See buying choices for this item to see if it's one of the millions that are eligible for Amazon Prime.

18 used & new from $50.00

See All Buying Options

Have one to sell? Sell yours here

Share with Friends

See larger image

See all product images
See all 2 customer images

Share your own customer images

Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! (1990)

Starring: Victoria Abril, Antonio Banderas Director: Pedro Almod�var Rating: X (Mature Audiences Only) Format: DVD

4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (32 customer reviews)

Available from these sellers.

5 new from $65.95 12 used from $50.00 1 collectible from $64.00

Also Available in:	List Price:	Our Price:	Other Offers:
VHS Tape			12 used & new from $5.24

More Puppets Please
Fall in love with this "America's Got Talent" winner and his hilarious cast of characters. "Terry Fator: Live from Las Vegas" is now available for pre-order on DVD and Blu-ray.

› See more product promotions

Special Offers and Product Promotions

Summer Blockbuster Sale: For a limited time, get big budget films for low budget prices. Save big on hit films. Hurry, offer ends soon. Shop now.
Save up to 57% on Pixar Classics: Exhilarated by Up? Get all your Pixar favorites now and save up to 57% off. See details.

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	65% buy the item featured on this page: Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! 4.1 out of 5 stars (32)
	11% buy Viva Pedro - The Almodovar Collection (Talk to Her/ Bad Education/ All about My Mother/ Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown/ Live Flesh/ Flower of My Secret / Matador / Law of Desire) 4.8 out of 5 stars (26)
	10% buy Pedro Almodovar Set 4.5 out of 5 stars (2) $24.99
	8% buy Volver 4.3 out of 5 stars (100) $8.49

Explore similar items

Product Details

Actors: Victoria Abril, Antonio Banderas, Loles Le�n, Julieta Serrano, Mar�a Barranco
Directors: Pedro Almod�var
Format: Anamorphic, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
Language: Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
Subtitles: English
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Number of discs: 1
Rating: X (Mature Audiences Only)
Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay
DVD Release Date: January 16, 2001
Run Time: 101 minutes

Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (32 customer reviews)

ASIN: B00004Y6B2
Amazon.com Sales Rank: #32,657 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
Popular in this category: (What's this?)
#8 in Movies & TV > Art House & International > By Director > Almod�var, Pedro

Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

For more information about "Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential video
Perhaps only Pedro Almodóvar could come up with a story about a mental patient who stalks and kidnaps an ex-porn star--and turn it into a tender love story. But that's exactly what happens in Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!, a lively installment from the Spanish director's wacky middle period (after the scruffy early films, and before his mature melodramas). Two of Almodóvar's sexiest stars, Antonio Banderas and Victoria Abril, play the leads: a cracked young man with dreams of bourgeois domesticity, and an actress who used to specialize in porno and heroin. Despite that fact that he binds her limbs with cord when he leaves the house, he always returns with a cheerful "I'm home!" For all Almodóvar's outrageousness, there's a touch of classical Hollywood in his construction. And while this movie is not for the politically correct, it does play by its own warped rules. --Robert Horton

From The New Yorker
This Pedro Almodóvar's movie gets off to a fast start, like a windup toy, but it runs out of momentum early, and Almodóvar can't figure out how to start it up again. The story, about a released mental patient (Antonio Banderas) who follows a sexy actress (Victoria Abril) and then takes her prisoner, seems to tie the director's wild imagination down, and his efforts to keep his (and the audience's) blood circulating betray some desperation. Neither the kidnapper's romantic obsession nor his captive's eventual love for him is especially convincing. And we don't fully enjoy the perverse humor of the situation, either: we've seen the victim subdued by a hard slap, and that image is too strong to forget. The limpness of "Tie Me Up!" suggests that Almodóvar is either a confused director or a tired one-probably a bit of both. It's as if he had made the movie solely to satisfy the public's demand for a new Almodóvar film. Also with Francisco Rabal, Loles Leon, and Lola Cardona. Screenplay by Almodóvar. In Spanish. -Terrence Rafferty
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Viva Pedro - The Almodovar Collection (Talk to Her/ Bad Education/ All about My Mother/ Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown/ Live Flesh/ Flower of My Secret / Matador / Law of Desire)

DVD ~ Liberto Rabal

4.8 out of 5 stars (26)

Volver

DVD ~ Pen�lope Cruz

4.3 out of 5 stars (100) $8.49

Talons Aiguilles (Pal/Region 2) [Region 2]

DVD ~ Victoria Abril

4.2 out of 5 stars (8)

What Have I Done to Deserve This?

DVD ~ �ngel de Andr�s L�pez

4.2 out of 5 stars (18) $17.99

Pedro Almodovar Set

DVD ~ Pedro Almodovar

4.5 out of 5 stars (2) $24.99

› Explore similar items

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

(What's this?)

Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.

black comedy(3)

foreign film(3)

antonio banderas(2)

femdom(1)

misogyny(1)

spanish(1)

See all 7 tags...

Help others find this product — tag it for Amazon search

No one has tagged this product for Amazon search yet. Why not be the first to suggest a search for which it should appear?

Customer Reviews

32 Reviews

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

Average Customer Review

4.1 out of 5 stars (32 customer reviews)

Share your thoughts with other customers:

Create your own review

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Wild & Erotic World of Almodovar, September 29, 2000

By	Luis Hernandez (New York, New York, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

Pedro Almodovar followed up the success of his international hit, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown," with this wild, erotic comic fantasy starring his long-time leading man and soon-to-be Hollywood star, Antonio Banderas.

Fresh from his incarceration from an asylum in Madrid, Banderas plays a ex-lunatic who leaves in search of the object of his affection, a popular Spanish porn star (played by Victoria Abril).

After meeting, then kidnapping her, Banderas' character is more determined to make her fall in love with him, and does whatever he needs to do in order to win her love. However, Abril, refuses to love a man who has made her a prisoner of her own home. The title, which is a translation of its' original Spanish title, "Atame!," reflects the method Banderas uses to coax and subdue Abril's character in falling in love with him (he ties her up in her bedroom).

While the story seems far-fetched at times, the chemistry that Banderas and Abril emit makes the film work. Supporting actresses Maria Barranco and Rosie de Palma lend their unique comic talents in helping the director weave a tale of love and desire that only Almodovar can tell.

Upon release in the United States, this film was slapped with the newly created and feared NC-17 rating due to his sexual themes and minor violence. Compared to R rated films of the present such as "Basic Instinct" and "The Matrix," this film is tame. Refusing to edit his work, Almodovar criticized the MPAA for its' decision to market the film with an NC-17 rating. Due to this rating, the film did not do too well at the box office as expected.

This film marks Banderas' final film in Spain, before departing to the United States to start his successful career in Hollywood. The film contains glimpses of Banderas' backside, as well as a whole lot of Abril's figure, and the sexual scenes are soft-core porn quality. If you are offended by glimpses of the naked body or sexual themes, then skip this film.

"Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!" is one of Almodovar's rare gems. As a true master of the Spanish cinema, his work truly reflects his gifted talent. A great film with a comic ending!

Comment Comment (1) | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fun dark comedy, August 16, 2001

By A Customer

If you are easily turned off my dark humor, this movie is not for you. This movie can evoke strong feelings, so either you will love it or hate it. I am one on the I loved it side. This movie is by Aldomovar, a director that often pushes the normal limits of society. Where else can a drug addicted movie star, become kidnapped and fall in love with her captor (played by Antonio Bandaras). A very enjoyable movie for the right person.

Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Subverting types!, March 3, 2004

By	R Jess "Raymond Jess" (Limerick, Ireland.) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! Widescreen Collector's Edition [VHS] (VHS Tape)

When originally writing this film, Pedro Almodovar asked himself the question "Can love be calculated or sketched the same way one could study for an exam?" This is certainly the conviction of the Antonio Banderas character who seeks to capture his former lover and eventually convince her of her love for him. Although one could initially interpret the theme of the film as overtly misogynist - man tries to physically force woman to love him - gender stereotypes are typically subverted in true Almodovarian fashion.

It would seem that the women are the figures of power in this film and both Ricky and wheelchair-bound film director Maximo are at a loss in trying to seduce the object of their desire in any conventional sense. They are both addicted to Marina, but the only thing she's ever been addicted to is heroin. By the end of the film the Antonio Banderas character is almost totally domesticated, making food, cleaning the appartment, making sure Marina has enough drugs etc.

There's also the reference to the Sacred Heart at the beginning of the film and masochism has often been perceived in some of the more archaic rituals of our Roman church.

None of these subtleties were apparantly noticed by the American classification board who initially wanted to give this film an 'X' rating because of playing with toys in the bath! (?)

Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 32 customer reviews...

Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Misogynistic Garbage
Someone should have informed the makers of this movie that women do NOT enjoy being beaten unconscious, held prisoner, victimized. Read more

Published 19 months ago by B26354

3.0 out of 5 stars bizarre comedy that recommends an unorthodox way to fall in love
This is the story of a mental patient who happens to be a hunk (a very young Banderas), who attempts to use an original method to get a b-film star to fall for him: abducting and... Read more

Published on March 19, 2007 by Robert J. Crawford

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolute gem!
This is an amzing movie, one of the best Almodovar's ever! And it is also worth seeing an Antonio Banderas from his 'pre-Hollywood' age, much, much better than now!

Published on February 8, 2007 by D. S. Circiu

1.0 out of 5 stars Unsophisticated-- primitive desperation as romance for clods
I found nothing whatsoever sympathetic about Ricky. His pathetic view of romance is the same as the highschool kids that jump off a cliff together. Read more

Published on December 1, 2006 by K. Doyle

5.0 out of 5 stars Perceptively witty / sexy comedy. Banderas as psycho!
`Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down' directed by the Spaniard, Pedro Almodovar and starring Victoria Abril and a young Antonio Banderas strikes me as great fun with at least a few sparkling... Read more

Published on January 6, 2006 by B. Marold

4.0 out of 5 stars Antonio Banderas was Irresistable!
This is the fourth film by Almodovar that I have seen, and it's also the first Antonio Banderas' pre-crossover to Hollywood movie I have seen. Read more

Published on March 31, 2005 by Wing Lee

3.0 out of 5 stars LIGHT
Light light, Imeans I've seen better. I love Almodovar's movies but this one is yes...light! The good great best point of it is Victoria Abril, Pedro's Muse!? Read more

Published on March 26, 2005 by Nellyes

5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious and incisive...
This is definitely one of Almodovar's best films, it kept me smiling and laughing out loud throughout. Read more

Published on December 29, 2004 by Eduardo Nietzsche

4.0 out of 5 stars A loving kidnapping drama...
Ricky (Antonio Banderas), a newly released mental patient, enters society with hope of building a family after have convinced the woman in his life that she loves him. Read more

Published on April 27, 2004 by Kim Anehall

4.0 out of 5 stars She really played hard to get
Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down is my favorite of the unusual but compelling Pedro Almodovar library. It's probably a terrible movie for stalkers to watch because it works out better than... Read more

Published on October 20, 2003 by johntchance

› See all 32 customer reviews...

.jsOffDisplayBlock { display: block; } .jsOffDisplayInline { display: inline; } .jsOffVisibility { visibility: visible; } .jsOnDisplayBlock { display: none; } .jsOnDisplayNoneBlock { display: block; } .jsOnDisplayNoneInline { display: inline; } .jsOnDisplayInline { display: none; } .jsOnVisibility { visibility: hidden; } .jsOnDisplayBlock { display: none; } .jsOnDisplayInline { display: none; } .jsOnVisibility { visibility: hidden; }