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Naked Lunch - Criterion Collection

Naked Lunch - Criterion Collection

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A riviting tour de force.
Review: David Cronenberg's treatment of Burroughs' novel is one of the truly existential horror movies of all time. A man casts his eye down the well of knowledge to uncover the true nature of reality. This underlying reality, stripped of its' drifting clouds of commonly accepted values, propped up illusions and personal delusions, is more hallucinatory and bizzare than any drug experience. William Lee becomes a stoic witness to the everyday madness that is modern life.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The impossible book
Review: Being a huge Burroughs fan and one of David Cronenburg, I actually enjoyed this movie. If your a die hard Burroughs fan, you will be upset by the liberties Crone took with the film. For instance, IT HAS ALMOST NOTHING TO DO WITH THE BOOK. But then again ... how are you supposed to make a movie from "Naked Lunch" anyhow?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sad, funny, horrific and intriguing
Review: I'm both a Cronenberg fan and a Burroughs fan, so maybe my review of this film lacks objectivity. That being said, I think Naked Lunch is quite an achievement, not only visually (Chris Walas' creatures are wonderful, Denise Cronenberg's costumes are elegant and authentic to the film's period), but in terms of screenwriting and in the realm of ideas. Burroughs' novel could be said to be about a number of things, but I believe the film is mainly about how our appetites and urges manifest themselves if they are not acknowledged. Bill Lee, the protagonist in the movie, spends much of the first part of the film avoiding his need to write. After he flees to Interzone, he begins to hallucinate that his typewriter is a giant talking bug that orders him to compile "reports" on various and sundry people and subjects, such as his sexual proclivities, his relationships with friends and acquaintances as well as his need to have a reason to create. Much is made, subtly about the connection between mental imbalance, orgasms and the creative process.Cronenberg has picked up on a theme that runs through all of Burroughs' writing, namely the consequences of living in a society that labels immoral all healthy forms of personal release. For Burroughs, and by extension Cronenberg, this includes sex, artistic expression and liberated use of language. In the novel, being denied these outlets leads people to all kinds of perversions of personal power, drug addiction and insanity. Cronenberg uses different means, but shows his audience the psychic toll of denying one's deep personal needs.In all, a fantastic hallucinatory ride, with a great cast (especially Peter Weller, who has never been better chosen for a role) and a whole feast for discussion by thoughtful filmgoers everywhere.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Good as acid.
Review: After experiencing this film, I went out and bought a manual typewriter

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A film for the masses
Review: "Naked Lunch"(AlmoƧo Nu)is the best film made in Earth. It explores the most fantastics drug trips, worlds of imagination and flying thoughs. This move just comprove that William S. Burrouhgs was(and always will be)the most indicated person to understand, penetrate and fly in our minds.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A deeply sedated film that alters the state of the viewer.
Review: A mind expanding drama that slowly unfolds to reveal the dark underlying story of paranoia and deceit in the halleucinagenic world of William S. Burroughs. Definitely not the typical Sci-fi. Expect the unexpected when dealing with secret agents, lots of prosthetics, and bug powder. Peter Weller and Judy Davis both give strong mind numbing performances.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Surreal, bizarre, thought inspiring, and... non-fiction???
Review: Naked Lunch takes you on a bizarre, surreal downward spiral through the halucinating eyes of a distraught writer trying to regain his sense of self after the accidental(?) death of his wife. Every turn becomes more bizarre and complicated. While attempting to escape through bizarre (symbolic?) drugs he finds it impossible. Two story lines seem to unfold, the halucination and the hidden reality. It is the Beat Generation's version of, and possibly an inspiration to, Pink Floyd's "The Wall".

Notice the description above regarding the circumstances in which this book was written. The characters of Naked Lunch easily parallel Borroughs and his aquaintences; Alan Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, his wife Joan. A newspaper article reporting on the death of Borrough's wife quoted him as saying "I'm in a desperate pit of dispair and I can only write my way out." Naked Lunch is what he wrote. The main character of Naked Lunch writes reports which he titles "Naked Lunch". Is this a non-fictional diary of the complicated journey of a self reflecting, wildly halucinating writer??

I've seen "Naked Lunch" many times now. It still causes me to think. I have yet to decide if it ends on a happy or a sad note. Like life, it's probably a good dose of both.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Explore the life of the Mind.
Review: A Great movie. Better than a piano full of Dead Donkeys. A must-see masterpiece of the new flesh.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Not for everyone, dark, disturbing, and boring.
Review: The movie felt like a bad trip. It created a surreal world occupied by a person lost in the seeking of physical gratification in a psuedo chemo-sexual haze, while straining for self importance through artistic creativity. Unless you're into this, it may leave you asleep or queasy.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: good and surreal
Review: This movie was quite good and I would reccomend it to anyone who enjoys surreal visions. The visuals are spectacular and are not to be missed.


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