The Apartment
The Apartment
Max, a young corporate hotshot, leaves his successful new world behind to search for his elusive lost love Lisa. His mad quest begins after he accidentally overhears Lisa’s melodic voice speaking in the phone booth next door. But before he knows it, she is gone. Still, he is so elated that he abandons his plans, lies to his fiancee, and after leaving his luggage with his pal Lucien, sets off to find her. The hunt leads to a fabulous apartment, where he saves a girl from a suicide thinking that she is Lisa. But this girl, Alice is as drab and mousy as Max’s Lisa is beautifully feline. Max becomes involved with Alice, unaware that she also dates Lucien.Meanwhile the real Lisa attempts to break free from her obsessive rich lover who may have m
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Remember Me, My Love
REMEMBER ME MY LOVE – DVD Movie
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“The Motion Of Demetrius’ Heart” ~ Obsession And Misdirection Under The Guise Of Love,
Note: French with English subtitles.
Synopsis: Vincent Cassel and Monica Bellucci play two star-crossed lovers whose attempts to reunite after an unintential two year separation are constantly thwarted by fate and the devious actions of a third party determined to keep them apart.
Critique: Released in ’96, `The Apartment’ receives the highest marks on every level. First of all, two of my favorite French stars head the cast; Vincent Cassel (Max) and Monica Bellucci (Lisa), which is further complimented by a magnificent performance by Romane Bohringer (Alice). The cinematography is superb, artistically capturing the urban, Parisian terrain which seems to ooze from the screen. The camera skillfully captures the spirit of this legendary city and the atmosphere of the landscape incorporating that romantic ambience into the separated lovers Max and Lisa. The soundtrack is melodic, melancholy and apprehensive, a perfect fit for the taut, expertly constructed plot unfolding layer by complex layer on the screen before the viewer. The storyline is unbelievable intricate, flashing back and forth between the past and present with each time shift unveiling some new secret, some previously unsuspected nuance to the story that seems to change everything you had known and understood up to that point.
`The Apartment’ is first class entertainment from beginning to end and believe me when the end finally arrives you’ll be taken totally by surprise just as I was. This is a classic that definitely can be watched again and again. Buy it and save yourself from repeat rental fees.
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|One of the best French films of the 90s,
L’Appartement became an instant favorite when I saw it a few years ago, although on revisiting it I did find myself wondering for a while if I hadn’t over-valued it. But then, a third into the picture it takes a sudden left turn and what had been a relatively simple romantic drama about lost love suddenly became a much more complex piece of work touching on the nature of desire and the way accidents of timing and interpretation can change fate.
What’s most fun – or most frustrating, depending on how you like your narrative delivered – is the way it doubles back on itself, revealing that the passing details in one person’s life can be major ones in another’s, even revealing that for the first third of the movie both we and the main character haven’t noticed the presence of one key character. Rewarding and exhilarating stuff.
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|Terrible DVD of a good film,
I have the French region 2 PAL DVD, and gosh, this region 1 version sounds just horrible. The French DVD is anamorphic AND has DTS sound.
To true lovers of this film, get a multi-region DVD player and get the French version. It’s the only version that can do this film justice.
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|Furious Storm of Emotion,
This is an excellent film. Listening to the Italian makes me think it is the language in which all battles should be fought! “Ricordati Di Me” or “Remember Me, My Love” is a domestic drama that maps the lack of closeness in the modern life of an Italian family & the bonds of love that lay deep beneath the surface that hold them together. The blockbuster performance is by Laura Morante as Giulia, the wife of Carlo. She puts so much energy into this performance that she is incredible. Kind of like a high-octane version of some of Jane Fonda’s edgy classic performances, Laura seems to be torn in numerous directions simultaneously. Her eyes twitch, her hands flap, she even smokes a cigarette with more nervous energy than some would expend at a football match. She is a marvel to watch. Fabrizio Bentivoglio as her husband Carlo portrays the graying accountant, apparently going through a mid-life crisis by having an affair by the lovely Monica Belucci who plays Alessia. He seems particularly calm & sedate until he comes alive with eyes sparkling for Alessia. His calmness seems all the more sedate compared to the furious storm of Laura Morante. As the daughter Valentina, Nicolette Romanoff is beautiful and turns in a good performance as the daughter looking to make her mark in show business and willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish that. Silvio Muccino as the son Paolo does a nice job as a teenage guy who is trying to get some romantic experience. Monica Belucci’s performance is as deep as she is beautiful. The photography and pacing of the film are all ably handled by director Gabriele Muccino. [I particularly enjoyed seeing on the wall of the son's bedroom a large three concentric circle CD holder that doubled as a wall hanging and functional CD container. Where can I find one of those!
] While the plot is not shocking or startling, it is well done. This is a film well worth checking out; and certainly for seeing the fine performance of Laura Morante. Enjoy!
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|The Inner Sanctum of Family, The Durability of Love,
RECORDATI DI ME is a beautifully written and constructed film by Italian director Gabriele Muccino about the workings of a ‘normal middle class’ family and the bonds and challenges that peak at the time of fragmentation of the family unit that accompanies 10 middle age of the parents and 2) departure of the children at the end of high school. How those crises and adjustments inform the durability of the family unit makes up this thoroughly engrossing and touching film.
Carlo Ristuccia (Fabrizio Bentivoglio) is the father embedded in a life long job that is mundane and not at all in line with his dreams of being a writer (he has been writing a novel for years, yet unfinished). His wife Giulia (Laura Morante) is a committed mother but longs to return to the acting stage she abandoned for marriage. Their two children are Valentina (Nicolette Romanoff) who is determined to become a glamourous TV star and Paolo (Silvio Muccino) who is aimless in his desire for a life of meaning, a life which would prove he is not as unexceptional as he views himself.
Gradually each member of the family encounters escape routes: Carlo meets his old girlfriend Alessia (Monica Bellucci) and begins an affair with her; Giulia is asked to audition for a part in a play directed by one Alfredo (Gabriele Lavia) who makes her feel desirable and noticed; Valentina sleeps around to land a part in a TV giveaway show ‘Ali Babbi’, and Paolo attempts to attach himself to a girlfriend by planning a birthday party with contraband hashish which he feels will make him appear important in the eyes of his peers. AS each of these crises reaches a peek, Carlo sustains a back injury while fleeing his home and his resultant hospitalization results in altered perceptions of what the family is all about.
The twists and turns of the plot are, of course, far more involved than this short synopsis, and it is the development of each of these characters and the way that they approach change that makes the film work so well.
The acting is excellent and the direction is past paced even for a two and a half hour movie. Yes, much of this has been said before, but the wit and pathos combine to create a story well worth telling and watching. It is a story about dreams, lost possibilities, and the need to fulfill them. Grady Harp, March 05
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|I will…,
This is a great film, full of life, emotion and realistic people. None of my friends/family can watch foreign films, its to bothersome for them to read subtitles. I try time and again to get them to watch just 1 italian film, and that film is this one. I’m reviewing this film because I collect film with Monica Bellucci in them. While her role in this film is that of the mistress and the 3rd female role, the daughter is the 2nd female lead. Monica’s part is frequent. But in the end this film is not about her, its about the family, and a great job all the actors/actress do of being this family in Roma. So in conclusion its not Monica’s film. But it is a jewel of a film nonetheless.
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