Customer Reviews

Patty Hearst [Region 2 & 4]

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

 

 

"Patty Hearst"'s title is about as self-explanatory as they come. Natasha Richardson (Vanessa Redgrave's elder daughter) plays the eponymous, uhhh, heroine, kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army (don't even ask...) and eventually brought round to the point of joining them on a bank robbery.

The second half of the film, in which Patty and the gang are on the run from the cops, is exciting enough in its way. Schrader's trademark willingness to explore what many people would regard as total amorality enables him to make us care for this raggle-taggle bunch of outlaws, as one after another they're arrested, gunned down or burned. Richardson herself is very good as Patty, having to run the gamut from spoiled heiress via terrified captive to bitterly experienced convict.

It's the first half, though, that makes the second half work. Patty's captivity is rendered in a dark, surreal, almost theatrical way; we are locked in a room with her for much of the first half an hour, experiencing her captors only as black silhouettes against white light. The stylisation that worked so well on Schrader's "Mishima" is here employed to other ends, and suprisingly successfully. If the earlier portions of "Patty Hearst" weren't so good, the later part wouldn't carry the charge that it has; Patty's wish to join the SLA only makes sense in terms of the extreme experience she's been through.

The real Patty Hearst went on to act in a John Waters movie, which must make Schrader wince whenever he thinks of it. This is, by virtue of the subject matter, somewhere between drama-documentary, art film and chase flick, and some of the genre trappings hold it back a bit, but few directors would have this kind of understanding of where he wanted an audience to go. 3 stars if only because this is one of the less distinguished films in an illustrious career. But 3 stars for Schrader are worth five for the vast majority of directors. (Note to Amazon: need more stars!)

This is the film that made me a fan of both Natasha Richardson, and Paul Schrader. I love the Storys progression, and how the views of Patty's kidnappers change from frighting creatures to just ordinary people - wishing they could be extraordinary and change the world - and in this case go about it in a most outlandish way.

It is not only taking part in viewing Patty's transformation while in captivity, but viewing the mores of this subculture/cult, and day to day living is fascinating.

Now that Ms. Richardson has just died at such a young age, it saddens me that the majority of Americans will never get to see this amazing performance because someone with the rights somewhere doesn't want to release it for us on DVD. Some online movie rental services allow you to watch the film streamed to your computer, but it is the pan and scan "video" version we get to see, not the quality we are used to viewing today. But it is worth adding to you movie collection even if it is just the VHS copy.

This movie is hard to take at times. The first part of the movie puts you right inside Patty's head which isn't a nice place to be. The movie asks some really hard qestions like what would I have done if I was Patty? How far is to far to take your beliefs?

Over all the movie is a good one. But if you are looking for some cheap made for TV movie of the week skip this one. If you are looking for a thought provoking, well acted movie this is the one for you.

Feels a bit like a made for tv movie but with that aside, my eyes were glued to the screen from beginning to end. I have no idea how Natasha Richardson didn't get an Oscar nom for this.

Paul Schrader's superb direction and Natasha Richardson's hard hitting performance as Patty should have been a shoe-in to win on Oscar night. Film captures in great detail the terror felt by Hearst, tortured by kidnappers and forced to participate in bank robberies. Ending also is effective in the way it redicules the state's case at her trial (ex. The DA asks if she ever sent her parents any birthday cards) but I won't give the rest away. Like most movies, the lack of backing from a major studio probably reduced critic's reviews by a few stars. Natasha will be missed, passing away at a ripe age when an Oscar-winning part might have come her way.

This film shows the story from the side of the only person that can tell the story, Patty Hearst.

I was on set of this film to be an extra (the bank robbery) but didn't make the cut.

The film is very acturate in facts and the performances are great. Ms. Richardson gives a great performance as Patty and from what I recall from the filming, a nice woman and beautiful.

What I love about this film is that at the Cannes Film Festable, Patty Hearst herself met John Waters and became friends. Since then she now has had rolls in all of his films. Good for Patty. The SLA may have taken years of her life, but in the end Patty has the last laugh. Go on Patty!

Patty Hearst, 1988 film

We see an apartment at night with a young couple in it. The doorbell rings, armed robbers invade to capture Patty Hearst, he boyfriend escapes. Patty was blindfolded and imprisoned. A "General Field Marshal" explains what happened. She is threatened with death. Will they educate her? She is insulted and threatened and kept locked in a closet. She is told what to write. Was she disrespectful? Rhetoric flows on. "Blacks never wear jeans." The capture continues. She is threatened if she does not join their group. [Brainwashing?] "I know the enemy." "Tanya" is her new name. She learns new words, and joins the "Symbionese Liberation Army". [I can't find Symbodia on a world map.] They rob a bank and shoot a man. One man wants to be like Che Guevara. "The people love us." "Why is this happening to me?"

We hear more talk about their aims. They visit a sporting goods store, shots are fired. There is news on the radio. That house in Los Angeles is attacked by the police, it catches fire. Six people die. Robbing banks increase their chances of getting caught. "Who cares?" They bomb an empty police car. There is dissension in the group. [What brought them together?] They relocate to San Francisco. The FBI raids this house and captures Patty and Wendy. "Urban guerilla." A defense lawyer argues for Patty. She was kidnapped and brainwashed; she should be a witness against this gang. Patty gets a medical procedure. Everything is not OK. Psychiatrists question her in jail. F. Lee Bailey defends her in court. The prosecution accuses her of lying. The jury says guilty. A new lawyer will try to reverse the verdict. Did the public prejudge Patty? Because she lived.

The rest of the story is told. Patty got a Presidential Pardon in 1976. [What did that cost?] She married a former bodyguard. This is a good movie but could have been better. What could make a young rich heiress turn into an "urban guerilla"? Could it happen to others? [Decades later she was nominated to the Board that oversees the University of California. What was the purpose for this?]

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view this movie. I was not aware that a DVD in another region would not work on my VCR--I now know that I cannot purchase a DVD outside Region 1. I cannot understand why Amazon would sale a DVD from outside the U.S. region. I know there was a warning referenced but I really didn't notice it because I was totally unaware of different regions. Is there anyway I can purchase this DVD within Region 1? Thank you.