Rating: Summary: Almost great... Review: but not quite. Diane Lane's performance was Oscar-worthy, and Richard Gere was very touching as her heartbroken husband. The whole movie was great until the dismal ending. It was disappointing and left no real ending to the story.
Rating: Summary: Better than you think... Review: ...because, first of all, Diane Lane is shockingly good. No joke. Very few actresses could have pulled off the sexy dance on that tightrope drawn between her husband and her lover. She is a hot mom, yet her "hot" scenes and her "mom" scenes both feel real...like they could easily come from the same person. Adrian Lyne has made another movie that gets people talking. Diane Lane's character doesn't cheat because her husband an obviously BAD guy. Michael Douglas sleeping with Glenn Close instead of Anne Archer? Demi Moore getting a million bucks to sleep with Robert Redford? His craft is in tweaking archetypical situations in a way that moviegoers will turn to each other at the end of the film and reflexively discuss what they have seen. So go see this. Discuss.
Rating: Summary: Lives up to the buzz Review: "Unfaithful" is a real treat. Diane Lane is fascinating to watch in this role. She's been honing her skills for the past 20 years and this film is the payoff. Richard Gere shows us again (as in "Mothman") that he can be convincing as the victim of circumstances. And since the plot of this film is essentially revealed by its title, Lyne serves up a thoroughly unexpected twist to supply some added suspense.
Rating: Summary: Underated Big TIME! Review: I think this movie came out summer time. Not early summer but late. This is one powerful movie. The story is quality and really good. And the sex scenes are intense and realistic. Diane Lane really knows her stuff when she is doing it on screen. Her facial expressions say it all. Try not to watch this with your buds. Watch it with the one you love because it enhances the movie even more. This movie is meant to be watched by couples not with a bunch of rowdy and loud friends of yours. Because the movie's atmosphere is serious stuff. If you have read and/or heard reviews about this movie being so powerful, beleive it 100% because they are right on the spot. Wow amazing is all i can say to end this review
Rating: Summary: Great performances, engrossing, sometimes contrived Review: This was based on a 1969 French film and director Adrian Lyn maintains a European flavor in many ways. The slow pace, studied performances and visual style of Unfaithful are not often seen in mainstream American movies. Diane Lane is superb as Connie, a mostly content but slightly bored housewife. Richard Gere is also faultless as her corporate-type husband Edward. It is actually one of his best performances, ranging from understated to appropriately emotional. The couple live a comfortable life in an upper middle class Westchester home with their son. It's a suburb where almost everyone commutes to New York City by train. On one excursion into the city, Connie runs into a young Frenchman named Paul (Oliver Martinez). This scene is dominated by a violent wind that knocks Connie, both literally and figuratively, off her feet. This unlikely meeting is portrayed as almost mystically romantic, belying the all-too real events that follow. Connie falls and cuts herself and Paul invites her up to his apartment. The contrast between Connie's ordinary life and the bohemianism of Paul's existence (he has a huge loft filled with old books) is stark indeed. Martinez does a good job of turning a stereotype character (the suave, unshaven, amorous Frenchman) into a real person. They drift into a passionate affair that becomes an obsession for Connie. Edward soon suspects something and takes measures to find out what is going on. From this point, the plot is admirably restrained and does not fall into some typical movie scenarios. On the other hand, there are some very contrived things in the script. Several times people meet or see each other --in the middle of Manhattan-- at just the right (or wrong) time. The most pivotal incident in the film ends in a rather fluky manner. What is frustrating is that all of the contrivances could have been taken out or changed without interfering with the story. Still, the cast is good enough and the plot original and subtle enough to make this a memorable and compelling film.
Rating: Summary: boring movie Review: Why did it take the director of this movie so long to get the point across that an extra-martial affair hurts everyone involved and in the case of this movie can lead to a violent death. Half of the scenes in this movie could have been left out and the point still would have come across that no good can come of an encounter with a stanger on a windy day. I didn't need a whole movie to figure that out. This is the kind of movie to watch if you have an afternoon to waste.
Rating: Summary: Mesmerizing Lane and a Wicked Story Review: "Unfaithful", Adrian Lyne's searing film, explores the realities and consequences of an extramarital affair from several points of view. Diane Lane gives a phenomenal, pheremone-inducing performance as Connie - suburban mother of one and faithful wife to Richard Gere - as she falls into a steamy fulfilling fantasy with Olivier Martinez (perhaps the sexiest Frenchman ever caputred on screen.) The emotional and orgasmic highs Connie thills to are juxtaposed against Gere's growing suspicions and eventual downfall. Without giving too much away, suffice it to say the film in many ways mirrors the director's own "Fatal Attraction" without the rabbit stew, and told from an adulteress' perspective. Against a suburban backdrop - from riverside train depots to school plays - the drama is wrenching as we, the audience are forced to consider our own intentions and fears. Lane simply glows on screen -- her face speaks volumes whether in the throes of ecstasy, the restlessness of lying or the anguish of guilt. All are exposed on her wonderful face, her beauty tainted by scabs yet real and fresh on her wounded knees. This is a woman struggling with her personal truth, and as the story progresses, she becomes both victor and victim, and Lane embodies both intelligence and grace. Surely, this is an Oscar-worthy performance. Gere fares equally well in a surprising role as a conflicted husband and father, while Martinez simply oozes enough sexual electricity to light up a Times Square billboard. This is a star making performance for Martinez, one that should put him on the radar screen for idol-starved young women who love the movies. Gere is handsome as ever - at first our inclination is to recoil from Connie's risky choices (seriously - what woman would ever kick Richard Gere out of bed?) -- but Martinez weaves a spell on us as on Connie and we are able to appreciate the blunt sexual forces that overtake her. Diane Lane's unforgettable performance will remind you of how human we all are, and how painful being human can sometimes be. "Unfaithful" doesn't break too much new ground for the director, who's covered similar themes though never quite this well. Untimately, it's a well told story with superbly nuanced performances. A final word of advice --- couples who watch it together should be prepared to confront demons, discuss the obvious themes it poses, or profess unerring monogamy. Questions are bound to come up.
Rating: Summary: Unfaithful-A great acting showcase Review: Unfaithful, is a simple, romantic drama, with stunning performances mainly from Diane Lane. Based on the French film, La Femme Fidel (The Unfaithful Woman). Richard Gere and Olvier Martinez also star. Director Adrian Lyne does a fine job, with his new film, from his past films: Indecent Proposal and Fatal Attraction, he still succeeds to make an enjoyable film. The acting is what mainly makes the film so unique and amazing. Diane Lane, will probably be nominated for an oscar and definetly should in my personal opinion. Basically, Richard Gere and Diane Lane are a happy couple, having been married for eleven years. Gere plays Edward Sumner and Lane plays Connie Sumner, and they have an eight year old son, delightful Erik Per Sullivan. Soon, during a wind storm, Lane encounters a handsome young frenchman named Paul Marteal (Oliver Martinez) and soon they fall in intimate love and the film becomes quite intense and sensational. They become attached to each other and of course Lane's husband Edward becomes suspicious, and soon finds out that his wife is having an affair (DAH!) The film soon takes on a sort of Fatal Attraction type of scenario near the end. This film requires a mature audiences due to its ethical standpoints, it talks about the wrongs of adultery and how they can lead to such a drastic and violent response. The DVD is loaded with extras, such as commentaries, behind-the-scenes featurettes, cast interviews and more. A good DVD, available in widescreen or fullscreen, widescreen is definetly preferred and better. Diane Lane delivers the best performance of her career in my opinion, along with Gere. Unfaithful is rated R for Sexuality, Language and A Scene of Violence, so not a very good choice for preteens and young audiences. The film is of course steamy and sexually explicit, but a good pick for adults. Unfaithful, available to own on December 17, 2002 on video and DVD.
Rating: Summary: The Art of Seduction-Beware the man who quotes poetry! Review: Connie Sumner (Diane Lane) is married to busy, distracted husband, Edward (Richard Gere). He owns a security company which occupies a great deal of his time, and she is the housewife who maintains the beautiful house in the country, and juggles such stressful issues as fundraising, and car-pooling their only child. On a shopping expedition in New York, circumstances lead Connie to bump into Paul Martel--literally. He is young, looks like a male model, and cashing in on his French accent, he invites Connie into his bachelor lair. Connie is a bit naive--that's obvious, but even she cannot completely ignore the flagrant messages Paul sends her way. Paul, who claims to be a bookseller, offers to give Connie a small souvenir of their chance encounter. When he directs Connie to a particular book shelf, to a specific book, gives her the page number to turn to, and then starts quoting poetry, it's quite clear that Paul isn't quite the innocuous bookseller he claims to be, but rather he is a practiced seducer. But it's too much too fast, and Connie exits--runs is a closer description. Connie can't forget Paul, and soon thoughts of his physicality invade her everyday domestic life. Connie returns to Paul with some flimsy pretense to explain their renewed contact. A game of cat and mouse ensues, and by degrees, Connie begins her slippery slide to adultery. She is too tantalized and mesmerised by Paul to think of little else, ignores all the warning signs, and doesn't stop to seriously consider the consequences of her actions. Soon it becomes obvious to her husband (his area of expertise is security, remember) that Connie is distracted by something--or someone. This was the best role I have ever seen Richard Gere play, and Diane Lane (one of my favourites) was simply incredible. This film really does a spectacular job of laying the foundations of human nature with the three main characters, Edward, Connie and Paul. Connie has everything a woman is supposed to want--a loving devoted husband, financial security, a beautiful home etc., but she's on a tedious, boring, treadmill, and she has the looks, means and the time to get in trouble. Edward is busy--too busy--providing all those goodies for Connie. He makes the mistake of being a husband and a provider rather than a lover, and while he vacates this role, Paul is happy to take it. The film displays the culture of adultery unflinchingly. Connie discovers that small attentions from a complete stranger are seductive and outweigh complete devotion from her spouse. There is an evitability in this film which parallels the inevitability of Connie's submission to Paul's practiced, subtle assaults. While the film doesn't make any overt moral statements against adultery, nonetheless, it does illustrate the incredible pain, futility, and destruction suffered by all those involved, and the film remains the best statement I've ever seen on the subject.
Rating: Summary: How could anyone resist Olivier ?? Review: Great movie !! Diane Lane is an awesome actress and proves it again and again. Touching scenes, gorgeous men, and a twist of an ending.... Recommended highly....
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