Given that I had shared such an intense journey with Julie, it seemed almost improper to accept that she would settle in to a normal relationship again.
•Cinematography: The 1st shot of the film - that of a car tire racing - shot from the bottom of the moving car establishes this as 'not your typical movie'. The sequence-of-shots that follow eerily draw one into the compelling story-telling style of Krzysztof Kieslowski, minimalist in its approach, with a world communicated without dialogue in the first five minutes of the film.
•Blue is not your typical art-house film. Its production values are up there with the best, and the cinematography by Slavomir Idziak (who's craft was recognized by Hollywood in Black Hawk Down), is nothing short of stunning.
•The lighting is low key and soft, and wraps around the characters to create a mood of subtlety. A distinguishing feature is the detail in the shadows. None of the close-ups fully illuminate the protagonist, almost hinting at her vulnerability at facing the light, though the delicate use of eye-lights does well to bring alive her emotions.
•The camera, an intelligently used narrative element, interacts with Julie and partakes in her emotions, respecting them and yet accentuating their intensity as she plods on in an alien world of deep personal purposelessness. The tight close-ups penetrate her soul and force us to delve into Julie's mind and share in her agony.
•Editing: deftly uses match on action to create irony while forwarding the narrative.
•Sound: The pace is hauntingly slow and silence has been used compellingly. It screams with meaning and becomes one of the more important elements as the narrative progresses.
Bleu is not a film you can watch, consume and move on. Either you'll feel that you've totally wasted your time and will probably not be able to sit through (the pivotal occurrence is over within the first five minutes of the film without a single world being spoken, and the rest of the film is essentially the protagonist's psychologically subjective journey) or you'll realize by the time you've reached the end that you'll revisit this film at various points in time, explore and read about it, discuss it with people you respect, and try to get closer to the essence of Kieslowski. For there are two now well-accepted truths about the folklore surrounding Kieslowski, whose reputation continues to mount posthumously...1. that Kieslowski carefully interwove elements that were rich with meaning and social irony, and 2. that figuring those elements out and appreciating their implications is probably a lifelong learning process.
Rating:
Summary: A must have.
Review: Do you study at USC, NYU or AFI? Save your tuition and watch these movies. Filmschool for only 30 $. And watch them again, and again, and again...
Rating:
Summary: Vive La France
Review: Francophile and hopeless romantic that I am, this DVD is timeless and deep. It's definitely one to own if you're a Juliette Binoche fan. Beautifully filmed.
Rating:
Summary: It's time for some reality...
Review: Good God people! When first we wade through the effusive praises heaped upon Kieslowski's metaphysical interpretation (so to speak) of le drapeau tricolore by so many star-struck and goggle-eyed foreign film enthusiasts that the reviews become indistinguishable, we are inclined at first to be dismissive in our reading. However it may appear that this review is nothing more than a rant contre les autres (against the others) it is not. I promised some reality didn't I? In reality these reviews, the majority of which though rather over the top, have been just in their critique of the trilogy. Within reason however Kieslowski's masterpiece is NOT as many profess the GREATEST FOREIGN FILMAKING of ALL time. Ah yes, I fully endorse the enthusiastic post coital praises, the rose tinted glasses, the luscious afterglow of film magic, yet shouldn't we also visit Truffaut (the workman filmaker), Bertolucci's 1900 perhaps, lest we forget Felini or Schlorndorf's The Tin Drum, or the daring of German Expressionists like Murnau or Fritz Lang? Now, leaving out but not forgetting many other auteurs like Wertmuller, Visconti, Passolini, and more, we have a veritable Mt. Olympus of film greats among whom Kieslowski rests comfortably. His achievement stands by itself as a work by a storyteller. A director tells a story and does it well, he earns his living. He crafts, imbues, layers and provokes in the same medium as storyteller, and if he leaves us yearning for more then this may be greatness. This director has met these parameters and exceeded them. These three films achieved what he set out to accomplish. They were pieces in a lyric poem told visually, emotionally, and with enough obscurity they left us thinking and questioning. The director succeded and we went home to digest it, his little post cold war morality play on liberté, égalité, et fraternité. In conclusion, another small dose of reality: The only negative review encountered was in the end the most honest and real including this one. Though I disagree, and would council that reviewer to wean his dependence upon naive and simplistic cinema, which so conveniently wraps up all loose ends so we may go home secure in the knowlege that there isn't anything out there we might not comprehend, I neither fault nor denigrate his opinion which is personal. There is much to be thankful for in American cinema and much greatness therein as well. Let us be careful in our use of superlatives and generalizations when judging the work of others, yet still recommend on merit with qualified praise. Finally, if you the viewing public has yet to see these films then do so. Blue, White and Red are well worth your time. Having been a serious student of film for over 25 years now, I give my guarantee that anyone who's an admirer of European film will profit from and be enriched by the experience.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent trilogy, each stands out on its own
Review: Great storytelling and a pleasure to watch. Each movie stands out on its own and is easily one of the best trilogies in all of film.
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