Valmont

Rating:
Summary: One of my favorites...
Review: If you're Into coustume history, YOU MUST SEE THIS FILM! This movie turned me on to 18th century fashion.It's a superior film in it's other respects too. It's always a pleausre to watch, and even if it wasn't period, I'd love this film. It is much better than the teen melodrama "Creul Intentions"

Rating:
Summary: Back from obscurity
Review: What big-budget effort from a major director has ever suffered such damnable obscurity? "Valmont" is one of the most idiosyncratic and playful films of latter-day cinema, which might help to explain how it failed to capture Oscar attention on the heels of "Dangerous Liaisons" but hardly accounts for why it has been so unreadily available since. Amongst other things, this film gave Annette Bening and Colin Firth their first major roles, Fairuza Balk her first adult one, and proved the parting bow from the enchanting Fabia Drake. This may yet prove the best performance from Bening, a major performer still in the midst of a grand career. Her interpretation of the Marquise de Merteuil combines the physical allure of Giselle before the camera with the verbal vivacity of a Madonna interview. Meg Tilly captures the allure of every self-doubting young married woman in her Tourvel, and Fairuza Balk, in counterpoint to her tough, Gothy teenagers, plays Cecile as a blushing nymph. And Colin Firth is delightful as an unself-conscious rake-- Forman's thorough rerendering of Laclos' material reinvents each major character, and the cast uniformly does very well in a film that deliberately thwarts dramatic intensity in favor of creating a mood of both sensual abandon and moral ambiguity. The ending in particular forces the viewer to ask a great deal about the feelings of each of these characters. And what a visual masterpiece! Forman's pictorial sense, abetted by Miroslav Ondricek's ingenious cinematography, makes "Valmont" one of the most stunning films ever shot-- if Fragonard had been able to make a film, it really would have looked like this. Hopefully this tenderhearted, erotic film will finally receive the audience it demands.

Rating:
Summary: Love Annette Benning, Hate that other movie with Glen Close
Review: This is one of my all time favorite movies. I have taken attitude lessons from Annette in this- which always gives my male friends pause. But why get mad, just get even. I also think Meg Tilly is great in this. It has not been available for a long time and I have contemplated the light fingers approach several times, so I am really glad I can finally buy it. Makes an honest woman of me, if anything can.

Rating:
Summary: A video library staple.
Review: Within a week of catching the second half of this film by chance, I had purchased it and watched it numerous times. While the story departs a bit from the novel, Forman's liberty allows the cast (esp. Benning, Firt, Balk) to breathe the emotion and life into the story that those of Dangerous Liasons seemed to miss. I have enjoyed this film quite a bit and often catch the music running through my head leaving me craving for another watch. My only wish is that the DVD was available and the music and vocals were available on CD. A must.

Rating:
Summary: excellent, would like to see it again
Review: A different version of Dangerous Liaisons and shouldn't be compared so critically. Has some excellent acting particularly by Annette Bening and Colin Firth. My question to someone reading this: The video is currently not availble for sale, where can a copy be found?

Rating:
Summary: 1 of my top 10 favorite movies!!
Review: The superior acting, superb direction, and sublime music make this a film to be cherished. Although I have heard that "Dangerous Liaisons" follows the story more closely, in my opinion "creative license" earns Forman higher marks. The innocence of the characters in their sensual "frolic" adds dimension and humor. Colin Firth is probably the finest British actor around today; it's too bad his British films are unavailable in the U.S. Fairuza Balk, Meg Tilly & Annette Benning are uniformly excellent. The best "period" drama I have seen!

Rating:
Summary: Why they changed the WHOLE story??????????????????
Review: A wonderful cast, superb costumes, and ... wow.. the rich settings, beautiful music... BUT... this is NOT *Les Liaisons Dangereuses*. The other film, with Glenn Close, is exactly like the book. Well, the three stars go to the movie, but Colin Firth deserves 10 thousand stars. I wish *I* was one of his victims :-)

Rating:
Summary: Better than Dangerous Liaisons
Review: Dangerous Liaisons was a good movie but nothing like this. It was emotionless and humourless. when I watch it, I really couldn't care less about the characters. The actors were good in both movies but in Valmont they fit their roles better. Milos Forman has also made another great 18th century movie, Amadeus.

Rating:
Summary: Superior adaptation
Review: For my money, this film is far superior to "Dangerous Liaisons." Colin Firth is a very fine actor and is well cast. (He is much more believable in the role than John Malkovich could ever be.) There is real chemistry between him and Annette Bening, whose performance is also excellent. The rest of the cast is also strong, with the exception of Meg Tilly, whose performance does improve somewhat, however, on repeated viewing. Fairuza Balk is particularly good (again, much more believable than her counterpart, Uma Thurman, in "Dangerous Liaisons"). I strongly recommend the film and wish it would be released on DVD.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, amazing, brilliant, perfect, adorable, moving,etc
Review: This far and away the best movie I've seen in a long time. "Les Liaisons Dangereueses" is my favorite play and I thought this movie did justice to every reason I adore the story & the characters. The acting is so good that watching it is like taking an acting class.Far, Far, FAR superior to "Dangerous Liaisons",in which the two lead characters, who were supposed to want eachother desperately, had no chemistry whatsoever. (and who would believe that any women would want to sleep w/ john malkovich anyway? besides the fact that his school of acting is the one in which the actor decides "All you people watching are so stupid that I'm going to make this so obvious that even you incredibly stupid people will get what I'm doing") This movie is breathtaking and beautifully, brilliantly done. Any intelligent person who liked the play "les Liaisons dangerueses" or enjoys great acting or brillinat film-making, needs to see this. thanks=)