Customer Reviews

LOVERS - A True Story [VHS]

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

BUYERS BEWARE: Do not, repeat, do not spend your money on this R rated version of the movie, or you'll miss the whole point. It's like eating a cone without ice cream. Try the unrated version, also on sale in Amazon.

Based on a true story set in Spain during the mid 50's, This is one of the very best films I've ever seen. It has everything: It's magnificently directed by Vicente Aranda, has a fabulous score (Jose Nieto) and cinematography (Jose Luis Alcaine), suspense, drama, obsession, a tasty bit of eroticism, a gorgeous cast (Victoria Abril & Jorge Sanz), great acting, and best of all, it's totally unpredictable. There's no way of guessing where it's leading you so I won't drop any clues.

Let this stupendous work of art surprise you. Film just doesn't get much better than this.

BUYERS BEWARE as a previous review stated. This IS NOT the original version of this movie. Large sections have been removed. And when viewing, you can be confounded as to "what just happened?" or left wondering WHY(?). Anyway, the many things that made the original amazing have been deleted from this versison. BEST TO JUST AVOID.

Simpleton Paco has to choose between innocent Maribel Verdú and disturbed black widow Victoria Abril. Some guys have all the luck! LUCK? Before you know it the film turns incandescently erotic, then brutally sinister (it's also a bitter, subtler analogy of the grim Franco years). My shrink told me to see this one and I don't know whether to thank her or sue her! Two things are for certain: One,Victoria Abril is the best European actress around -not to mention God's greatest gift to any male audience's eyes- and Two, you won't forget the movie in weeks (mind the kids)!!!!

It isn't clear why all but one of the reviews is from the 20 year old VHS version. The main criticism was that it was an edited version missing, I suppose, some of the more erotic scenes. Standards have changed a bit since then and what ever eroticism was originally intended was pretty tame and in my view inconsequential to the important dilemmas & conflicts in the storyline . The intrigue within the movie is who is the self serving central male figure going to choose: (a.) the sexually provocative and experienced older female or (b.) the devout innocent younger female. And, what price is he willing to pay for his decision. If you haven't read any hints to the movie then the ending is probably going to be a surprise.

A bit dated (clothing styles for each period leave such an indelible image) but the acting, directing, script and cinematography, as the Goya award attests to, carry well into the present.

This is one of the most beautifully-crafted films I have ever seen, and definitely one of the most originally ROMANTIC, without the cheesy cliches and infantile corny-ness one usually associates with the word "romance." Worth repeated viewings.

It shows love not as some kitschy fairy-tale but as a totally random, irrational and unstoppable force of nature, an affliction both self-absorbed and self-transcendent, both gorgeous and monstrous. Flawless cast and dialogue, there isn't a false moment during the entire film. All the more powerful in that it's supposed to be based on a true story---very Spanish!

.....especially if she's a highly strung beautiful young widow with lots of sexual experience.

Poor Paco. What on earth is he to do when his young fiancee Trini refuses to have sex with him until they are married? Well, put up with it and hope the wedding day is rushed forward it seems. But then the poor lad goes and accepts a room from the very foxy Luisa who falls in love with him and is well-prepared to relieve him of his pent-up tension. Does he let himself be seduced? Why, of course he does but things get a far more complicated when he in turn falls in love with her.

This is certainly brimming over wth passion and tension and Victoria Abril is very good as the manipulative and ruthless Luisa as is Maribel Verdu as Paco's chaste intended but this, to be quite frank, has such a slow pace and, in places, awkward dialogue that it does need some patience to sit through it all. Also, there is not enough sympathy created for you to care enough about the characters when things start getting very nasty indeed.

Entertaining, sexy melodrama set in Franco's Spain, based on a true story.

A young solider is torn between his virginal, virtuous hard working fiancée,
and his hot-blooded, small time criminal landlady, with whom he has a
tempestuous affair, leading to betrayals and ultimately murder.

Well acted, and never dull, but also never seems to go very deep into the characters, with
sudden changes in alliance and attitude occurring without much explanation, or too
fast to be believed. Consequentially, it's never very emotional, even if the story is
tragic. It all has a slightly over-the top, operatic feel. A movie I enjoyed, but doubt
I'd have the inclination to see again.

LOVERS IS A FILM THAT NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES YOU'VE SEEN IT,
YOU JUST DON'T GET ENOUGH OF IT!

This is the type of film that starts off cute and cozy, but then makes you want to put your head between your legs and hurl in disgust and anger. But if you watch it through, you definately obtain just a little bit more insight into human nature. (By the way, if you like this emotional roller-coaster approach to cinema, check out the Chinese film "Xiu-Xiu")