Rating: 
Summary: A Classic.
Review: Of all the films dealing with alcoholism, Leaving Las Vegas shows the character flaw perfectly. Nicholas Cage and Elizabeth Shue give great performances. The directing is excellent, but it's the story you will keep coming back to. I think it's great that the main character is unyielding in his quest for alcohol and death. This isn't a trite or simplistic film. Those who want happy can go rent a comedy. This is a must have for any film collector.
Rating:
Summary: One of cinema's greatest love stories
Review: One of cinema's greatest love stories,which could follow in a line with True Romance,Badlands,Bonnie and Clyde,The People vs.Larry Flynt and Show Me Love(which I haven't yet seen,but have a gut instinct about). Leaving Las Vegas is a story about unconditional love-the 'i'll accept you no matter what' kind of deal. He's a drunk,she's a hooker,but as the couple trust each other completely they don't do anything to change these facts,despite sometimes being pushed to the limits. The movie is bleak,dark,darkly funny at times and the love story isn't exactly beautiful-due to it's incredible realism. The characters are living hard lives and there are no lighthearted moments in the movie-but despite this,the couple find something in each other that is hard for us as outsiders to understand,but I couldn't help but feel somewhat touched by the way the relationship was acted out. Elisabeth Shue as Sera,was wonderful but the movie truly does belong to Nicolas Cage as Ben-who moved me to tears more than once with his astounding performance as the drunk on a mission to drink himself to death but along the way,wins the hooker's heart. A brief two words to sum up this movie as a whole-pure genius.
Rating:
Summary: A brilliant movie...
Review: I have never been more impressed by a movie, particulary because of some serious alcohol problems of my own. This movie helped me overcome these problems, by reminding me what drinking can do to a person. Not only does Nicolas Cage brilliantly portray the hopelessness and despair of the character, he also shows the indifference and selfishness of an alcoholic. Any one who has seen the movie must have had moments, where Ben looked like a nice caring guy, only to hear him say something harsh and resentfull later on. This kind of conduct strikes me as very characteristic of alcoholics, and because of this exeptionally real approach towards alcoholism i felt compelled to express my opinion about it. I would like to know if Nicolas Cage did his acting sober, because if he did, he knows his job. In my opinion he must have explored exessive drinking at some part in his preparations, his performance was just too convincing.
Rating:
Summary: Leaving Las Vegas
Review: This is a film that is not afraid to deal with despair in the extreme. Nicolas Cage plays Ben, a movie executive who for some reason has lost his family and turns to drink, or, at least that's what he thinks. Early in the film he reveals that he's been drinking so excessively for so long that he can't remember if he drank so much that he lost his family or he lost his family so he started drinking. At the advanced stage of despair Ben is in, it doesn't matter. He is suffering so much he has decided to go to Las Vegas and drink himself to death. He crosses paths with a hooker named Sera, Elisabeth Shue, who instantly feels a bond with him. Why, she can't explain to herself, even though she realizes it IS real. It's important that he simply "crosses paths" with a hooker, because his mind is solely on drinking. It isn't until he literally runs into her that the thought crosses his mind that mindless sex could be an enjoyable idea. But Sera feels such a spark with Ben that she realizes he's not just another 'john' but a decent guy who must be in terrible pain. She identifies with him so much because she shares the same type of despair Ben does, and realizes the opportunity to save her own soul by trying to save his, as his "angel," as he constantly refers to her. Trouble is though, that even after he finds his angel, he keeps drinking. In one of the most revealing scenes, the two of them are poolside at a cheap motel and Ben is, naturally, oblivious to her presence because of his soaked mindset. She really wants him to ravish her, so she takes his bottle of booze and pours it over her breasts until, finally, he does. This scene may sound tawdry or corny, but because the two actors have successfully shown up to this point just how much of a bond their characters have, the fact that booze is used as an aphrodisiac here is a major triumph for both of them. They have reached each other halfway. It's been a long time since I've seen two actors portray what real love and understanding looks like on screen. There is something so tangible in this film it almost feels voyeuristic. These characters love each other in such a way that since the hooker's job is, obviously, to have sex with other men, the element of "cheating" is moot for her, but when she comes home one night to find that HE has been cheating, suddenly your mind freezes up and you don't know what to think until you remember that outside of quickie oral sex you notice that they've never made love even though they are so obviously and operatically IN love. Wow. In Leaving Las Vegas two of the most down and out characters forge the unlikeliest of bonds and for a fleeting moment experience true love in spite of the money changing hands, money which magically becomes superfluous as their guards are let down to reveal an empathetic passion so real it keeps ascending and swelling, going for a gigantic crescendo. You'll notice that at the beginning of this film you hear blues which slides easily into jazz, and by the end of the film it has transformed into opera. So the range of emotions director Mike Figgis is dealing with on his palette go from despair to sentimentality to operatic overdrive. Opera goes for big emotions and follows them straight through the end. So does this film. It doesn't compromise. It must have been hard to get a film like this made without somebody trying to soften the story or, God forbid, add a different ending. You can imagine some Hollywood producer saying that at the end they should traipse off arm in arm to the Betty Ford Clinic so everything will be all right. But because the budget of the film was what it was, not too many people had the right to dabble with the script. This script is so good, based on the novel by John O'Brien (who committed suicide just before production on the film began) that at various times on the soundtrack when it fades out for effect you don't need to hear the words that are being said to know what's going on. I would say the only real flaw this film has is that Sera's pimp gets squeezed out of the picture in a pretty clunky way, and when he does you realize that outside of the obligatory battering about he gives her, the two characters have nothing in common. In fact even though Sera is, underneath it all, a vulnerable character, the amount of strength she has would really warrant her being a call girl rather than a hooker. But I'm nit-picking. For all you aspiring filmmakers out there, take a look at this film as a demonstration of how you can make a masterpiece with not much more than two incredible actors. Shot in Super 16mm (one quarter the cost of a 35mm film), the graininess of the image is able to evoke the bittersweet seediness of the situation and the locale, so when you do see the love that these characters share it is that much more tangible and real.
Rating:
Summary: hi, i'm ben
Review: cage had to be drunk while filming, his acting was just too good to be just acting. watching ben brings back many memories.
Rating: 
Summary: DVD Picture Quality Will Drive You To Drink
Review: This is easily a 5-star movie with great performances by Nicholas Cage and Elisabeth Shue. The characters are realistically portrayed, and the story is excellent. However, the extremely poor picture quality of the DVD transfer costs this otherwise great flick two stars. If you're contemplating purchasing the VHS version, go for it.Not only are the visuals noticably pixellated in low light and low contrast scenes, but even in some bright ones as well. If you subscribe to digital cable in an area where they compress too many digital channels into each analog channel, you know the effect I'm referring to. The poor picture quality in this title most likely stems from the decision to cram both a widescreen and fullscreen version of this 2-hour movie on the same side of a single-layer DVD. Something had to give, and in this case, it was the compression ratio, leading to extraordinarily poor picture quality. If the producers felt compelled to include the fullscreen version, they could have at least done us all the favor of putting it on the flip side. If you appreciate high-quality visuals in your movies (and why else would you have bought that DVD player?) pass on this one until they come out with a less-compressed version. On the positive side, the movie itself is one of the better ones I've seen, and definitely justifies a rental of this title if you haven't seen it before. The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is exceptional (I'd rate it a 5, vice Amazon's 4), and the background music is both well-chosen and very well-mixed. If you have a 5 or 6 speaker Dolby Digital setup, you'll feel as if you're actually in the movie, with the jazz music and sound effects emanating from all around you. It's a crime about the picture, though.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Acting, Bad Acting
Review: I watched this film on DVD & for anyone who is curious about this picture here's one opinion; The acting is really good in some scenes and hollow in other scenes. I loved the opening, it really sets up Cage's charactor. I would recomend this film to anyone who likes a good story, the only problum is that the story is a little weak in some areas, particularly why Sera is in love with Ben. There are really no special features worth buying this DVD for, but the picture & sound quality are still better than anything VHS, so if you want to own this film I would suggest DVD format. In summery... A film worth seeing, but in moderation.
Rating: 
Summary: Fatuously scripted, thoroughly unbelievable, poorly acted
Review: That an actor as self-conscious as Nicholas Cage could win an award for best actor in a role where that self-consciousness is so obviously on display is either a commentary on the aethetic ignorance of the academy or - more likely -- its politics. Other self-aware actors masquerading as talented include William Hurt and Alec Baldwin. The problem is that you can "see" them acting. This was hardly ever the case with Marlon Brando. The script, however, was the most insulting thing about this film. Every line had me rolling my eyes in disbelief and intellectual frustration. The mainstream critics really blew it on this one. Only education can improve the quality of the popular arts. The culture has a way of getting what it deserves.
Rating:
Summary: A very depressing movie
Review: Depressing yet powerfully real. I just saw this movie the other day and 'My God', I have never really known how bad alcoholism is until I saw this movie. Cage plays a unbelievable role as one with same that problem. And then Shue also plays a amazing role as a hooker with problems on her own. And fate has brought them together to help them solve these immense problems together. I am really big Cage fan and my opinion is this one of his greatest acting ever. The other one would be 8MM. If you haven't seen this movie before and want to, go and get it right now. But be warned as you will be pushed into a reality that most have never seen. The same also goes for 8MM.
Rating:
Summary: A Complete Downer
Review: I had no idea what this film was all about, and if I had any inkling, I would never have watched it. But, I watched it to the bitter end. I am in two 12-step programs, AlAnon, and AA. I am familiar with being around alcholics myself, and have seen the total destruction that it has done to relatives, friends, and friends of friends. I have been sober for the past 12 years, and have experienced a rebirth in myself, and I thank God for that every day of my life. This was a powerful movie, and the director, and the performance by Nicholas Cage were able to evoke tears, trembling, cringing, anger, fear, and depression for days afterward, which might have caused my blood pressure to become elevated. Yes, Sera and Ben were good people at heart, but alcoholism totally takes over a person(s) life; and when a woman resorts to peddling her body, depths of degradation become part and parcel, and in these instances, there will only occur the extreme inevitable... Yes, Nicholas Cage, and Elizabeth Shue played powerful, and undoubtedly emotionally draining roles for this movie. However with the special effects of the present day, I believe Cage would not have to do the as much work or acting as Ray Milland in The Lost Week-End. The special effects might have helped Cage get through the work and acting a bit easier than Milland or Jack Lemmon in Days of Wine and Roses. In summation, if you can get through the lurid sex scenes or the disgusting language, to put it mildly, this movie has some merit to it. It is wake up call for drinkers out there who think -I'm too intelligent to ever let that happen to me - - - Respect alcohol, it is more powerful than you. Would I ever see this movie again? Hell, NO. Clare Hynes-Pope New York City
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