Customer Reviews

Another 9 1/2 Weeks [VHS]

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

There is a point in the movie where John tells Lea "You just don't get it, do you?"

All I can say is that the screenwriter and director of the sequel just don't get it. The magic in the original 9 1/2 weeks was the power and control games - that is what made the sexual tension between John and Elizabeth so captivating. The sex scenes themselves weren't even all that explicit, but the foreplay and interaction was so intruiging that the viewer can imagine how hot the sex itself was. Even just Mickey Rourke's way of staring at Kim with that supreme self-confidence and knowing smile was enough to make the movie "en fuego" (on fire).

Another 9 1/2 weeks, by contrast, is full of gratuitous sex scenes with no real force behind them. John is jaded and has given up on his previous style of seduction. He no longer holds the sex appeal he had in the original movie - no confidence, no little smile. At the same time, Lea is just pathetic as she tries to egg him into playing his old games. The ending is a predictable and shameless rip-off of the original.

If you're looking for more in the style of the original 9 1/2 Weeks, I recommend you buy the book by Elizabeth McNeill. It is more violent and graphic, but extremely well written, and lets you dive into Elizabeth's mind as the power gap between she and John slowly widens and she abandons all control.

"Another 9 1/2 Weeks" shows us what became of John (Mickey Rourke) and Elizabeth. The sequel takes place about a decade after its first part where an older John Gray goes to Paris in search for clues to what became of the woman he fell in love with. There, he meets Elizabeth's friend Lea who knows a lot about him - and still wants to be with him. She wants excitement and thinks she just might even be too much for him. So this time the game of cat and mouse is not one sided, as she has a wild side to match his to make some sparks fly.

John isn't entirely the same man he once was, as his mind is still on his past. He is man of remorse and was never the same after Elizabeth left him. I found part of the storyline sad because he loved someone and knows she is gone from his life because of his own actions. Part of him seemed to want to make the past live on, and it did in his thoughts, but they really tormented him. This part of the story really struck a cord and made me reflect on my own life.

John thinking of Elizabeth and Lea knowing about his past doesn't stop them from developing a strange romance. She wants the thrills and dominating man she heard about. "Another 9 1/2 Weeks" didn't have the same level of suspense as "9 1/2 Weeks," but it definitely has some excitement and erotic moments like the first part. It was a more somber film that gives some conclusion to what happened to that once passionate couple and how both their lives were never the same. From there, this new romance leaves us with something to reflect on.

The original 9 1/2 weeks was far better. The majority of the movie I had no idea what was going on. There were far too many plot twists, really odd characters, and a general lack of good acting. Even the scenes of France were bad. All you ever see are the deep, dark, dirty areas of the city. Angie Everhart is a great model but even she could not help this movie. This movie can sit on the shelf with all the other bad sequels.

This sequel wont please many fans of the first movie since it's almost the total opposite of what the first was all about. That one was largely joyous and arousing. This sequel is morbid and sad. That's a big difference and I was thrown off at first - but this slowly drew me in. It works well as a tragic love story and at times it breaks free of it's low budget restraints and really strikes a chord - but it's a somber chord and that's not what most viewers will be looking for.
I don't bame the makers of this one for going in that direction. It makes sense. It's just not what I expected at first.

It's hard for me not to like this movie. Mickey Rourke reprises his role from the first 9 1/2 Weeks and this time he brings a pathos to the role that was only briefly glimpsed at the end of the first film. He's obviously a broken man without Elizabeth and that's one of the things that makes this both a good and not-so-good movie. This isn't just about a man playing sexual mind games and instead it's about a man who has lost the love of his life. That's very different from the first 9 1/2 Weeks and one of the things that turned a lot of people off from this one. Such tragedy doesn't make for a very "fun" movie. For me it does make for dark and addictive viewing and there are some sexy and cheesy direct to video bits that help make things goofy and fun. Ms Everhart isn't the best actress ever but she brings a fun "B movie temptress" vibe to the movie. You can pick on her acting but must admit she does bring some silly fun to a largely bleak story. For the most part this is a tragic story. Rourke pulls it off extremely well. Mickey looks bad here. Real bad. You can tell by watching him that Mickey is no stranger to pain. That is exactly what makes what shouldn't work at all a pretty compelling little movie. Mickey seems to knows exactly what makes the character of John tick and exactly what it's like to feel such pain. You wont find the fun of the first 9 1/2 Weeks here. Much of this movie, like Rourke's battered face, ain't pretty. It's hard for me not to watch it though and harder still not to feel for John and his loss.

In a previous review I tried to say that this film can be called "pornographic" but that word ended up inserted into the middle of another word making my review incoherent! Ugh!
The point I was trying to make was: yeah some will find this pornographic and yeah it's exploitation BUT that's not all. There's anoter level to this film which serves as a portrait of a man suffering a great loss. Yes this sequel is darker than the original 9 1/2 Weeks and yes it is missing the fun of the original. That's the point. Elizabeth is gone and John is a darker character in a darker world who is struggling to deal with her loss. I don't know about you but that's pretty heavy stuff for "pornographic exploitation". Rourke is fantastic in this role. This is the film that really made me notice what a great actor he is. His boxing damaged face only adds to the destroyed character he's playing and the scars that his character carries with him. This film goes beyond the manipulative mysterious character of the first film and shows how vulnerable and damaged he has become. John's pain is tragic and not something you'll find in just another skin flick.

Antoher 9 1/2 weeks is an interesting film which works on various levels. On one level it's soft core porn and cheap exploitation. That's a fact and you won't get any arguement to the contrary out of me. I bet Everhart and Rourke would agree too. It is what it is...one one level. On another level it's a great inversion of the first 9 1/2 Weeks and a great character study of Mickey Rourke's John. All of the negative things that others have said about this flick are the very reasons I loved this movie. Yes it doesn't have the magic of the first film and John isnpornographic't the same man. He's older and darker and lost. This John is mentally and emotionally destroyed. He's made mistakes that have caused him to lose what he held most dear and he's got the scars to prove it. Let's face it: Rourke fits that description perfectly. His role in this flick is haunting. I can't watch 9 1/2 Weeks without getting to the end of it and thinking about the more tragic take on the character of John that this sequel presents. It's so tragic and ugly that it's beautiful folks. Yes it's cheap soft-core (...)exploitation. Yes it's not pretty. That only helps to set the tone for a tale of man lost in the dark gutters of despair. Watch it as cheap exploitation and enjoy the nudity, or watch it as a great portrait of loss. It's all there. Just don't tell me there isn't something haunting and moving in the writing, the direction, and the performance of Rourke.

I am a nine and a half weeks fan (the original that is), and Angie Everhart spoils everything with her bad acting in this supposed sequel. Nevermind, about the movie in General, can't blame the bad acting when it was an all around non-starter. Most annoying in that it did not fulfill what it promised, not only in the erotic scenes but all around.

As a sequel, there's a few things I respect about "Another 9 1/2 Weeks".
One: They didn't try to replace the same characters with different actors.
Two: They created a new story line based on the old one.
Three: Mickey Rourke is back.
Four: They didn't try to write off the character Elizabeth from the first one.
Usually in sequels (especially straight-to-video ones) they do the opposite of the above. It's a bunch of different actors playing the same characters and other characters have been forgotten about. Anyway, this movie isn't half as good as the first one; but it is entertaining. As for the people who call it mainstream "soft-core porn". I have to say that the first movie had more sex and nudity, then this film did. Anyway, Mickey Rourke returns as John, the millionaire from the first movie who can't rekindle the feelings he felt for Elizabeth (who was played by Kim Basinger) in the first film. After trying to recreate an experience from the first movie with a hooker, in the opening sequence, John flips through a catalouge of painting in Paris and finds Elizabeth's name. John hops on a plane and ends up buying all of her paintings. Then, John sees a beautiful woman wearing a scarf he had given Elizabeth. After approaching the woman, John discovers that she is Lea (Angie Everhart, who is hotter than Kim Basinger OK?), Elizabeth's best friend. As John tries to get Lea to tell him where Elizabeth is, he begins an affair with her which isn't even as erotic and romantic as the one in the original. But, yeah, I mean you have to give this movie credit as far as sequels go. Mickey Rourke, who's career was floundering at this point and has had great success since then with movies like "Sin City" & "Domino",
is excellent as John. Simalar to Sharon Stone being the only one to play Catherine is "Basic Instinct"; it's the same with Rourke as John. This certainly isn't an essential movie for one's collection, but it's not as bad as people make it out to be.

GRADE: B-

In a previous review I tried to say that this film can be called "pornographic" but that word ended up inserted into the middle of another word making my review incoherent! Ugh!
The point I was trying to make was: yeah some will find this pornographic and yeah it's exploitation BUT that's not all. There's anoter level to this film which serves as a portrait of a man suffering a great loss. Yes this sequel is darker than the original 9 1/2 Weeks and yes it is missing the fun of the original. That's the point. Elizabeth is gone and John is a darker character in a darker world who is struggling to deal with her loss. I don't know about you but that's pretty heavy stuff for "pornographic exploitation". Rourke is fantastic in this role. This is the film that really made me notice what a great actor he is. His boxing damaged face only adds to the destroyed character he's playing and the scars that his character carries with him. This film goes beyond the manipulative mysterious character of the first film and shows how vulnerable and damaged he has become. It's much better than some say it is. This isa great performance by Rourke. John's pain is tragic and not something you'll find in just any erotic film.