Thomas in Love

Rating:
Summary: Love Story
Review: After a somewhat salacious start, this movie turns into a wonderful, touching love story. I am buying the video today, and my only other comment is, don't miss it, if you still believe in love.

Rating:
Summary: The most visually dynamic film I've ever seen
Review: I saw this film in 2000 at the Toronto International Film Festival as a fluke. It sounded interesting, but I really had no idea how blown away I'd be. I can't say too much about the story. Basically its about an agoraphobic man who's stuck in his apartment with only his computer/video phone to connect him to the outside world. He interacts with his insurance company reps, a vacuum cleaner repairman, his mother, a pshychologically trained prostitute, and finally a young woman he meets at a dating club. We never see Thomas, just his point of view as he watches his screen. While this may seem a bit dull, it isn't because what we are looking at is fresh and interesting. All of the characters and settings are brightly coloured. It is a completely new aesthetic, one we've not seen before.

The DVD is packaged quite well for a relatively obscure French Film. It is only available in French with optional English subtitles, thank goodness, no dubbing. Unlike most foreign films that aren't huge mainstream hits (like Amelie or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) this film has several special features. It comes with the original theatrical trailer, and a couple little documentaries (that are subtitled). It also has reversable French/English packaging.

This film is a surprising little gem. I would reccommend it to anyone who likes unusual, risk taking films. I'm sad that it wasn't more widely released in theatres, but I'm relieved that it at least has reveived a decent DVD production. The picture is clear and beautiful. You won't regret getting this film.

Rating:
Summary: Innovative
Review: I truly enjoyed this film. It develops a very believable vision of the future for an extremely introverted person. We can both have sympathy for Thomas and see his selfishness. Highly recommended!!

Rating:
Summary: effective first person
Review: The shtick of the film is a series of conversations Thomas has through his visophone (a futuristic version of live chat with a webcam). He speaks with his mother who calls to often, a number of women through the dating service, the prostitute, his therapist, and his insurance agent who assists in making sure Thomas never has to leave, or allow anyone into his home. Through these conversations we get to know the way Thomas interacts, but we never see Thomas.

Aesthetically, Thomas In Love is beautiful. Each conversation that takes place is engaging. However, that doesn't stop a raging debate over shooting the entire film in first person. We don't see Thomas in the end, although our instincts tell us we might get that chance, we the viewer, are him. He talks, he grunts, he moans, and we put on a cyber-suit with him, but we don't see his face. This may aggravate some, others find it complements the film and can imagine it no other way.

There are very few other films done in the first person style, perhaps for good reason, as in most movies it would alienate the viewer from the character. Movie audiences prefer to have the information about the story given to them, at least the main details - the main character is an important detail that audiences feel lost without.

However, Thomas In Love succeeds where most stories would fail, because of the unique situation of the story. Because Thomas interacts with the word through his visophone, which presents other people to him very much as a television screen does, the story doesn't feel lost without seeing a main character. This unique style is also assisted by the fact that Thomas does not leave his home for any reason, or communicate with anyone other than through the visophone. It is entirely feasible that Thomas never sees his own face, nor would he have any cause to, since his world is so tightly controlled it would be of his own volition.

While some viewers are not going to be able to put aside the use of first person, and enjoy the movie for the story. In a sense, first person is a valuable storytelling device for this particular plot, in another sense, it a device to alienate less adventurous viewers. What cannot be argued is that if first person is a legitimate device, this story does not suffer for it, but is enriched.

Rating:
Summary: Different than any movie I have ever seen...
Review: This is the future, and we are seeing through the eyes of Thomas Thomas, an agoraphobic who has not left his apartment for 8 years. Not only that, but no one can come into his apartment as well. The only people he interacts with, are those who call him by visaphone, a telephone where Thomas can see someone and vice versa. His mother calls him too much, his vacuum cleaner keeps breaking down, and his psychologist signed him up for a dating service, Catch a Heart.

This dating service tends to work at first. He meets a quirky, cute girl, Melody. His insurance also gets him involved with a service that has medical prostitutes, to help with his needs. Will he let someone come into his life and his apartment? Or, is he doomed forever to stay alone and in love?

I liked the way that everything was very visually attractive. There are lots of bright colors in the apartments, 3D photos, and people wear strange plastic vests and what look like henna tatoos on their face or head. One woman had strands of hair stuck to her face shaped in an artistic way. It's a love story with some science fiction thrown in. We never see Thomas's face, only hear his voice, and we see what he sees. I thought that it was a very original concept, even if the story was not. Finding love can be hard, when you don't want anyone to touch you. I think that the best part about it was his very familiar computer generated cybersex pal. She has contrived new storylines every week, so it's as if it's an interactive adult video. She's the epitome of what most men seem to want, Lara Croft type who doesn't say no. Those parts were very amusing.

Watch it, though it may be harder to find than your local Blockbuster.