For many years I thought I was the only person on the planet who had seen TEMPEST, and I am so glad to learn that I am not the only person who discovered this sleeper somewhere in their movie-going travails. Loosely based on the Shakesperean play, TEMPEST follows an architect (the late John Cassavettes, in one of his best performances), bored with his work and his crumbling marriage (to real life spouse Gene Rowlads), who decides to chuck it all, say the hell with the rat race and go live on an island with his daughter (Molly Ringwald, in her film debut), and new girlfriend Aretha (a luminous Susan Sarandon). Even though Paul Mazursky is credited as director, Cassavettes hand is all over this film...the long scenes filmed without cutting, the improvisatory feel to the dialogue..., the self-indulgent storytelling style, this is definitely his show from beginning to end, and if you're not a fan of his work, the film will seem laboriously long and dull but if you are a fan, there are rewards to be had. Cassavettes is surrounded by a first rate cast...his scenes with Rowlands crackle with intensity and his surprising chemistry with Sarandon is a stark contrast to his scenes with Rowlands. Ringwald shines in her film debut and there is a scene-stealing performance by the late Raul Julia as Kalibanos, Cassavettes' manservant on the island. Julia stops the show in one scene dancing with a flock of sheep accompanied by Liza Minnelli singing "New York, New York". This film is sad and tragic and funny and intense. Yes, it's a little long and disjointed and it works a little too hard at being different (there's even a curtain call at the end of the film), but it never fails to hold the attention of those who like something a little different in their filmgoing.
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ijonesiii24 November 2005
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Paul Mazursky gathered an impressive acting ensemble for this modern reworking of Shakespeare's "The Tempest", with John Cassavetes feeling trapped by his career and his marriage and taking off for Greece, but direct inspiration from the Bard seems to have run dry early on, and the second-half of the picture is awfully dreary. Cassavetes is a questionable actor to put center-stage in a movie like this, one which depends on a light, fanciful touch if it's to work at all; dogged by a perpetual black cloud, Cassavetes doesn't sink into this character, and his furrowed brow and uncertain grimaces aren't interesting or attractive. As his mistress, short-haired Susan Sarandon is like a dangerous pixie, and Molly Ringwald gives the movie some joy as Cassavetes' daughter; Raul Julia has fun as a horny sheepherder, but Gena Rowlands has little to work with (the wife's arrival in the latter stages of the plot signals nothing but gloom up ahead). Although Mazursky initially seems in frisky spirits, he lets the contemplative nature of the material drag him into pretentious waters, and "Tempest" fades so fast it nearly evaporates off the screen. ** from ****
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gelman@attglobal.net14 June 2009"Tempest," derived very loosely from Shakespeare's play, is an interesting concept fatally marred by its length. If a ruthless film editor had been employed to cut the final print, this might have been a really good film. It certainly has the right cast: John Cassavetes, Gena Rowland, Susan Sarandon, Molly Ringwald and Raul Julia. Cassavetes, an excellent actor who largely avoided the mainstream, is the "Prospero" of this film, a "world-famous" architect with magical powers, while Raul Julia is Caliban, recreated as Kalibanous, the lone inhabitant of a Greek Island to which the architect retreats along with his daughter (Molly Ringwald) and his young lover (Susan Sarandon), leaving behind his estranged wife (Gena Rowlands). Each of the five performs extremely well, but there are a host of peripheral characters who should have been left on the cutting room floor and many inessential scenes that should have been dispensed with altogether. Unfortunately, Paul Mazursky, the producer, director and co-author of the script indulged himself and was apparently unable to separate the necessary from the surplus. Still, there are the pleasures of this film: the young Susan Sarandon at her sexiest, Molly Ringwald, not yet famous, Raul Julia, an antic, horny Caliban, and Gena Rowlands and Cassavetes at the peak of their talents. Without those pleasures, I would have given this film a much lower rating.
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wormguy23 June 2003...than Susan Sarandon at 36 in The Tempest? Or more intense than Cassavetes? Yes, the film does meander and my attention wandered a bit at the second viewing but the film has many great moments. 1) Cassavetes coming home drunk to a party of his wife's friends and asking her producer played by Paul Mazursky to dance. 2) Susan Sarandon and Molly Ringwald singing "Why do fools fall in love? 3) Cassavetes imploring the gods, "Show me the magic?" Whether or not it's a faithful reinterpretation of Shakespeare is beside the point. One more moment: as the credits roll the actors take their bows, emerging one by one from a Greek doorway. Cassavetes is last. Refusing to bow, he simply walks out the door, gruff and unamused and that's why we miss him so.
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slokes12 September 2009William Shakespeare probably didn't envision Stephanos as a gay doctor, Antonio as a faithless wife, or Caliban as a goatherd with a Trinitron, but the Bard's had worse done to his good work over time, and might even enjoy the sumptuous pageant of life that is his "Tempest" as re-configured by Paul Mazursky and co-writer Leon Capetanos.
This time, Prospero is Philip Dimitrius (John Cassevetes), a Manhattan-based architect tired of designing Atlantic City casinos for the amiable Mafioso Alonso (Vittorio Gassman), especially after discovering Alonso is carrying on an affair with Philip's wife Antonia (Gena Rowlands). Along with daughter Miranda (Molly Ringwald), Philip escapes to a remote Greek island with Miranda and his new mistress Aretha (Susan Sarandon), a nice Catholic girl who struggles with Philip's celibate lifestyle. Will a sudden storm bring all right in the end?
Here's a thought on the career of Cassevetes: How many other actors could make a film so confused into something so riveting? A darling of film critics for his earlier work, often with his real-life wife Rowlands, he presents a central character who really suffers for his art here, but seems to enjoy himself and makes us enjoy him, too. It's not Prospero, but something rich and strange that makes for a terrific sea change all his own.
"It's all here," he tells one of his faithful companions, Aretha's dog Nino. "Beauty, magic, inspiration, and serenity." That it is. "Tempest" transfers 1611 London to 1982 Manhattan and finds some nice resonances in Philip's displaced life. "Show me the magic", he calls out to a storm-tossed city skyscape, and Mazursky's version, augmented by Donald McAlpine's sterling cinematography of purple seascapes and naturally sun-burnished Greek landscapes, does just that.
It's not a perfect movie, by any means. In fact, the big finale, which is the only part of the movie that follows Shakespeare's storyline to any faithful extent, is a mess. Rowland's character is hard to care much for in this film, and after meeting Sarandon in all her braless glory, it's hard to understand Philip's continuing concern for his wife, let alone his left-field desire to make an unhappy "sacrifice" in order to restore the natural order of things.
But there's a lot to love about "Tempest". In addition to Cassavetes, there's Ringwald's film debut as his loyal but restless daughter, here as in the play an object of desire for the primitive rustic "Kalibanos" (Raul Julia). Ringwald here is very much the same teenaged muse of privileged adolescence that would inspire John Hughes, but with an emotional depth those later Hughes films didn't delve into. Ringwald and Julia never got any Oscar attention, but they both would win Golden Globes for their playful work here. He tries to woo her in her island isolation with his TV reruns of "Gunsmoke" in Greek, tempted by her 15-year-old body.
"I want to balonga you with my bonny johnny," Kalibanos declares, getting shoved aside but winning our sympathy anyway, especially after performing "New York, New York" with a chorus of goats. (When "Tempest" hit the screens, Julia was the toast of Broadway as the lead in "Nine".)
It's Mazursky's show, even if it feels at times that Cassavetes is running things with improvisational line readings and emotional breakdowns galore. (Philip introduces himself to Aretha by telling her "I'm right in the middle of a nervous breakdown".) He plays his character as an amiable obsessive, seeking to crystallize his happiness by building an theater in his otherwise uninhabited island.
Adding to the enjoyment is Gassman's rich performance as the other man, who is as completely amiable as Julia while telling a youth-obsessed Philip: "Boys don't have half as much fun as we have. They're nervous...and they make love in the back of an old sports car." Despite being overlong and pretentious in spots, like so many art films, "Tempest" is entertaining in its excesses and a trip very much like Shakespeare intended, even if his dreams didn't involve smoking pot backstage at a Go-Gos concert. -
ags1231 December 2007I love this movie despite the fact it just misses being great. It's an adult entertainment, full of issues that a grown person can relate to. The acting is superb. It's fun watching John Cassavetes and Gena Rowlands as a feuding middle-aged couple. Who knows how much of it came from their own marriage? Susan Sarandon has never been sexier or more appealing than as her freewheeling character, Aretha. Raul Julia is a hoot as a lusty goatherd. The scenery in Greece is spectacular; the New York settings cause me to squirm due to many shots of the World Trade Center. Fantastic score by Stomu Yamashta. With so many things going for it, why isn't this a great film? It's a bit rambling and overly long, unfocused, and uncomfortably imbalanced between humor and drama. Still, it's engaging, entertaining, and deeply thoughtful.
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gavin694214 September 2014A sobering mid-life crisis fuels dissatisfaction in Philip Dimitrius (John Cassavetes), to the extent where the successful architect trades his marriage and career in for a spiritual exile on a remote Greek island where he hopes to conjure meaning into his life - trying the patience of his new girlfriend (Susan Sarandon) and angst-ridden teenage daughter (Molly Ringwald).
This is, of course, a very loose adaptation of Shakespeare. Other than Caliban, the names have been changed and there was no architect or movie stars in Shakespeare's work that anyone can recall.
The film has the distinction of being Molly Ringwald's debut, and she gets more than a little screen time and gets to sing, too. Many may not know, but Ringwald and her father are jazz singers, and this was always her first love. Her character in the first half of the film is nothing special, but she shines once the film moves to the island. Did John Hughes see this film? Raul Julia may be at his finest here, and Cassavetes excels at being angry (he seems to fly off the handle in almost every film he appears in). -
mickman91-17 February 2022This didn't work for me at all. Very slow. If you are a Shakespeare fan don't watch it for this. It is only very loosely inspired by The Tempest, I couldn't find much exploration of the plays depth in this. For fans of Cassettes only probably. I can't comment on it from this perspective. I watched it hoping for a work inspired by the great bard.
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Marrenp5 December 2004"Tempest" is a somewhat self-indulgent, uneven, discursive movie. But as Lord Byron, another visitor to Greece, protested to his friend John Murray about his similarly self-indulgent and discursive "Don Juan," "It may be profligate but is it not life, is it not the thing?"
The connections to Shakespeare's "Tempest" may seem, as another commentator here claims, a bit tenuous. But watch the film again after re-reading "The Tempest," and they'll seem far closer. What makes this film flawed is its uneasy mixture of straightforward normal narrative and sudden jarring apparent improvisation, particularly between Cassavetes and Rowland. But to be honest, these scenes are the most remarkable and gripping in the film, if the hardest to watch.
The music of this film, composed by Stomu Yamashta, is also overlooked. Particularly fine is the perfect little piece played to accompany the afternoon siesta, as people, animals, and seemingly the entire island collapse to sleep away the hottest part of the afternoon. It's a sublime moment, and representative of the best aspect of this movie and the one thing that keeps it somewhat unified, the fact that (aside from extensive flashbacks and the very end) it is the story of one day on an island, from awakening to night.
Overall, I'd rather watch this film a hundred times than see some bombastic Hollywood piece of crap once. And in fact, I probably have watched it several dozen times. Most times, I see something I missed before.
(Confession: I'm biased. This was the second movie I took my Greek-American goddess wife to see.)
Trivia notes on this flick:- It was Molly Ringwald's first movie, as well as Sam Robards';
- It was actually not filmed on an island, but in Gytheion, the southern tip of the remote Mani peninsula of the Peloponnesus of Greece;
- The (by today's standards) primitive special effects were done by Bran Ferren, who later became head of Disney Imagineering, and still later was an adviser to the US intelligence community;
- Paul Mazursky, the director, chose the title of his recent autobiography, "Show Me the Magic," from the script of "Tempest."
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Released in 1982 and loosely based on Shakespeare's play, "Tempest" stars John Cassavetes as Phillip, a rich architect in a troubled marriage in New York City. When his wife (Gena Rowlands) decides to return to acting and things blow-up, he escapes to Greece with his daughter (Molly Ringwald), where they unite with a free-spirited singer (Susan Sarandon). Meanwhile, Phillip's wife hooks up with his former boss (Vittorio Gassman) and they come to Greece looking for the daughter. Raul Julia plays an eccentric goatherd on the island while Sam Robards appears as a teen lothario.
While I'm sure the Greece cinematography would be spectacular on the big screen (it certainly is on the small screen), "Tempest" isn't a film I'd likely want to see in the theater (it flopped at the box office). Yet it works fine as a likably offbeat drama in the home.
If you're a Sarandon fan you'll definitely want to check this out because she's in the prime of her life (35 years-old during filming) and is splendidly portrayed by the director, Paul Mazursky, from the get-go, typically in alluring Mediterranean apparel. Likewise, statuesque Lucianne Buchanan appears in the final act as blond Delores. This was Ringwald's debut. She was fine for the meaty role of the daughter, but I was never enthralled by her, which isn't to say I don't like her. Actually, I'm not enamored by any of these women, but they're all certainly agreeable, one way or another.
There are several highlights, like Phillip coming home drunk to his wife's showbiz party where he awkwardly asks her producer (director Paul Mazursky) to dance. Needless to say, it's the epitome of an uncomfortable social situation. The best part about "Tempest," however, is that it's essentially an island flick, although the cast aren't necessarily castaways and the "island" is a little bit North of the tropics. If you're a sucker for island flicks, like me, then "Tempest" is worth checking out. It's uniquely entertaining and somehow warmhearted.
I realize Phillip (Cassavetes) is the Prospero character from The Bard's play, and Prospero was a magician, but the movie never explains Phillip's seeming ability to control the elements. We're just supposed to accept it. Why sure! In any case, I presume he's projecting his mental-spiritual struggles on to the forces of nature.
For those not in the know, Cassavetes and Rowlands were husband & wife for almost 36 years, which ended with the former's passing in 1989 at 59 years-of-age. He died of cirrhosis of the liver.
The film runs 142 minutes was shot in New York City; Atlantic City, NJ; and, mostly, Gytheio, Greece, which isn't an island, but the southern tip of the remote Mani peninsula of the Peloponnesus of Greece. WRITERS: Leon Capetanos & Mazursky.
GRADE: B- -
"Tempest" is supposed to be an adaptation of the William Shakespeare play, "The Tempest". I'm not familiar with that play so my comments will be based on the movie modernization.
Philip Dimitrius (John Cassavetes) is a successful architect who is fed up with his life and work. He is married to Antonia (Gena Rowlands) and the marriage is in trouble. Philip works for industrialist Alonzo (Vittorio Gassman) . He abruptly quits his job and goes with his daughter Miranda (Molly Ringwald) to Greece where he meets young Aretha Tomalin (Susan Sarandon). They go to a remote island where they are greeted by goatherd Kalibanos (Raul Julia) who lives in a cave, and set up shop.
Philip is supposed to have Miranda only for the summer. When the summer vacation period ends, Antonia, who has been taken unto Alonzo, wants Miranda back. So they set out on a luxury cruise to find Philip and Miranda. That's basically it.
The movie is a zig zag sort of film moving back and forth between the present and the time where Philip leaves, when he finds Aretha and a visit with his father (Paul Stewart). The cast breaks into song at various times making little sense especially at the end party. I never was a fan of Cassavetes method acting style and this film is no exception. He's moody and a little eccentric throughout. Poor Raul Julia is a buffoon here as the Greek goatherd. Susan Sarandon is gorgeous in the prime of her youth. Sam Robards plays Ringwald's love interest as the son of Alonzo. Alonzo's entourage, Trinc the comedian (Jackie Gayle), Harry (Jerry Hardin) and Dr. Sebastian (Anthony Holland) are along strictly as comic relief. Director Paul Mazursky and his wife Betsy play the Bloomfields at a party in Philip and Antonia's apartment.
The ending is pure Hollywood with everyone living happily ever after. The movie is overlong at 140 minutes and I found myself praying for it to end. -
Easyrob25 December 1998I've rented this gem several times! It's a small, yet somehow sprawling masterpiece taking the viewer from Manhattan glitz to the beauty of the Greek islands. John Cassavetes on-screen marriage to his real-life wife Gena Rowlands is on the rocks. He finds meaning in a fling with footloose Susan Sarandon whom he finds in Greece while their daughter, played in her earliest film role by the pubescent Molly Ringwald, falls for the son of the Greek shipping tycoon who is courting her mother on a yacht sailing in neighboring waters. Meanwhile, the immensely talented Raul Julia plays a goatherd living in a cave with his Sony Trinitron. He has the "hots" for Molly Ringwald's character until confronted by John Cassavetes. All comes together at the end in a classic closing scene where all is reconciled. Raul Julia, the goatherd, is seen dancing with his goat. This film is full of mysticism, beauty, young and old love, humor, sexiness, and more. See it!
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wisewebwoman13 November 2004Susan Sarandon is the best part of this odd, uneven effort. She is utterly believable in her depiction of the character. This movie is all over the place. I can understand the break down of the John Cassavetes character but dislike Gena Rowland's (John Cassavetes real-life wife). It is not clear as to why she would be with a lover who alternately is kind and nasty. Raul Julia has a really good time with his character but I could not understand the injection of the "New York, New York" number complete with full orchestra and someone who sounded like Liza Minelli singing it. Please. In the middle of goats on a hilltop? Very jarring. Cute little Molly Ringwald is most unlikeable in this role. Whiny and disagreeable. It just did not engage me. Lovely scenery. 6 out of 10 for the attempt to update Shakespeare. It fails miserably.
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MartianOctocretr529 August 2006Tempest is based on the classic Shakespearean work of the same name, but bears little resemblance to its source material.
It masquerades as being as cerebral as its namesake, but instead is a jumbled, convoluted, and hackneyed exercise in tedium. The original probed the premise that people have an evil side, which would be destructive if unchecked. Here you just get an uninteresting mid life crisis (yawn) goof ball who is having everything go wrong in his personal and professional life. He becomes endowed with a supernatural power that he uses to try to control his environment; in other words: to get his own way.
Every few minutes, after something else in his pathetic life goes wrong, he finds a secluded place and starts babbling "Show me the magic!" while waving his hands around and making a "serious concentration" expression. From the way these scenes are shot, it looks like he's trying to turn bugs into other kinds of bugs. Turning a spider into a cockroach, maybe, but by this time, you really don't care.
The story has him bolt from his life with his daughter to a Greek island somewhere, then have a awkward relationship with some girl he meets, one of the dullest romances ever committed to film. The story just bogs down and moves at a slower and slower pace. You are never given any reason to like or dislike anyone.
I'll give this a 2 because of the beautiful Greek location shots and the semi-optimistic conclusion (although it isn't clear if the tempest power brought this ending about or not). The spirit of Shakespeare's work has been captured much better in other movies; one notable example is "Forbidden Planet," which gave credence to how the power gets out of control.
As for this "Tempest", its only magic is to cure insomnia. -
tedg5 July 2000There are some nice elements here. Molly Ringwald (at 14, her first film), Susan Sarandon and Gena Rowlands all charm. The Greek scenery is nice but not particularly well exploited. Raul Julia and Sarandon steal every scene they are in, master actors.
But the writing is dreary, wandering all over the place. I'm very patient with meditative movies, but this just meanders. The Tempest connection is so very slight. All the elements, the main magic, that gives the play its power are ignored here and what we have instead is a tired midlife crisis plot, plus a petulant pubescence.
If you want a magical Greek coming of age tale built around a fragile love affair, read `The Magus.'
If you want an intelligent, magical adaptation of The Tempest that has intellectual and visual power, see `Prospero's Books.' Pass this one up unless you just want to experience these women in some comfortable performances. -
SnoopyStyle18 June 2022Successful New York architect Phillip Dimitrius (John Cassavetes) has a life crisis when he uncovers an affair between his wife Antonia (Gena Rowlands) and her boss Alonzo (Vittorio Gassman). He takes their daughter Miranda (Molly Ringwald) away to Greece. He begins a fling with local nightclub singer Aretha Tomalin (Susan Sarandon). They live on an isolated island with the only inhabitant being peeping Tom hermit Kalibanos (Raúl Juliá).
I never realized that Paul Mazursky is the writer/director. I always assumed that this is an all-around Cassavetes film. To me, this is all him. It's his old man acting. It has Greece. It has the latest IT girl. I also didn't remember Susan Sarandon although I wouldn't know who she was back then. This is too long and it drags in spots. It feels like a film in midlife crisis. For me, the defining image is Miranda and Aretha singing to him. Two lovely wet young things are serenading him while he looks down upon them from high above. That would have been fine but the movie is too long. -
banjoboy9 May 2003I've often heard people express disappointment that Mazursky's "Tempest" has little to do with Shakespeare's original. In my opinion, that is both true and false, but most of all, it's a bad starting point for offering critique. A work of art should never be criticised for what it isn't, but for what it is. The movie "Tempest" is nothing like a faithful rendition of the play, but to my mind, it is faithful to Shakespeare's work in spirit. What "Tempest" is, then, is perhaps one of the most successful experimental films of all time. No, not experimental as in hand- held camera and mumbled dialogue, but experimental as in exploring the convolutions of a story without undue regard for box office earnings. Mazursky's Tempest is epic, sad, realistic, joyous, full of life, but most of all, it is imaginative. Cassavetes portrayal of Philip/Prospero is in itself worth a 10/10 rating, and when you add Gena Rowlands, Susan Sarandon, a wonderfully deep Molly Ringwald, Raul Julia, the dialogue, the music and the exquisitely suggestive little tableaux scattered throughout the picture... I rest my case. One of the best movies of the 80's. Don't miss it.
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JCBar2 May 2005Paul Mazursky misfires on this film. The writing, direction, casting, and acting (with the exception of Victorio Gassman) are all off the mark. I remember the reviews from 20+ years ago being mediocre, but I thought it still might be worthwhile to view. With notables such as Susan Sarandon, Raul Julia (who overacts in most of his scenes) and John Cassavetes, I understandably expected much more. The music picked for the film is jarring, the cuts between New York and Greece confusing, and the overall pace all leave much to be desired. Why Paul Mazursky felt the need to update this story, or add his touch to it is puzzling - this retelling of Prospero and his daughter takes very little of import from the play, and adds not much more. The play is not one of Shakespeare's best anyway, and to gut it even further seems not to be a good decision. Unfortunately, there is nothing to recommend in this film.
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klbrisby-122 March 2005I can't say what knowing the source for this movie adds, but this is one of my favorite films from Paul Mazursky (director and co-author). This is a retake on the Shakespeare "comedy", but utterly removed from the stage. Without much text, Mazursky and star Cassavettes make visual a mid-life crisis of passion and purpose. Desperate to re-center himself, Cassavettes retreats to a remote Greek island--where the locals and the island itself weave a little magic. With Raul Julia especially, Susan Sarandon and Molly Ringwald, this is an adult fantasy that is emotionally satisfying and visually gorgeous. And funny. It wasn't a big box office hit, but whenever it does come to DVD, it will sell.
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jef-3218 February 2007The Greek locale for parts of the movie were very beautiful and the photography get all my votes and that's about the extent of my raves for this movie. I found that all the characters were narcissistic archetypes found so often in the American culture and were shallow and uninteresting. Susan Sarandon and Gena Rowlands are easy to look at but I found their characters very narcissistic and unlikeable for many other reasons. When Gena Rowlands sings at a party it made me wonder how this woman could think of herself as a competent star of the stage. I was tempted to hit the MUTE button until she finished singing. Molly Ringwald was herself and Raul Julia's character was so lecherous he was downright creepy. The movie was much too long for my liking and I could not sit through it again even at the point of a gun.
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babevac12 October 2001What will be Prospero in the twentieth century, what is his life? Why a man would need to choose to live on an island with his daughter and girl friend? Because it is too hard to live and love in good conditions in "civilisation". This man (John Cassavetes) is a broken hearted giant, he can command the storm. He's got the power, the strengh but he is human. Deep love of life is the subject of this extraordenary movie. The acting is incredible, all the genius of John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands, Vittorio Gasman and Shakespeare and paul mazursky of course. don't miss it it'll be a mistake this film is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen.and i've seen a lot of movies.
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this 2.5 hour diluted snore-fest appears to be one of the poorest excuses for an adaptation, ever. clearly possessing a budget allowing for breathtaking location shooting in Greece, the monies might have been better spent working out a cohesive script with character development and motivations clearly outlined; especially since bill has gone through the trouble of doing this already. the portrayals lacked passion & direction, leaving the viewer debating whether they should bother to care about the demise of the protagonists at all. which brings out another point-the main character of the original work, prospero, is not so named in this rendition despite the fact that most other characters' names are used. enchantment and magic are also markedly absent from this particular piece. in fact, all aspects that made the stage version of 'the tempest' full of wonder and intrigue have been sucked completely from this convoluted version about a self-absorbed, pompous jackass who can't figure out how to care about anything beyond the blur of his wealth and power. over all, a lackluster effort at best and a brutally poor imitation of the intended inspiration.
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bglova7 October 2003I love this movie and all aspects of it, well directed as a comedy and as a drama. The acting is tremendous, performed by an all-star cast who play the high society New York perfectly. The scenery is incredible, totally breathtaking. I also love the story: a successful NYC architect who is going through a midlife crisis leaves his cheating wife and runs off to a Greek island to hide out with his daughter who chooses to go with him.
I just cannot express my love affair enough regarding this movie. "Show me the magic". -
Skywalker0221 June 2002The last time that I saw this was years ago, and I thought that I was too young to understand the themes of this movie. I just recently seen this movie again and now I realize that I wasn't naive, the movie was just bad.
Here's a breakdown of the story. John Cassavetes plays Phillup Dimitrius, an emotionally and spiritually burned-out casino designer for a rich Greek industrialist. Phillup feels empty inside because he marriage is crumbling from his wifes' longing for her old acting carrier, he's lost touch with his teenage daughter and can't stand his bosses health-ailing temper and brown-nosing cronies. To top things off, his two unhappy worlds come together in the worst way, when he finds out that his wife (Gena Rowlands) cheating with his boss.
Phillup decides to make a clean break from every (and I mean everything) by going off to the remote islands of Greece. He then goes crazy in a different way. Nothing could be better for Phil. He's indulgently happy with his daughter and new Gypsy-like new girlfriend (Susan Sarandon). Things are fine for him until his wife, along with Phil's old boss come in search of Phil ,to bring Phils' daughter Miranda (played by brat packer Molly Ringwald) home to New York.
I could not get over how boring this film is. The strange thing is this. This film was made twenty years ago. It had such potential for being a ground-breaking film. It told it's story out of continuity. This narrative aspect was what helped films like Pulp Fiction, Out of Sight and Memento become monster hits. The film also dealt with the theme of a successful businessman feeling empty inside, a theme used in films like Fight Club, American Beauty and Office Space. The film also had the early performances of Molly Ringwald and Susan Sarandon. The two of them get into a charming rendition of "Why do Fools Fall in Love".
None of these things can save this movie because they are all used in the most clumsy and boring way. The conversations in this film is just constant banter of Phil bickering with all of his associations. It takes far too long to get past the exposition to even hold ones interest. When the gang get to Greece the story goes from boring to drown-myself-in-the-lake boring. Phil gets far too self-indulgent to even make sence.
The climax of this film, the headlining storm, comes and goes. It practacly contributes nothing to the plot. There's even a usless scene where Phil trys to come off as if he's come to some kind of spiritual wisdom, by killing a goat and just comes off as being more arrogant and mentally disturbed.
The film tries to to add a sub-plot of Miranda forming a romance with the son of Phils' boss, played by Sam Robards. Sadly his presence is a electrifying as watching paint dry. Their relationship is even more predictable and tediously useless.
The only thing that keeps me from screaming is complete anguish and boredom is the winning performance of the late-great Raul Julia. Julia plays the local hermit Kalibanos. His character adds the only amount of scale to the story. He foils Cassavete wonderfully. He's crazy, but in the good way. He's eccentric. He gives the film little life by playing the claranette, singing to his goats and making advances to Miranda with his trinatron. This film would have been better if it got rid of half of the exposition, all of the useless banter between Phil and his wife and put more focus on Phil's relationship with Kalibanos. Sadly, the film overlooks this more entertaining plot-point.
To sum up, unless your going to use your DVD to jump to the moments with Raul Julia, don't bother wasting your time with this film. -
SamPamBam31 July 2019And then they sacrificed the goat. Why? How could that have been in character with Cassavettes character? That was it for me. Totally unnecessary. I don't care how they justified it or tied it in later. And while it was quite a pleasure to see Cassavettes and his ageless beautiful Gena again, the story just made no real sense. By his age, unless he was totally devoid of any human emotion at all, any kind of raw intelligence, his hemingway-esque attitude of manhood was simply brutal stupidity on display. One wonders how many who approached Philip's age likewise realized they had wasted their lives and couldn't just simply bask in the blessings they had been given (lovely loving wife, excellent job, sweet daughter). Nope. A stupid, stupid man. But then, perhaps that was the point. And if so, Cassavettes pulled it off brilliantly.