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Dangerous Liaisons Customer Reviews (10 - 12 of 28 Reviews)

Love as war
Here is France near the time of the Revolution, the zenith and nadir of the Age of Reason, when all things, but especially love, have taken on the air of cold calculation and cynicism. Based on Laclos's novel of love as war, the movie, if viewers can allow themselves to view it with the eyes and spirit of its participants, can be wicked fun. The plot, especially at first, is fairly complicated, but soon the pieces fall together, and the maneuvering and scheming wend their way toward their bitter end. And it is bitter.

But it's hard to shake off what we have come to think of love after the Romantics: this is pure calculation for personal gains only, a game as ruthless as any in a high stakes poker tournament. The principals are superb in their battle garb and tactics, but it left me feeling icy all over. Perhaps as it should, but it's good to note that even here true love has its victory and its ultimate revenge, both where they rightfully belong. An excellent production. Worth a watch.

The vanity and the happiness are incompatible!
This bitter statement comes from Glenn Close in the final dialogue with John Malkovich and somehow resume scrupulously the final consequences of defy and challenge such sensible and perdurable feeling as love is.

Alfred Hitchcock sated in a famous interview with Francois Truffaut that the three fundamentals factors for a good movie were to his mind: 1)A good script, 2)A good script and 3) A good script. And if also you add the presence of this glorious cast you the obtained result will be by far, still major than the sum of its parts.

This mature drama is a cold bet between two outlaw human beings, far descendents in spirit, evidently of Don Juan. One of them, the female will establish the rules of the game and the other part will have to make the agreement. In this sinister everything will be allowed and the goal will justify the way to reach it.

The seduction has never had such sinister face, understood as the unspoken road to blend two different wills in the final act. In this case, the seduction is just the frame and not the landscape. You can argue all what your imagination, good manners, touch of class, and promises of never ending love the feminine soul can accept. And all this huge effort is done just to satisfy a genuine and perverse fascination: the vanity .

But as you know the life owns much more imagination than us and in this macabre labyrinth the love may be spying on behind our unconscious wishes and twisting our original purposes.

John Malkovich simply remarkable with the role of his life until the date, draws an admirable portrait . Glenn Close is superb too as the perverse, analytical and cold mind. Pfeiffer and Thurman are unequal playing the role of the ambitioned objects of desire.

The dialogues are eloquent; the artistic decoration, design customer, photography and edition are first rate. This film owned all the demanded conditions to win all the possible acclaims and prizes all over the world. If the result was not the expected you will have to find other kind of explanations far distant and certainly not so pleasant.

But the time has always been the best judge to emphasize the supreme qualities of the real masterpieces, and in this case this picture will not be able the exception. You can realize how its cult status has prevailed and even improved through the years and definitively this constitutes a good signal. Based on the famous Ninon De Lenclos ' s novel until that date had never received such a deep treatment.

Stephen Frears' supreme masterpiece!


Cruel Intentions... What?
I am going to be real with you all. I actually just saw Dangerous Liaisons for the first time last night, and to tell you the truth I loved it. I of course saw Cruel Intentions when it had first came out, and thought it was just the greatest thing due to my infatuation with Ryan Phillippe lol. However, after seeing Dangerous Liaisons, I've realized that Cruel Intentions shouldn't have ever been made. I mean honestly why would this guy even think that making a remake as... watered down as Cruel Intentions would even come as close to being as good as the original? Don't get me wrong, Ryan is still hot, but hell no this version is better. I recommend anyone who is like me, and hasn't seen it yet to get this dvd. If you even thought of liking Cruel Intentions, you'll love this.

Just.. one little issue on the other hand. John Malkovich is not the least bit sexy, and therefore I was not completely convinced that he was such the ladies man as he was portrayed to be. I understand "it's just a movie" and all, but honetly. I don't know maybe it wasn't his appearance that made him so wanted. Maybe what he lacked for in looks, he made up for in... other areas :wink: haha All right I'm just going to stop right here.

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