The Fine Art of Love: Mine Ha-Ha (2005) User Reviews (9)

The girls' orphanage

[jotix100 · 5/10 · 19 April 2008]

This film, based on a novella by Frank Wedekind, which we read a long time ago, suffers the too-many-cooks-spoil-the-broth syndrome. Being a co-production of England, Italy and the Czech Republic doesn't help the strange mishmash this film turned out to be. To add insult to injury, the finished product suffers from a case of an atrocious dubbing, which can be quite maddening on the viewer who is paying close attention to the expressions of the actors against what is being said by them at any given moment. Since the dialog is in Italian, and many in the cast don't speak the language, the result is disorienting, to say the least.

The story of a girls' orphanage makes an intriguing premise. The institution serves as the home for those who have been unfortunate enough to land in it. The girls are being groomed in ballet dancing, mainly. There is a certain degree of mystery about the provenance of these beautiful young women which is not quite easy to grasp until one adventurous girl, Vera, who has been slighted by the ballet mistresses into a secondary spot in the corps, that she decides to engage Irene and Hidalla, to help her. This proves to be a fatal mistake, as things begin to unravel around them.

Jacqueline Bisset appears as the headmistress with a secret of her own. Mary Nighy and Hannah Taylor-Gordon are seen as Hidalla and Irene; they share also a passion that will get them in trouble. Nataalia Tena plays Vera, the girl who discovers where the records of the girls are being kept and pays a high prize for it. Enrico Loverso, an excellent Italian actor, has nothing to do in the film.

The best thing in the movie is the cinematography of Fabio Zamarion, who takes advantage of the great old structure where the action takes place, as well as the bucolic surrounding area photographed somewhere in the Czech Republic. Director John Irvin, who evidently was involved for a long time in the project, emphasizes the homoerotic aspects of the story as well as more gory details.

A useless movie going nowhere

[dddvvv · 4/10 · 8 December 2006]

I've never read the novel on which this movie is based but I bet it's miles better than its visual rendition. The fact that I'm the first to comment here could help to understand how many people have seen it: a few, I guess, including me!. The main problem of this movie can be easily resumed by this expression: 'there's less than meets the eye'. We have a college of female orphans raised in strict discipline apparently for the sole purpose of dancing and be one day chosen by a not better defined 'prince' as the 'star of the ballet' and gain his 'particular attention'. They ignore everything about their real origins and live almost segregated from outer world. As the coming of age approaches the idyllic mood vanishes and some of the girls start wonder about their condition and found what should not be found: their headmistress is a psycho capable of horrible things, even kill, to preserve the secret that lies behind the existence of the college itself. The absurd thing is that we never know what the secret is! But there are plenty of such incongruences throughout the whole story... The direction fails, in my opinion, to follow a precise line and what we see is a lot of rudimentary sub-plots not sufficiently developed. A story about a 'sentimental education' seen from a lesbian side turns into something darker and Gothic over a badly defined environment we hardly recognize as Austria, early 20th century. Don't waste your time with this title: highly NOT recommended.

Great. Chilling and eerie...

[angel-lloyd · 5/10 · 29 July 2011]

I loved this film! I can understand why some people would have a few issues with it, as it is quite violent and disturbing in some parts, but I see it as a truly remarkable story.

The film takes place in the early 20th Centry, Thuringia, Germany in an orphanage for girls in the middle of nowhere. The girls have no idea where they come from,and don't have any idea about what life is like outside the strict orphanage. However, soon enough, some of the girls start asking questions that can lead to fateful consequences...

I loved the eeriness of it, it made it more compelling to watch. The sets and cinematography were outstanding. Brilliant performances by most of the cast, but particularly by Hannah Taylor Gordon (Irene) who I thought was incredible in it.

I thought the love story and friendship between Irene and Hidalla was very sweet and a little moving at times. The love story distracts from the gruesome plot line, however I think this is a good thing because it gives the audience something else to focus on.

The only thing I found disappointing in this movie was the tragic and disturbing ending. IF YOU DON'T LIKE SAD MOVIES, THEN DON'T WATCH THIS.

But overall, a good movie, which I would gladly watch again.

Don't see this movie

[Elisabeth_754 · 1/10 · 30 October 2007]

The title, cover and plot of the movie are totally misleading: sentimental education of young girls. That suggests an interesting and maybe sensual tinted story about girls in a boarding school. However, it's nothing but a cruel thriller, with unended plots. Nothing in the whole story leads to anything, except more cruelty, killing and crudeness. The mine-haha waterfall has no function in the story whatsoever. The only ambition of the director is to shock. If you're interested in physical, psychological and sexual violence, by all means go rent it. If you're looking forward to a good plot with sensual elements, skip this.

needs more tension

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 3 August 2015]

In early 20th century Germany, an isolated school raises girls from babies. It's run by the headmistress (Jacqueline Bisset) and financed by a wealthy prince. The girls learn music and dance but they know nothing about the outside world. The school is slated to be closed. Hidalla, Irene, Vera, Blanka, Melusine and Rain are in the oldest class. They name the local waterfall Mine Ha-Ha. The insular world is revealed to be stranger and stranger. Irene and Hidalla start a hesitant love affair. Everyone is competing to be the rose for the ballet which is to be attended by the prince. Vera is killed and the girls try to escape which only leads to another death.

This is an erotic horror. It is definitely skewing more towards erotic than horror. The movie needs more tension. It moves too slowly for long stretches. As an erotica, it has some memorable scenes. I wish it concentrate more on the mystery horror side. It reveals too much for the mystery to be compelling. As it stands, this is a classy soft core porn with an actual story.

Not a thriller - and certainly not erotic

[johan-rosenblad · 3/10 · 20 October 2022]

What was the point of this movie? A disgusting and slow telling of a story about young women being groomed for r_ape? I wish I hadn't seen it - I really do. I would have given it a score of two stars but the title scene of the dancing feet was worth one extra star. I should have ended my watching after that.

As a thriller, it failed to put me even close to the edge of my seat. Some people have called it an erotic thriller, but the erotics are limited to friendly kisses, implied feelings and a closeup of some (body-double?) breasts. If there were something more, I must have missed it because I lost interest pretty soon. I just wish I had lost enough interest to turn away from this movie before the awful ending.

beautiful and devastating

[kleiner_fuchs · 10/10 · 10 February 2013]

*** NO SPOILERS IN THE FIRST PART OF MY REVIEW ***

"The Fine Art of Love" looks like a film from the past, from the 20th century -- and that's a good thing. It is an example of masterful, unpretentious, adult filmmaking, so very different from the superhero-, action-, romantic-comedy- and art-house-trash that is flooding our cinemas nowadays.

Unlike "Innocence" (2004), Lucile Hadzihalilovic's fine adaptation of Wedekind's novel, that stayed quite close to the source material (failing only, obviously for budgetary reasons, in conveying Wedekind's spectacular closing sequence), "The Fine Art of Love" takes liberties, creating a new storyline, turning it into more of a horror story, but still based on the setting and atmosphere of the original novel.

Irvin's film moves at a steady pace, never hastening, never lingering, accompanied by a beautiful, never intrusive musical score. The cast is perfect, full of unforgettable faces and powerful performances (some commentator here complained about the dubbing; I didn't notice it at all; however I have to say that I come from Germany, where people are familiar with dubbing and it doesn't bother them as long as it is well done). The film looks great, as you would expect when you have Dante Ferretti in charge of production design.

*** SPOILERS START ***

The title sequence already sums up the film perfectly: We see two feet in ballet slippers, dancing en pointe, while blood from the tortured toes is slowly seeping through the shoes. Seeing it in close up, you can feel the pain, and you want it to stop, but it doesn't stop. You start to hate the music, the beautiful music: It's the same melody still, but it seems cynical now, sadistic. You want the pitiless music to stop, so the feet can stop dancing. But it doesn't stop, it goes on and on and on, while the blood keeps flowing...

That is how the story works: Something terrible happens, then another terrible thing happens, and you want it to stop, you desperately want someone to stand up and stop it, put an end to it. But who can do it? The few good men an women in the story (the kind young teacher, the idealistic police inspector, finally Hidalla the firestarter) don't stand a chance against the powerful forces of evil. When I saw the film for the first time, I found the ending to be one of the most devastating endings I have ever experienced in the cinema: When the flames started licking in the theatre, I felt so relieved, I thought "finally, the whole cursed place is going to be consumed" -- how big was my shock when I had to learn that it was not over yet.

You may see "The Fine Art of Love" (what a wonderfully cynical title for this story, by the way) as just an unusual horror film, taking advantage of the much-loved setting of a girl's boarding school. For me, it is much more: A desperate cry of disgust in the face of a world that is corrupt, built on lies and hypocrisy, where money and power are substitutes for love and life, where the spirits, and ultimately the lives, of the young are broken and destroyed. It is the world we still live in today.

Great!

[analucia-padilla · 9/10 · 26 July 2007]

This is quite a shocking movie and crude. Shows the real side of life...no fairy tales added; straight to the point. Shows what girls had to go through and the anonymity of themselves - not knowing who they are, how they got to be there or even where they are. The school is he only thing they know. They find refuge within themselves, they are each other's family. This movie shows us the consequences to each of the girls' actions. The love story is amazing. We see the deep love the girls have for each other and it being the only thing they have to hold on to. This movie shows us that love doesn't always last forever and that it doesn't overcome obstacles. Shows us the cruel lives that these girls had to live. Amazing movie.

Not for the faint hearted but highly recommended

[lisajhende · 9/10 · 1 November 2007]

This is a very "wake up and pay attention" sort of movie. Definitely not for the narrow minded or faint hearted. The movie will leave you cold, but at the same time is worth watching. The acting is very well done and very well directed. The love scenes are not often and not discomforting. In fact the love between Irene and Hidalla is touching and sweet.There is a great deal of violence in this movie and it is incredibly fast paced. Mary Nighy, Hannah Taylor Gordon and Jacquiline Bisset give outstanding performances which make the movie worth watching. Sad story. But a very good movie.But if you are not sensitive to violence and wish to see this movie I would highly recommend it. It is actually brilliant if watched carefully. Similar movies include,Magdelene Sisters, Girl Interuppted and Boys Don't Cry. Disturbing, but very good. Well done to all the actors.