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The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover

The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover

List Price: $14.98
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Transfer problems
Review: When this film was released in North America on Laser Disc many years ago, it suffered several sound and sync problems (scenes repeated visualy with the wrong sound etc.). This may account for why it has yet to see the light of day on DVD. Still, let's hope someone will have the vision to make a new digital transfer!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Definitely not for the faint of heart
Review: If you are a fan of films as art, then you will probably appreciate this film. Whether you will enjoy it or not, however, is another matter. I was enthralled and haunted by the story, while being dazzled by the glorious imagery. The costumes (by Jean-Paul Gauthier) are magnificently done, and I agree with the other reviews about the cinematography. The combination of food and eroticism works well, even when the story turns bad. The story would not leave me for days, and the final image of the lover is one that I wish I could forget. If you're a fan of the art of cinema, by all means see it. You might want to skip lunch, though.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A work spanning and defying all genres
Review: This movie is of Skakespearian proportions. It examines innocence, corruption, greed, and, of course, revenge. From the bizarre beginning to the absolutely shocking conclusion, "Cook" is Medieval, Jacobin, Dickensian. . .it defies classification. One tip: listen carefully!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: cook the thief, huis wife and her lover
Review: With all the DVD's being released, it seems strange that a movie of this level isn't. I first saw this movie quite a few years ago, and it still haunts me. The acting is first rank, and the camera work is super. While quite a few people would and are distrubed with the story line, this movie should be ranked as one of 1990's best made movies. Quite a few of us are equally upset with the fact that this movie and others of it's quality are not available. Thank you.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This demands a widescreen DVD version
Review: I don't get it. Leprechaun 2 is available on DVD, and this isn't.

I remember when this was released, it had just gotten a very positive review in the NY Times, and the theater was packed. Well, by the end of the film, there were plenty of empty seats. I've never seen so many people walk out on a movie, or in such a steady flow. It was as though the people who found it distasteful had very different levels of tolerance, or perhaps that the film offered an unusually broad selection of potentially offensive subjects. There were actually people who walked out during the last 10 minutes. Still, there were plenty of viewers who were transfixed by this exquisite film, including me. In fact, I had to go see it again the very next day. I can't remember being quite so affected by any movie.

Helen Mirren and Michael Gambon are both very good here, but what really sets this film apart are the stunning, painterly compositions and the lush cinematography (by Sacha Vierny). The brutal violence, the dialogue, the characters and plot all serve as a background to the film's dazzling visual spectacle. This inversion is somewhat typical of Peter Greenaway's films in general, but this is perhaps his masterpiece. In short, I can't imagine a more necessary addition to the DVD canon.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A startling masterpiece that transcends the screen.
Review: The first time I saw this film as a teenager in a nearly empty downtown theater, I nearly gasped for air. The sublime vision of Greenaway's unrivaled direction flawlessly unfolds a story that the film's title acurately expresses. The Cook, The Theif, His Wife, and her Lover is a must for any fan of the cinema longing for truth and beauty.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wonderful movie! Beautiful, moving, and disturbing
Review: Great movie! This really needs an uncut DVD version to be released. This is not some pretty film to be quickly forgotten. A movie to be savored and tasted for years after.

(PS...if you ever get a chance to see this on a big screen do so...there is SO much going on in the screens it's hard to see on a television.)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Brilliant
Review: This movie has to be one of my all time favorites. The cinematography is some of the best I've seen. I highly recommend this movie to anyone.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent, erotic, and exciting!
Review: This really is a wondefull, magnificent cinematic achievment. Helen Mirren is wonderful, and the other cast members are impressive. It's a disturbing film, but it's also very beautiful. Please release the uncut version along with R!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The movie is grand, even if beyond shocking
Review: Shock.

That is the first rection to many of the scenes. However, it does not - or should not - matter.

I would suggest seeing this movie without expecting anything in particular, just drowning in the colours, moods, music, and emotions. And I wouldn't suggest looking for hidden meanings - this is obviously not a symbolic movie. It is one of those that you don't have to understand, just experience.

You will probably be tempted to leave midway, but it is the stunning final scene that brings the movie to an instinctively perfect conclusion.

Some people say you have to be a freak to like the movie. They ignore the fact that Greenaway is playing with our emotions, combining perfect elements of cinematography to create a grotesque contrast between strange calmness, anger, hate, caring, and, without doubt, shock.

I think what frightens people about this movie is that they can see something familiar even in the pit of madness.


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