Rating: 
Summary: A TOUCH TOO LONG BUT THOUGHTFUL.
Review: Do yourself a favor and read Kundera's book to fully appreciate the nuances of this movie, things like what "lightness" stood for (freedom of self and sexual expression). With such liberties staunchly repressed under the dictat of the former Soviet Union, sexual expression becomes a cry for freedom within itself. The movie is erotic, yes, but it carries a whiff of mischief rather than being purposeless, gratuitous "softporn" as some reviewers lament. Daniel Day-Lewis is pretty decent as Tomas, toggling between a brain surgeon and a Lothario. His performance is disciplined and understated as events overtake Tomas's ability to control his destiny. He has an arrangement with Sabina (Lena Olin), a sculptor who also can find no place for love without freedom in her life. Their relationship is based upon friendship and convenience. Their lovemaking is passionate but not empty or cold. If there is love, it is left unspoken. Kaufman uses this relationship as the foundation of the movie with most of the dynamic being centered upon the naive country girl (a very fresh and intriguing Juliette Binoche) who rebels against the crushing of the Prague Spring by photographing the brutality. The trio escape to Switzerland. Geneva then plays a major role in this film as being emblematic of an alternative freedom; a freedom that feels heavy with responsibility. Maybe, within western democracy, when everybody has a voice, then the individual can no longer be heard. Maybe, if there are no small victories, then there is no true lightness. Their freedom can only be felt within context. Finally, Thomas and Tereza return home to a Soviet Prague. Again, via censure, the communists provide the answer. Sabina finds a beach side property in California, opting for bland airbrushed seascapes. She lives alone. Her spirit has been quelled by the freedom that surrounds her. This is truly a beautiful European film, perhaps not too palatable to Hollywood-tainted tastes. Despite its length (which does tend to drag a little) and its erotic texture, I believe it follows its own moral vein. A thought provoking dash of cinema, highly recommended for any connoisseur's collections!
Rating: 
Summary: No real existential angst, turned into a love story
Review: Kaufman turned a complex book into a simple love story. If one wishes to review the movie for itself sans the book, you see a love story based on personal preferences and bad Czech accents. However, if you review the the movie within the context of the book, it falls flat in many places. No one can argue the beauty and exoticism and beauty of Prague shines through and Kaufman's treatment of the Czech invasion superb. What the movie seems to fall short on is the nature of Tomas's existential angst - the tension between lightness and weight. Tomas is played up against the backdrop of the Oedipus story and not against Nietzsche's eternal return. Alright, you have to consider that two hours to play out what needs a whole book to explore is not easy. I am really disappointed in the movie after having spent so much time with the book. The characterization of Tomas, Sabina and Tereza by Daniel Day-Lewis, Lena Olina and Juliet Binoche allows it a soft landing. Where was Franz in the whole scheme of things? In the book, Franz is a really integral part of the consideration of the lightness contra weight consideration although his role is really to play up Kundera's "Life is Elsewhere" theme. In the movie Franz is bit part. Lacking the full complexity of the book but beautiful in its location and eroticism,the movie manages to work. Although, it is bad enough that Kundera's work is sometimes reduced to male fantasy, do we have to confirm it via a movie? ...
Rating:
Summary: very bearable
Review: I believe that the current crop of young director's in Hollywood should be sat down and forced to enjoy this film, for it is a perfect example of exactly how a simple movie can be elevated to a piece of art work. Of course it cannot hurt if your base is a novel worthy in its own right, but the transfer to the screen does not always go this well. First and foremost there is a little of everything here. Daniel Day-Lewis is possibly the finest method actor of his generation and the subtlety of the Czech accent, the easy passion of the love scenes and the frankly mouth-watering on-screen tension with Lena Olin is a joy to behold. As for Olin herself, i may be alone, but i think she oozes sexuality and temptation here in a way that a Sharon Stone never could in Basic Instinct. Juliette Binoche is also one of the finest actresses of a generation (Alice et Martin, Three Colurs Blue and an Oscar for the terrible English Patient where she was the only thing worth watching) and she portrays the innocence and vulnerability of Theresa with an effortlessness that she deploys in all of her film roles. As for her display of under-arm hair, i have nothing to add! Take three fine lead performances, add the perfect, haunting, musical score and the tense backdrop of the Prague Spring of 1968 and we almost have a perfect film. At times the story meanders and at 2h 46mins, does lose the attention into the third hour. I wondered at times why more was not made of the on-screen dynamic between the two female leads and also why the camera dwelt for such long periods on Day-Lewis driving his East-European motor vehicle, but it all adds to the period feel of the piece. If you do not feel sad come the end, i should be extremely surprised, this is an excellent and engaging piece of film-making.
Rating:
Summary: Rich story, well directed, beautifully acted!
Review: Not for everyone but if you like a little philosophy with your cinema or are fairly literary minded then you'll appreciate this well adapted film. Having also read Kundera's book I can say that the movie is just as sucessful in telling a wonderful story of love, politics and existence set in 60's Prague. Binoche, Day-Lewis and Olin are fantastic.
Rating: 
Summary: Please read Kundera's book instead
Review: Kundera's novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being is absolutely amazing, and this film falls so far short of it. Despite my almost-immediate dislike of the film, I actually stuck it out and watched the entire thing (hoping that Daniel Day-Lewis could somehow salvage it or that the film might actually express some idea from Kundera's book). But I was sorely disappointed. But please read Kundera's novel, because it is wonderful. I can't help but think that Kundera was referring to this film when he wrote in his later novel Immortality: "The present era grabs everything that was ever written in order to transform it into films, TV programs, or cartoons. What is essential in a novel is precisely what can only be expressed in a novel, and so every adaptation contains nothing but the nonessential."
Rating:
Summary: The perfect and complete love story
Review: This is such <insert any positive adjective> movie. This movie began an unwavering appreciation for Juilette Binoche, who plays a simple country girl, that adores the dashing Doctor played by Daniel Day Lewis, but who throughout the movie slowly matures into the stronger and more powerful of the two. It is set in the communist Czeck republic, during the tumuletous 60s, which saw uprisings put down by Soviet tanks and military. The backdrop is perfect for a love story, thier problems as a couple gain perspective next to the prospects going on, they both support the cause, and pay the price of being dissadents, which brings them closer together. It has a completley epic feel. It describes a couple, thier circle, the Country, politics and time perfectly. I don't want to give anything away. It is long, but if you like you will think it ends to soon. It bitter sweet and melencholy, but it is so well written I cannot imagine you wont appreciate it. The characters are more real on film than they ever would be life. I will always love this movie. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Great adaptation of the novel
Review: This is one of my favorite movies. Philip Kaufman did an excellent job of translating the novel into film, and the acting is top-notch as well. The performances are strong, and some of the more philosophical elements of the novel are incorporated without creating the awkwardness that might have resulted in the hands of a less-capable director. The biggest surprise was the strong European feel of the film. (Yes, the film was set in Europe - specifically, Prague and Geneva - but American movies shot on location are usually still identifiably American.) The film's portrayal of the sexual relationships in the story is remarkably mature - not something you'd expect from an American film. The quality of the DVD transfer is vastly superior to the laserdisc. It was particularly gratifying to be able to watch the film in one sitting, without interruptions, and without having to change discs halfway through. The additional commentary is good, though the commentary from the wonderful Lena Olin seems slightly out of place amongst the more technical commentary of Philip Kaufman and the others involved. The only drawback to this particular edition is the sound. While the sound quality is excellent, the volume is markedly quieter than that of the other DVDs I've bought so far.
Rating: 
Summary: A nice historical fiction movie
Review: This review is for the Criterion Collection DVD edition of the film. This movie is set against the backround of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in the 1960's It is about a doctor who has physical relationships with many different women. He then meets a woman whom he wants to pursue a romantic and emotional with. She wants him to be monogamous. The ensuing results are quite original. The film is also a good history lesson about the Soviet invasion but is not appropriate for school age children. The film has a well deserved R rating for scenes of nudity and sex which I think were unnecessary and prevent a wider range of audience from seeing the film. I greatly hope that the producers would offer a version of the film witht he nude and sex scenes cut so that it could be shown in history classes in school. There is also a scene that Beatles fans may like where the song "Hey Jude" is sung in the Czech language. It also has many pieces of music by Czech composer, Leos Janacek. The DVD also has audio commentary by the director Philip Kauffman, Editor, Walter Murch, Co writer John Carrière, and Actress Lena Olin.
Rating:
Summary: beautiful
Review: This film, is one of the best screenplays I have ever seen (and I seen many). I had read the book before, and the film is just an extension of the beautiful superiority of the book.
I particulary enjoyed the mixture of 'real' footage of the occupation of Praque and the film footage. Very well done.
The reason I've only given this film 4 stars is because it didn't have a specific secene which I was looking forward to seeing.
But the reast of the film definatly makes up for it.
And by the way... the director is the director of Quills.
Rating:
Summary: Kaufman's masterpiece, now sadly out of print
Review: Perhaps the most amazing thing about this film is that an American directed it. The movie feels so European, and it's not faux-European--it needs to be done this way. Or perhaps it's really not so surprising, on second thought. I've long observed how European or Europe-born directors make the best American films (Louis Malle with Atlantic City, Roman Polanski with Chinatown, even Paul Mazursky with Moscow on the Hudson), so why not the reverse? At any rate, after making a somewhat cynical American movie (The Right Stuff), Kaufman reinvented himself as his exact polar opposite, directing this relatively innocent film about the "Prague Spring" and the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. I say "innocent" even though the film is best remembered (in Puritan America at least) for the explicit sex scenes that, to me, are not shocking and are not even the first thing (or second, or third) to come to mind when I think of this marvelous film. Instead I remember Sabina's hat, the quiet moments between her and Tomas, and the feeling pervading the film that life is fleeting, happiness elusive, and life-altering changes lurk around every corner. Instead I marvel at how the film manages to *suggest* the existential novel it came from, even though Kaufman chose not to try to adapt the huge existential portions of Kundera's book. Both Daniel Day Lewis and Lena Olin are excellent in their roles, but the real standout, one of the greatest performances I've ever seen on a movie screen, belongs to Juliette Binoche. Her Tereza is attractive but gawky, poised by awkward, shy yet take-charge. She is meek around Tomas yet grabs her camera and runs fearlessly into danger when the Russians invade. Binoche's performance is so astonishing we can reconcile these contradictions and in fact don't even question them. That she was never Oscar-nominated is astonishing. (This film received a grand total of two nominations and no awards--proof, if it was needed, that the Academy is retarded, considering such forgettable films as The Accidental Tourist and Rain Man took home trophies.) Criterion's DVD is excellent, with fascinating commentaries by Kaufman, screenwriter Jean-Claude Carrière, Lena Olin and others. I would have liked a "Making of" featurette too, but that's because I'm greedy. The picture is crisp and vibrant and the sound very good if not THX-caliber. One strange omission: no trailer. I think this is the only DVD I own without a trailer, except for Disney's shameful release of Never Cry Wolf. Highly recommended, obviously, but you have to find it used. Criterion these days seems too busy releasing titles like Deep Impact and The Royal Tenenbaums. Maybe their "criterion" is now cashflow, rather than bringing undervalued films to DVD.
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