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They don't make 'em like this anymore. Well, John Waters might, if he ever had a big enough budget. A steamy "inside look" at the alternately sleazy and glamorous world of catfighting, backbiting show-biz starlets, this Hollywood hit from the bestselling novel by Jacqueline Susann is a high-gloss camp artifact--a time capsule (or some kind of capsule, anyway)--from the screwy '60s, when a broad was a broad, a bitch was a bitch (whether "her" name was Neely O'Hara or Ted Casablanca), and a "doll" was a prescription drug. These dames of whine and poses obsessed over their bust lines, booze, and barbiturates. The once-shocking and scandalous language and behavior of these Broadway babes has been eclipsed by Dallas, Dynasty, and Melrose Place, but time has only enhanced the stature of Valley of the Dolls as a classic--and it still puts Showgirls to shame. With Patty Duke, Susan Hayward, Sharon Tate, Lee Grant, Barbara Parkins, and Martin Milner (and juicy, scene-chewing dialogue such as the infamous: "They drummed you out of Hollywood, so you come crawling back to Broadway. But Broadway doesn't go for booze and dope--now get out of my way, I've got a man waiting for me!"), Valley of the Dolls is the Mount Rushmore of backstage movie melodramas. --Jim Emerson ... Read more

Reviews (106)

Patty Dukes it out in Dolls
This is truly the ultimate Camp Classic film of all time. Patty Duke gives a mezmerizing performance as Singer Neely O'Hara and creates an unforgetable character in the process. It is HER film all the way, although Susan Hayward does an excellent job in a supportive Role. And, as Neely O'Hara Patty gets the opportunity to perform such songs as "It's Impossible", "Give a Little More" and of course the memorable "Come Live With Me". Just for these moments alone, the film is worth viewing. It will be interesting to see if the DVD will contain some out-take footage for the film's many many fans to see. Judy Garland, who originally was slated to portray Helen Lawson, was too ill at the time of filming to complete her scenes. Thus, Susan Hayward was called in to replace her and does a good job with the tough-as-nails Helen Lawson character. If you want to be totally entertained and mezmerized, buy or rent this video. And remember, you're not nutty, you're just hooked on Dolls.

RELIVE THE MOVIE IN YOUR CAR OR W/ YOUR WALKMAN!
I would most definitely recommend this soundtrack for anyone is who is a big fan of the movie! The music is perfectly matched to each scene and when you listen to the soundtrack you can, as one of the previous reviewers said, picture each scene in your mind. I get a good chuckle listening to "Neely's Career Montage" and picturing Patty Duke's "workout" and rise to fame! And when I hear "Jennifer's French Movie", I see the beautiful Sharon Tate tossing around under the covers and speaking French! Barbara Parkins's distinguished and elegant narration make the first track a priceless, campy gem that sets the tone for the festivities. While it is disappointing that the title track ("Theme from 'Valley of the Dolls'" - apparently Dionne Warwick's record label had a dispute with the record label that released this soundtrack) and "I'll Plant My Own Tree" are not the versions heard in the film, they still sound similar enough that they manage to convey the same feelings of nostalgic joy! Interestingly enough, the songs Patty Duke's character sings are not really Patty's voice, but the singer they used was a great match for Patty's persona in the movie and both fabulous songs appear here! What more can I say?! If you aren't a big fan of the movie, then this soundtrack probably won't do a thing for you, but if you LOVE the movie like I do, then I a certain you will LOVE this delightfully cheesy soundtrack!

More Quoteable Quotes
I can't resist....More Quotes:

"Ted Casablanca is NOT a fag. And I'm the dame who can prove it."

"You're not the breadwinnah either."

"Tony! Tony! To-neeeeeeeee!"

"Miriam.....I'm pregnant."

"Sparkle Neely...Sparkle."

"She's the one who wanted the kiddies and the vine covered cottage."

"My beautiful little doll. Just one, and one more."

"We're closing now Miss O'Hara."

"Oh God you've got your costume on for the second act!"

"Lyon? He's in the shower. I'll have him call you back."

"I've done pills, booze and a funny farm. I don't need anybody or anything!"

"The song goes, and the kid with it"

"I know all about run-of-the-play contracts."

"Neely, just a few short years ago you were an unknown little girl singing for her supper. Now because of the lush, warm notes that have emerged from your throat, you have become the idol of record buyers and movie goers all over America."

I need more than 5 stars
Heck - the quotes alone will cover a page. See if you can add to this list:

"I wanted a marriage like mom and dad's, but not yet. First I want new experiences, new faces, new surroundings. Lawrenceville will be there foreveah."

"I remember the night I told them I was going to New York. They said it was a dreadful place for a vacation. I announced I was going to work there."

"George Washington didn't sleep there but he did dip a bucket of water from our well."

"I can still see them standing there waving. Aunt Amy, Mama and Willie. Poor Willie, he didn't know I was leaving his life forevah."

"Queenie's pregnant again. My Siamese. Drat! I hope its not that beat up black Tom."

"Black Siamese should be very pretty. I'm Anne Wells."

"Oh yes, the agency phoned about you. A BA in Radcliffe. Mr. Bellamy will like that. He will thin it will gives the office tone."

"Don't give her that I loved you when I was a little girl routine or she'll stab you in the back."

"Neely never had that hard core like me. She never learned to roll with the punches."

"Find yourself a wife. Have kids. Or one day you'll wind up alone like me. I wonder what the hell happened?"

"They drummed you right out of Hollywood.....
...so you come crawling back to Broadway"....

Just one of a myriad of oh-so-quotable lines from the classic VALLEY OF THE DOLLS, based on Jacqueline Susann's steamy pulp-fiction bestseller of 1966. The acting is pure cheese, the script is a paler, watered-down imitation of Susann's text and the songs are God-awful. But there is something about this little gem that draws me in time after time. I could easily watch it once or twice a day and never get bored with it.

The story recounts three girls in New York: Anne Welles (Barbara Parkins - BEAR ISLAND), Neely O'Hara (Patty Duke - THE MIRACLE WORKER) and Jennifer North (Sharon Tate).

Anne has just arrived from small-town Lawrenceville, and landed a job as secretary in an entertainment law-firm. This leads Anne to the acquaintance of Neely, a young up-and-coming Broadway singer who's just been dumped from the new musical starring Helen Lawson (Susan Hayward - I WANT TO LIVE). The reason?...Neely would easily steal the show, and the only star of a Helen Lawson show is Helen Lawson...!

Anne also meets Jennifer, a sweet but by her own admission, talentless showgirl/model. Anne's boss Lyon Burke (Paul Burke) arranges for Neely to sing on a charity telethon, and she quickly lands her own revue at a prominent nightclub. Jennifer marries handsome crooner Tony Polar (Tony Scotti) against the wishes of his sister/manager Miriam (Lee Grant - VOYAGE OF THE DAMNED). Anne then gets discovered by a cosmetics firm and becomes the glamorous 'Gillian Girl'.

The story moves to Hollywood where both Neely and Tony are turned into movie stars. Success comes too fast and easily for Neely who disappears into a heady world of dolls and alcohol. Tony is tragically struck down with a mysterious disease which leaves him paralysed in a sanitarium. To make ends meet, Jennifer becomes an adult-film star.

After going through two failed marriages, Neely hits bottom and is admitted into a rehab center, at Lyon and Anne's behest. With the offer of a new Broadway musical, Neely emerges and quickly finds her feet again, only to break Anne's heart when she claims Lyon for herself. Jennifer quits the porn business and discovers she has breast cancer.

At a party for Helen Lawson's new musical, which bombed out-of-town, Neely and Helen duke it out in the ladies' room, resulting in the famous wig-ripping scene, which is probably the greatest piece in the whole film.

Another great moment is Susan Hayward singing "I'll Plant My Own Tree" standing in the middle of a huge mobile, constructed of broken traffic-lights! Margaret Whiting provided Hayward's singing, though the role of Helen Lawson was originally earmarked for Judy Garland (and the song reeks of Garland influence).

VALLEY OF THE DOLLS is a campy little gem, one that has a HUUUGE and dedicated following. Patty Duke has never eaten so much scenery in any of her subsequent films, Sharon Tate is luminous and Barbara Parkins (aka the Living Mannequin) is just what is called for the role of Anne.

VALLEY OF THE DOLLS. A true classic. Accept no substitutes. ... Read more

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Saturday Night Fever is one of those movies that comes along and seems to change the cultural temperature in a flash. After the movie's release in 1977, disco ruled the dance floors, and ablow-dried member of a TV-sitcom ensemble became the hottest star in the country. For all that, the story is conventional: a 19-year-old Italian-American from Brooklyn, Tony Manero (John Travolta), works in a humble paint store and lives with his family. After dark, he becomes the polyester-clad stallion of the local nightclub; Tony's brother, a priest, observes that when Tony hits the dance floor, the crowd parts like the Red Sea before Moses. Director John Badham captures the electric connection between music and dance, and also the desperation that lies beneath Tony's ambitions to break out of his limited world. The soundtrack, which spawned a massively successful album, is dominated by the disco classics of the Bee Gees, including "Staying Alive" (Travolta's theme during the strutting opening) and "Night Fever." The Oscar-nominated Travolta, plucked from the cast of Welcome Back, Kotter, for his first starring role, is incandescent and unbelievably confident, and his dancing is terrific. Oh, and the white suit rules. (Note: Saturday Night Fever was cut from its original R-rated version after its initial release in order to obtain a PG rating. The PG version is 11 minutes shorter and is missing parts of scenes and some street talk. Both versions are available on video.)--Robert Horton ... Read more

Reviews (93)

The Disco Era Classic Film
In 1977 not everybody knew what the innovative disco music was, and to what extent night clubing was going on. This film depicts John Travolta as Brookyn's Tony Manero, hero to the dance floor. His dead end job at a paint store makes him live for The Saturday Night disco scene. Travolta meets Karen Gorney and enters a dance contest with her but she refuses his sexuall advances. Gorney sees herself going to Manhattan to move on with her life. Travolta sees her as a snob. One local girl played by Donna Pescow likes Travolta but is pushed away by him for Gorneys character since she's a better dancer and Pescow is considered boring. What underlies is Trvoltas often at odds relationship with his family. Racial gang wars and a friend you can't help but wonder about his sexuality. Not only did this movie imitate the era, it influenced the next seven years with it's record selling soundtrack and the great timing in which some of the best nightclubs in America remained open. The movies message is vague but lets you fill in the blanks as Travoltas (Manero) becomes fed up with his existing lifestyle. Moviegoers became so enthralled with it, it would continue into the mid 80's. A PG version was recut to feature the dancing and less social conciousness with virtually no explicit language. This movie had one of the biggest impacts of late 70's films!

More relevant after all these years
After reading all the reviews, the one by Gareth from Disco Mountain hits it right on the head. I loved it when it came out almost 25 years ago, I think it's a masterpiece now. There's no dead space in that movie. When you consider all the issues raised, it's astounding that more people don't see the authenticity and humanity within all the flaws of the characters. What Badham did was create a seamless integration of many contemporary themes, and they still hold today in some other neighborhood anywhere in the world. First, it has some of the most natural dialogue ever written. Gritty and powerful and sexy. When I first saw it, I reacted to it with passion. Today, I see the brilliant writing and directing, and those issues! feminism, racism, class consciousness, family dysfunction, religious uncertainty, teenage angst, the inevitable changes encroaching the neighborhood. And all these social commentaries to the beat of nonstop, exhilirating music. The apathy and despair in the family scenes alone go right to the gut. I know these people! Finally, blend that in with those great Brooklyn accents, the dancing, Travolta and company, and you've got one of the most authentic movies made in the last 25 years.

Admit it
You liked this movie when it came out. And John Travolta's dancing was possibly the coolest thing you'd ever seen. Then came the disco backlash and it suddenly was uncool. Which is unfair because this movie is a classic of time and place, despite it's technical flaws (the occasional visible boom mike, obvious reuse of 2nd unit dance footage, and conversations where lips aren't moving.) Not for nothing was this the late, great Gene Siskel's favorite movie instead of say, Roller Boogie or Can't Stop the Music.

I was going to write about some of the best scenes from this movie but who HASN'T seen it? Instead, let's just focus on this DVD. It does have some extras which are always nice but they are on the skimpy side. There are 3 deleted scenes that are largely throw-aways. I'm curious why they didn't include the extra footage they used for the PG version which includes more dance scenes. There is a decent VH1 Behind the Music episode about it. If you saw it when it was on, then there's no reason to see it again; although it does have some fabulous rehearsal footage of John that's definitely worth viewing. The best of the bunch is director John Badham's commentary which is very good and exactly what a director commentary should be-peppered with amusing trivia (e.g. the lady who played Travolta's grandmother kept presenting him with scenes she had written to beef up her part), technical details, and wry humor. And plus you have a true screen classic on DVD. Re-watch it after all these years and still discover something new to enjoy.

Any night fever
John Travolta makes his starring film debut in this film as Tony Manero,a paint store sales associate who during the day is at the store and is at the real non-existent 2001 Odyssey discotheque and nightclub at night. Karen Lynn Gorney is Stephanie Mangano,a girl Tony meets at a dance studio. They'd later go to 2001 Odyssey together. Tony still lives with his mom,dad and his little sister in Brooklyn and in the last scene,announces to Stephanie his plan to move to Manhattan where she lives. Tony's buddies went with him to the nightclub also. Tony loses his job at the paint store after he takes a day off against his boss's authority. Tony is later reinstated. John Travolta was the star of TV's "Welcome Back Kotter" when he made this film. It wouldn't be long after wrapping up this film that he'd do his next starring film "Grease" with singer Olivia Newton-John. The soundtrack album is the biggest-selling in pop music history thanks in part to 5 songs on the album by the Bee Gees. Their composition IF I CAN'T HAVE YOU,was recorded by Yvonne Elliman. The Bee Gees would later record the song themselves. However,there are 2 versions of MORE THAN A WOMAN on the album,recorded by the Bee Gees and Tavares. Get a load of,in one of the first scenes,Travolta strutting while simultaneously eating two slices of pizza! The Matrix in Bay Ridge,Brooklyn now stands where 2001 Odyssey did. In addition to the Bee Gees,we hear great songs by K.C. and the Sunshine Band,Kool & The Gang and even the Trampps' DISCO INFERNO(10 minutes and 52 seconds in length on the album). Director John Badham later directed Mel Gibson and Goldie Hawn in BIRD ON A WIRE. There's also in the film,Donna Pescow as Annette,who was Tony's girlfriend before Stephanie and Martin Shakar as Tony's minister brother,who quit the priesthood and returned home. After its theatrical release 26 years ago,SNF remains one of the most popular all-time films.

YOU SHOULD BE DANCIN' YEAH!!!!!
I LOVE JOHN TRAVOLTA WHAT A WONDERFUL MOVIE AND THE BEE GEES, TAVARES, AND OTHERS HAD REALLY CONTRIBUTED TO THIS SOUNDTRACK I LOVE THIS MOVIE IT SHOWS EVERYTHING THE UPS AND DOWNS OF LIFE, FAMILY LIFE, MEN, WOMEN, SEX, SUICIDE, SELF-ESTEEM , BUT MOST OF ALL DANCING AND HOW GOOD MUSIC IS AND HOW WELL WE ALL CAN DANCE THIS IS A GREAT MOVIE AND I WOULD DEFINITELY RECOMMEND ANYONE WHO LIKES THE BEE GEES, TAVARES, JOHN TRAVOLTA, DANCING, SINGING, AND DISCO, TO BUY THIS ALBUM AS WELL RIGHT ALONG WITH THE SOUNDTRACK I LOVE THIS MOVIE THIS MOVIE IS GREAT I LOVE ALL THE DANCING. I LIKE JOHN'S [appealing] STYLE AND HIS WALK AND THE WAY HE DANCES AND EVERYTHING IT IS A GOOD MOVIE. I SUGGEST ANY JOHN TRAVOLTA FAN TO BUY THIS MOVIE. ... Read more

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When Goldie Hawn recommended Elizabeth Berkley for a small role in First Wives Club, she publicly stated that Berkley deserved the opportunity to redeem herself after starring in the ridiculous Showgirls. That says it all: this sleazy, stupid movie, which mixes soft pornography with the clichés of backstage dramas, is the kind of project an aspiring actress would have to put well behind her to keep a career going (though costar Gina Gershon certainly benefited from her, uh, exposure in the film). Berkley plays a drifter who hitches a ride to Las Vegas, becomes a lap dancer and then a performer, and discovers--gasp!--there's a whole world of sex and violence involved with these things. Gershon is probably the best element in the film, playing Berkley's bisexual rival for the big spotlight on stage. Joe Eszterhas was well overpaid for writing this howler, and director Paul Verhoeven (Basic Instinct) should have known better than to take it seriously. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (183)

Unique & Different - A Campy Cult Classic
This is a differen't movie, from any other movie that I've ever seen. You could definately tell that Paul Verhoeven had more creative freedom, because of the big-budget, and the NC-17 rating which allows you to do basically anything you want.

I LOVED the dance sequences. All of the bright, big, and fancy dances and the over-the-top props and desings. Verhoeven did a good & effective job with the dance sequences. Elizabeth Berkley can't act, but she can dance. The dance at the Cheetah Club, where she dances to a Prince song, is pretty good. Kyle MacLachlan was worse than Elizabeth Berkley; Kyle just can't act anymore, although he was very good in "Blue Velvet". Gina Gershon pulled off "Cristal" very well. She was mean and sneaky. Elizabeth Berkley looks beautiful though. She has a very exotic face, and the differen't color eyes, makes her more mysterious. As a person who likes "Valley of the Dolls", I enjoyed the campy acting, and dialogue. So few movies are afraid to go down that road, that it's refreshing to see something differen't once in a while.

Three of my favorite scenes, are when Nomi does the gospel-singing disco dance sequence, and when she finally gets to rise out of that volcano, and the announcer says "Ladies and gentlemen, the stardust proudly presents Miss Nomi Malone!". And my third favorite scene is when Nomi and Jeff drive past the billboard with her face on it, and they drive off to L.A. with the Siouxsie and the Banshees music playing.

This movie isn't BAD, it is just too raunchy. The nude scenes and the dialogue from Henrietta Bazoom, are real raunchy. There is only 1 sex scene. I can definately see where people would be offended by Showgirls, but being offended doesn't make a movie bad. NC-17, means that only MATURE people should watch Showgirls because they can handle it, and that means that people who can't handle nudity shouldn't watch it.

I was shocked to see Jessie from "Saved by the Bell" doing lap-dancing, and pole-dancing.

Brilliantly Bad, Terrifically Terrible
As an avid fan of the wonderfully worthless "Valley of the Dolls", I thought I had seen the ultimate in the "so bad it's great" filmmaking genre. Then along came "Showgirls", which showed me just how wrong I was. Glory hallelujah, I have seen the light! Yes, friends, this is the most delightfully deplorable motion picture of all time.

As if Joe Eszterhas and Paul Verhoven (who apperantly have some SERIOUS issues with women) hadn't squeezed enough gratuitous nudity and sex in their thoroughly unenjoyable "Basic Instinct", they have topped themselves in one of only two movies ever to get an NC-17 rating ("Crash" is the other one, and it's actually pretty good). This perfectly pathetic film follows the adventures of Nomi Malone, a hot-headed drifter who hitches a ride to Vegas and becomes the biggest thing to hit the sex industry since former president Bill Clinton. Along the way, she'll throw many a hissy fit, befriend an angelic stripper, lock horns with a self-absorbed rival, avenge a brutal rape, and utter some of the worst lines of dialogue ever written for the silver screen. Former "Saved by the Bell" star Elizabeth Berkely plays Nomi like John Travolta played Terl; she overacts to the brink of Spontaneous Human Combustion, shouting the horrid dialogue at the top of her lungs, which surprizes me because they are buried under twin Everests of silicone. The other actors don't fare much better, partially because they are acting to the worst script ever, worse even than the plotline to the Carrot Top movie.

So why five stars? Because you'll love every minute of it. The film is howlingly hilarious, from the actors to the script to the dialogue. You'll be awestruck by the film's monumental depravity from beginning to end, and because the movie is 131 minutes long, you'll have plenty to savor. So put the popcorn on the stove, invite your closest friends, and enjoy the most deliciously detestable movie ever made. It's a guarenteed good time, and remember, this flick cost United Artists 40 million bucks. Oy!

Hea, we all know why we love this film
Let's all be honest with ourselves. This film is about Elizabeth Berkley and how gorgeous she was in the nude.

Eye candy
Showgirls is one one of the most universally panned movies of the nineties. Everybody hates it, or laughs at it.

Frankly, I don't know why. Or rather, I do know why, and it is not because it is bad. OK, granted, it is pretty bad when you consider some of the acting, and most of the story. But how many movies is this not true for? Certainly it is no worse than most action flicks, and you don't see Jean-Claude van Damme being drop-kicked all over Hollywood.

The thing is that this film is obviously eye candy. And today you cannot be politically correct and not attack something like that. I notice that it moved straight to the third place nationally when it came out on video, and that it has an average rank of four out of fives stars with the audience at Amazon. Critics; can't live with them.

See it for the girls. What girls! They can even move. Elizabeth Berkley's moves are smoking sexy.

And that's all I have to say about that... (Lahf is lahk a box of chokolates.)

Paul Verhoeven's most daring film to date.
Paul Verhoeven's Showgirls is a great film. It's flawless, it's funny, erotic, realistic, intense, violent, etc. It was very well received in Europe. It has a lot of cool modern dancing in it, being very close to be a musical. "Showgirls" is the "Dirty Dancing" of the 90s. See it for yourself. ... Read more

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You either love Russ Meyer's garishly sexist movies about bodacious babes and priapic men or you find them utterly disgusting. The response to his work is that clear-cut. This film, which features a screenplay by critic Roger Ebert, barely qualifies as a sequel to the film based on Jacqueline Susann's trashy bestseller. Rather, it's a broad, trashy remake on its own terms about what happens to a trio of female rock musicians when they leave the Midwest and head for Hollywood. Sex, drugs, murder--the only thing it doesn't have is cannibalism, the gold standard when it comes to trashy entertainment. --Marshall Fine ... Read more

Reviews (55)

IT'S EXTREME! OUTRAGEOUS!! Of Course, It's Russ Meyer!!!
"Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" is released in Japan as "Wild Party," and the latter title might have told you everthing you see in it; and the director is Russ Meyer, famous for his movies like "Faster Pussycat, Kill!, Kill!" and "Vixen"..... Oh, if you haven't seen them, you can guess the contents, I'm sure.

Actually, "Beyond," which major studio 20th Century Fox asked Meyer to direct, is less outrageous, considering the track record this cult director had made, and was going to make. But still, for ordinary people, it is a shocking experience to see almost every genre is mixed in it: love story (too corny one), a sucess story (of Josie and the Pussycats-like rock band, I mean it), and even a gory horror movie (with the sound of 20th Century Fox's trademark fanfare, and Richard Wagner's classic you have heard in Coppola's very famous film!). And within less than 2 hours!!

However, remember, those were the days. Don't take anything too seriously. Besides, the soundtrack is great and if you like those songs of 1960s, you will love it. My favorite is "Candy Man," an Animals-type song, and believe it or not, in Japan they released a single cut from the soundtrack with the credit of Carrie Nations, the fictional band Dolly Read and others play in "Beyond." Oh, I almost forgot to say, you have a glimpse of "Strawberry Alarm Clock," psychedelic rock band that got the No.1 of the Billboard Chart with their "Incense and Peppermint," which you heard in "Austin Powers." They play it here, but sorry, it's lip-sync. And look for Pam Grier (credited as Pamela Grier), of "Jackie Brown."

Enjoy the extremism of filmmaking, I dare you.

(Technical thing: as the original film was shot in cinemascope, and Russ Meyer uses the screen wide, some scenes lose the impact on TV's small screen. Still, there is unmistakeably Russ Meyer's touch here and there in the movie. Don't miss it.)

Cult classic on decadent LA lifestyle and human nature
No, this isn't a sequel to the horrid movie adapatation of Jacqueline Susann's Valley Of The Dolls. While an in-name-only sequel, it's actually different and better as a result. No Sharon Tate giving a wooden performance, no Patty Duke overracting at the very end,... this is an interesting cult classic. Originally given an X, the revised NC-17 rating is due to the many sex scenes, including a few lesbian scenes. It's tame by today's standards, but still has some bite.

So enter the story of the Kelly Affair, Kelly on lead vocals and guitar, Casey on bass, Pet on drums, and Harris their manager and Kelly's boyfriend, playing 60's hippy rock. They go to LA hoping for a break, hopefully with help from Kelly's aunt, Susan Lake, a big name in fashion advertising, who turns out to be a truly nice person, perhaps too nice. Their break comes from Ronnie Barzell, aka "Z-Man," music promoter and host of lavish parties where all the swingers and wild people come together- This is my happening and I 'm freaking out!E Barzell speaks in a dramatic Shakespearean patter: "Observe yon quiet corner. In an island of tranquility in this sea of revelry, languid Roxanne finds that pinch of feminine spice with which she often plays in her interlude." or "Beware, fair maiden, of Emerson Thorne, under that friendly mask, inside that innocent shell, lies fermenting the unholy seed of desire." Roxanne is a fashion designer and Thorne is Z-man's busboy by night, but an aspiring law student by day. And Kelly is stunned to see so many couples making out liberally in bed or in the pool.

One thing for sure--changing the group's name from The Kelly Affair to The Carrie Nations was a good move on Z-Man's part and thanks to him, they become stars, but Harris gradually feels left out, driving him into the arms of Ashley St. Ives, a seductive, sexually insatiable blonde with a predatory smile, a "priestess of carnality" (porn star) who has a penchant for having sex other than in bed. As for the others, Pat and Emerson become a couple, as do Kelly and Lance Rock, a smug-looking pretty boy with "golden hair, bedroom eyes, the firm young body, these are the tools which he plies his trade." Casey too finds someone. Guess who, though?

However, not all is sunny in this paradise. Porter Hall, Susan's slimy stuff-shirted lawyer, does not like Kelly or any part of the scene and enjoys putting people down. Indeed, a montage of scenes and a variety of voices describes the many faces of LA: noisy, classy, smog, lousy traffic, cold and cruel, cultured, phony city, ... it's all these things. When things start to go wrong, Kelly finally realizes something: "You're racing through life full steam ahead, not giving a damn, and something happens to make you stop short, and you realize it's people that count."

As for the music done by the trio, it's 60's rock early on, such as "Find It" and "Come With The Gentle People," sung during their trip via Interstate 40, but the vocals seem to have been done by black artists. Kelly's speaking voice simply doesn't match. And The Strawberry Alarm Clock perform "Incense And Peppermints," "A Girl From The City", and "I'm Going Home" at Z-Man's party.

Dolly Read (Kelly) resembles Rene Bond, the cute cheeks and smile. Erika Gavin (Roxanne) has also appeared in Erika's Hot Summer and also in Jonathan Demme's Caged Heat. Cynthia Myers (Casey) is simply stunning, resembling a warmer hippy version of Sophia Loren with long brown hair. John LaZar really scores as Z-Man, flashy with clothes, words, and lifestyle, but so does Phyllis Davis as the blindly kind Susan.

The decadent, groovy 60's lifestyle and clothes ("Q-U-A-N-T in London"), lingo ("groovy, man!, "you dig?", don' t bogart the jointE are still evident in this era long gone. Everyone is a freak, as Casey says, depending on the crowd they hang out with, be it pot, downers, juice, pick one. But there are some pearls of wisdom to be learned, to quit living in yesterday lest one loses sight of tomorrow, that those who only take pay the highest price, and "excessive kindness blinds us to the failings of those less perfect." A sexy but heartbreaking/warming drama, love, mystery, and music movie that's one of a kind, written by Roger Ebert, yes, that one!

This movie is so 1970
Worst thing that can happen to an already-bad movie is that it becomes dated, and alas, that's what became of "BVD". So we get wooden acting and a howlingly bad script right alongside "square", "groovy", and bad color reproduction. They tried to work a rock band somewhere into this movie, but it all seems to have gotten lost in the mess of flamboyant scenery-chewing and several women with bubble hair missing their cues.

The "racy" stuff this film is famous for has not endured the march of time, and even the creepy part at the end (...)is of little shock value in our modern world brimming with "transgenders".

Lastly, the tacked-on moralizing sequence at the end of the flick effectively nullifies everything that occurs in the movie up to that point, sort of a "don't try this at home" band-aid for a Hollywood too cowardly to take a "chance" on this release.

A Movie That Takes Risks and Attempts To Make A Statement
"Beyond The Valley of the Dolls" is a movie that was made over 30 years ago but is still enjoyable to watch today. I truly admire this film, Roger Eberts writing and the direction of Russ Meyer just make this film unique and amazing. At some points the film can be so dramatic and at other times so light hearted. The film also set some trends, like the African American woman at Z Mans party with the gold rhinestone eye shadow decoration, everyone thought Alicia Keys was doing something new when she wore rhinestones on her eyelids to the Grammy's and then all these rappers talking about Bentley's the one woman in the movie was talking about how a Rolls is better than a Bently.

This movie is awesome for so many reasons. For one its 2004 and we will never see a movie on the big screen that takes so many risks. How many movies are there where the White and African American characters have true friendships and both characters have developed story lines? It was the 60's and Ebert and Meyers weren't afraid to bring taboos like sexual orientation, well let me not be a spoiler.

The women were so beautiful, Casey, Pet and Kelly. They had bodacious bodies and big hair and perfect make-up. They lived life so carefree. The underlying storyline about the money was never really resolved but so much was going on in that flick.

It's a really great movie and it's funny because at the end, the very end they try to be moral and tie it all together and make a social statement. This is a wild and crazy trip of a movie and I catch something new everytime I watch it. As a writer and a one time aspiring film maker movies like this one make me want to go out and take risks.

ONE OF THE GREATEST CULT CLASSIC MOVIES YOU CAN WATCH
THREE FEMALE MUSICIANS GET FAMOUS AND BEGIN TO GET INTO THE BAD HABITS OF THE HOLLYWOOD LIFESTYLE. FOR A SOFT-CORE MOVIE, THIS ACTUALLY HAS A LITTLE PLOT AND THE ACTING AIN'T REALLY BAD. HAS GOOD SEX SCENES AND IT HAS A CRAZY FINALE, WHICH ADDS A WHOLE LOT TO THIS MOVIE. THIS IS NOT A SEQUEL TO ''THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS'', IN CASE YOU DON'T ALREADY KNOW. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Im in love with a bad girl after seeing this movie
I think im in love with a bad girl name dollie. She is so sexy and pretty, i hope she does more movies than this one. The acting is not natural which consumes the majority of old classics. You would never ever see modern movies where actor's are just playing the part and realism is not there. You know what, for a classic movie, this one is awesome. I can't get enough of watching this show as i have seen it over and over again. sexploitation movies at its BEST! You have romance, murder, and suspense roll up into one package and it spells MUST SEE.

Great 50s B Movie
one of the best J.D. movies of the 50s with some pretty decent performances by the cast. Yvonne Lime is perfectly cast as the good girl trying to go bad. great film just to watch the girls' styles which so many contemporary rockabilly girls try to emulate. The transfer onto tape is super clear and for the money is one of the best films of this genre you can buy.

One of the best AIP teen films from the 50s!
Good girl Yvonne Lime gets involved with bad girl Jana Lund and her gang of Hell-cats, a sorority of not so nice gals who rule the halls of a typical 1950s high school. I am so glad this movie is finally being released on video! It is a really fun film, probably one of the best juvenile delinquint movies of the 50s. Lime is finally given a chance to show her talent (she was wasted in films like I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF) and Lund proves quite capable as a bad girl. But the best role really goes to Susanne Sydney as Jana's jealous co-hort in the Hellcats club. Also in the cast is B-film regular Brett Halsey as Lime's love interest and Rhoda Williams as the kids' understanding teacher. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Peter Greenaway (The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover, Drowning by Numbers) continues to delight and disturb us with his talent for combining storytelling with optic artistry. The Pillow Book is divided into 10 chapters (consistent with Greenaway's love of numbers and lists) and is shot to be viewed like a book, complete with tantalizing illustrations and footnotes (subtitles) and using television's "screen-in-screen" technology. As a child in Japan, Nagiko's father celebrates her birthday retelling the Japanese creation myth and writing on her flesh in beautiful calligraphy, while her aunt reads a list of "beautiful things" from a 10th-century pillow book. As she gets older, Nagiko (Vivian Wu) looks for a lover with calligraphy skills to continue the annual ritual. She is initially thrilled when she encounters Jerome (Ewan McGregor), a bisexual translator who can speak and write several languages, but soon realizes that although he is a magnificent lover, his penmanship is less than acceptable. When Nagiko dismisses the enamored Jerome, he suggests she use his flesh as the pages which to present her own pillow book. The film, complete with a musical score as international as the languages used in the narration, is visually hypnotic and truly an immense "work of art." --Michele Goodson ... Read more

Reviews (106)

The Word Made Flesh
The Pillow Book is a rare film that transcends limitations of film and text in a unique handling by auteur Peter Greenaway. Based loosely on the tenth century writings of Sei Shonagon, Greenaway brings to the screen a rich visual amalgam that relies on stunning settings, the physical beauty of actors Vivian Wu and Ewan McGregor, and the joy of ancient and modern systems of writing that is calligraphy. Greenaway's penchant for incorporating art, numbers, books, and architecture in a filmic medium ensure those who enjoy his style will not be disappointed. As a young child, Wu's character has celebrated her birthday's by having her father write the story of creation on her face in a family ritual celebration. However, with adulthood and marriage, her spouse is neither interested nor willing to continue her tradition. Frustrated at her inability to find a lover who is a good calligrapher, or a calligrapher who is a good lover, Wu finally meets a bi-sexual translator, Jerome (McGregor) who offers himself to Wu as a living surface for her erotic creativity. Inspired by the opportunity to obtain revenge on the publisher who blackmailed her father and is Jerome's lover, Wu's character, Nagiko creates the ultimate love poem illuminated in red, gold and black characters and delivered to the publisher on the naked body of Jerome. The Pillow Book is adult eroticism at it's most sensuous and visual best. It is a story that revels in binaries of profane and grotesque, yet delights the eye with Greenaway's ability to translate a vision of love and horror into a singular statement of lush physical beauty and sexuality.

A Finely Created Work of Art
I happen to be a great admirer of the controversial Mr Greenaway. I think his direction in film is bold and produces powerful results. The Pillow Book is a great example of this talent. It is an amazing combination of his narrative technique, experimental explorations and talent for finding compelling stories. The images are beautiful, especially the shot of Vivian Wu standing in the rain covered with writing on her flesh which slowly melts away. Her character is not that complex, but the action of the story is sufficient to carry her along throughout the tale as she fights for independence and a suitable form of artistic expression. Essentially the story is about the fetishisation of books and sex. These things are enough to make a great movie in my mind. Nagiko is a girl who goes through a ritual where her father writes on her back on her birthday as he tells her of a myth. After burning her way out of a suffocating marriage, she grows up to become a radical artist writing on bodies and searching for a man who can replace her father in the birthday tradition. She meets a talented man named Jerome who she falls in love with, but is eventually sacrificed to her father's old enemy. In the course of the narrative she writes her own Pillow Book on a series of men. It culminates in a gruesome act of jealousy and revenge (a notion not foreign to Greenaway's narratives).

The scene of Jerome's suicide is particularly powerful and works well with the screen-in-screen shots because it shows in one shot the sequence between thought and action, self-perception and actual action. This is a new style for Greenaway that works tremendously well in this movie because it fits so well with the egotism and self-obsession of the characters involved. The movie as a whole is a powerful evocation of a great Japanese classic. I highly recommend this movie who is in the mood to watch something eccentric, visually moving and stunningly beautiful.

A porn movie but 'Artistic'
Highly over-rated. It's like when an artist pisses and ejaculates over a picture and calls it 'nature', then people go 'ooooh aaaaaah!such genius!'. That pretty much summarises it.

Beauty and obsession
Two of the most beautiful things in the world are the written word and the human figure. Even the ones that are not special in themselves embody meaning and subtlety. When Greenaway uses the figure to carry words, he creates imagery that can not be forgotten.

There is so much in this movie that I hardly know where to begin. It starts with a child. Her father's birthday ritual is to tell her a story, always the same one, and to paint calligraphy on her face. Maybe it's a little silly, but it's sweet and loving.

Over time, the girl loses her innocence but gains the strength of adulthood. Her memory of that charming ritual develops, too. First, it loses its childhood innocence; it becomes a passion for her, and the standard by which she measures her lovers. In the end, the ritual gains even more strength and becomes the vehicle for a deadly obsession.

I must warn the potential viewer that the movie's second half goes places far beyond where sanity stops. It is not for people with tender sensibilities.

I'll come back to this movie for it sensual beauty. I won't come back too often, though. The raw rage at the end is just too hard.

Ridiculously overrated
A director tosses in some "artful" shots and full nudity for most of the movie and suddenly it's a "beautiful film"???
I kept expecting to see Marilyn Chambers pop up in scenes. I'm not against T&A flicks, but this is trying to be something it isn't, which is sad and pathetic. It's a cheap trashy film that gets a good reputation b/c of who directed it. ... Read more

Reviews (58)

Flea recites Shakespeare. What more do you need to know?
Well-dressed "indie" hack Gus Van Sant (who's about as indie as Evan Dando) received lots of kudos for this pretty-boys-in-ripped-jeans, "loose adaptation" of "Henry IV, part 1". If this is a loose adaptation of Henry, then "The Rainmaker" is a loose adaptation of "Bleak House". This sometimes decent-looking piece of fluff is so desperate to live up to its "loose adaptation" hype, it actually (painfully) inserts some actual dialogue from the play into the middle of the movie. OK, yeah...get it. Thanks.

River Phoenix is actually quite good & handles the vague, sappy story of boy-hooker-with-a-heart-of-gold with class & subtlety. His task is a thankless one: he plays a character who honks on bobo, hangs out with danceclass reject thugs, and has the occassional grand mal seizure on the highway. That and he's looking for Mama. Sure, but that's always the issue, isn't it?

What's his name? Keanu Reeves gives his usual Frank Gifford-on-thorazine performance. He plays a rich kid who hustles to get back at his family. Reeves is uniformly awful throughout. The interaction between Reeves and Pheonix is like watching two popular college guys go to their favorite hole-in-the-wall bar in the seedy section of town and attempt to "fit in". Meanwhile, they try to pay the tab with a VISA Platinum.

The shame of the movie is that what looks like might turn out to be a dark, intriguing portrait of a troubled twentysomething (nothing earthshattering, there, I grant you) winds up being a J. Crew travelogue that desperately wants to be (1) literary and (2) a cult film. Unless your name is Ed Wood, you can't just effortlessly toss off cult films. Even Wood had to wear fake breasts and fondle a cashmere sweater.

In truth, this would be a really good film student project if it were fifteen minutes long and in a language I couldn't understand. As it is, Van Sant doesn't have near the talent or original vision (see Psycho, the rape of) to pull off a formless character study or a literary cult film. Two stars because of Reeves, the first ten minutes and it's not based on a Tom Robbins novel.

Reality check...
This movie shocked me at first, but I soon realized that Gus Van Sant and the actors, especially Phoenix strove to present us with a picture and a reality we often don't see or don't choose to see. Welcome to the world of male hustlers. I didn't expect to be taken on a date in the first few minutes, and I was sad to learn how a person can give over their body for a 20$ bill. I was impressed and touched by River Phoenix's preparation for this character. His effort paid off beautifully! I understand through reading some of the biographical books about him; he always threw himself into every character. It is said that in preparation of the film, he spent a great deal of time with one particular hustler, a young man, whom he portrays. In addition, he lost an incredible amount of weight to look the part. Mike Waters is a young man looking for something. From highways to gay bars and back again, he searches for his mother, an ethereal character from his dreams, nightmares, and semi-wakefulness from his bouts of narcolepsy. The fits of instant sleep provided some comical moments, yet I enjoyed it because I was finding out what gave Mike stress. He was also looking for love from a man, and not from turning tricks. The actors often reffered to having sex with another person, for free, which gave you wings. The extent to which Mike and other actors will go to search and strive after a goal is unbelievable: From the high plains to the sea-board cities to France, they wandered from place to place looking for Mike's Mom. There is a conflict between Mike and his older brother, who is more a part of Mike life than he realizes. I was inspired by the courage of the characters to show the depth of comittment that a young man will go through to discover truth, no matter how difficult.

I highly recommend this movie to become aware of what happens all around us. We can love others better when remove the labels and love them regardless of where they came from. As a pastor and reviewer, I benefited greatly to seeing a brand new perspective of life and it helped in my work to aid people I know in these situations. It made me wonder - in this season of Christmas why our homes are not open to rejected teens. Loving and intimate relationships are free to give. Mike and his companion had a intense relationship of companionship which didn't revolve around sex That should inspire us to think how we treat the people around us.

"My Own Private Idaho" (just one more)
I forgot one more story, related to what I wrote, already. As if you'll print this, but maybe.
When "Sweet November" came out, I realized it was a remake of the 60s film, only it starred Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron, this time. I'd seen the original, with Sandy Dennis and Anthony Newley, back in the 70s, when it was on TV late one night, with Susie, my ex-girlfriend I wrote about earlier--the one who gasped, when I called her from the hospital and told her I think I'm an alcoholic. We'd loved that movie--and the "irony" there is that her birthday is November 17th, and that date features prominently in the new movie. It's also set in San Francisco, and I live just north of there, at Muir Beach. What an "irony." Sometimes, when I see "coincidences" in movies his friends and family make and my own life, I now think this was maybe River trying to tell me something from the Great Beyond.
When I wrote Susie of this "irony," after yet another hiatus in our relationship--she is fundamentalist Christian and has right-wing beliefs, when no one I know on purpose does, anymore, really--she ignored me. So bye-bye, Susie, and maybe that is for the best, since she wasn't in sobriety, even though we smoked and drank and took drugs, though she didn't favor that last.
I have related stories--such as when I saw Summer, River's youngest sister, in "Wasted," for the first time. I like this movie, though I can do without the sex scenes. And she can't relate it to River's OD, though it's about heroin addiction and is dedicated, in part, to those who lost their lives due to this disease.
I will go to sleep, now. I had no idea I'd write so much, and it's late. I have a bit of a head cold, but I thought I'd write you, since you sell me a bunch of River Phoenix things, suddenly, and you might want to know why, incidentally.(...)

Weird and wonderful...Keanu Reeves can actually act??
Being fairly new to the world of 'art-house' movies, i first found this a little confusing, and i was concerned that this strange approach would hinder the emotional impact of the film, rendering it yet another overly stylish, powerless and incomprehensible piece of modern film-art. I had also heard that it was extremely shocking and controversial. However, i began to understand Gus Van Sant's language, and it soon seemed completely natural. The claims regarding its explicit sexual nature have been, fankly, grossly exaggerated and probably the result of mild homophobia. The camp fire scene is the most memorable, with River Phoenix's perfomance as Mike, subtle and shining as usual, bringing to mind the very similar camp-fire scene in "Stand by me". Having only seen Keanu Reeves appear in such films as 'Speed' and 'the Matrix', in which he hardly demonstrates any power or skill as an actor, it came as somewhat of a pleasant surprise to see his humorous and striking portrayal of Scott. A sensitive choice of music contributed to the mood, both in the comic, nostalgic steel-string guitar to the gentle folk song that plays as Mike vows through tears to find his mother (by the way, does anybody know what that song is or how to find out?). I was slightly disappointed and depressed by the ending, which is extremely inconclusive, but i suppose movies don't always need a conclusive ending to make them good. Overall a visually stylish, emotionally powerful movie, with some fantastic acting by River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves.

wierd, different, and sad
I did not know exactly to expect when watching this movie but I am a big fan of River Phoenix so I decided to give it a shot. I watched about the first third or so of it and found myself thinking I can't believe I rented this, with the exception of a few scenes that I thought were pretty funny, but when the campfire scene happened I became more involved with the film. I started to see Mike more as a person searching for love and his mother instead of just a male prostitute that fell asleep a lot. I thought River's acting was brilliant. Everything I have seen him in so far is so believable to me. For example, when he sees Scott and his new girlfriend kissing at the dinner table he blows smoke at them, out of obvious jealousy, and he can't sleep when he hears them making love in the next room. I think he was excellent in picking up people's mannerisms and the little things that people do. I ended up being so mad at Scott in the end and was saddened in how it seemed that Mike would live that life until his death. The role of Mike was played perfectly in that it seemed that he didn't even like being a prostitute, evident by his fits of sleep during most of those situations, but he was just trying to get by and find love. The believable acting, mostly by River, and the sadness and emotional vulnerability of the second 2 thirds or so of the film more than make up for the beginning. I hope to look deeper into people's lives and less likely to judge others, something that I must admit needing a little more help in. It really saddens me that there are people right now as I'm typing this review living lives similar to this one feeling like the "road never ends" for them. God bless them and everyone else. ... Read more

Amazon.com

This film was a touchstone of the late 1960s, when it was seen as an antiwar allegory for a world in which madness seemed to reign. Of course, that would probably be true whenever this movie was shown, wouldn't it? Directed by Philippe de Broca and set during World War I, King of Hearts stars Alan Bates as a Scottish soldier separated from his unit in France. He wanders into a small French village that has been abandoned by its residents in the face of oncoming combat. Instead, the town is populated by the residents of a nearby insane asylum, whose keepers have fled--a fact that escapes the innocent soldier, who assumes these are the regular folks. A film that celebrates the innocence and wisdom of the insane, even as it questions who the real madmen are. --Marshall Fine ... Read more

Reviews (30)

wonderful.
This is a movie everyone should see. I know that everyone always writes that, but I really mean it. I've never seen another movie like it in my whole life. there's something hauntingly, charmingly true about it. The story is set in 1918, in a small french town that has been evacuated because there's a bomb hidden. A scottish soldier is sent in to disable it, but he doesn't know where it's hidden or when it's going to go off. Accidentally freeing all the inmates of the insane asylum who've been left (by the fleeing townspeople) in the town, the soldier finds himself stuck among them, trying to convince them to leave, but having no luck. the inmates are irresistibly lovable, carefree, full of wisdom and completely free of all societal restraints. it's impossible not to fall in love with the world they create in the evacuated town. I think the movie is only made better by being in another language: reading the subtitles, you can imagine the characters saying the lines in any way that you want. French is such a beautiful language: that, combined with the unobtrusive music, makes for a film strangely silent and beautiful. It makes me cry. Please go watch it. It's definitely one of my favorites.

Enchanting fantasy; topical allegory; classic movie
A fairy tale set in a French town caught between the opposing armies of the First World War, "King of Hearts" has lost none of its beguiling charm in the 35 years since its original release, nor has its message grown stale. Alan Bates shines as Charles Plumpick, a simple private in a Scottish regiment and perhaps the only sane man in the abandoned town. But is his world of war and brutality really any saner than the make-believe world conjured up by the escaped inmates of the town lunatic asylum, the only residents Private Plumpick encounters during his reconaissance? It is a point of view that depends entirely on one's perspective. This whimsical, gentle tale challenges the watcher to reexamine what constitutes true madness, just as the asylum characters force Pvt. Plumpick, having been to his initial discomfort acclaimed as the King of Hearts, to choose which role he prefers: king of the fools or fool for King George V? Broca directs his own screenplay with a deft touch and using a stellar cast of mostly French actors. A very young Genevieve Bujold makes one of her earliest appearances in a major picture. The English subtitles aren't the best I've seen (and unlike the VHS version, are distractingly present even during English dialogue), but far better than the awful English-dubbed version of "King of Hearts" that is sometimes broadcast or sold. (The best subtitles I have ever seen were on a print that circulated around theatres during the 1970s and 1980s, but I've never seen this version used for home video.) The score by Georges Delerue is one of his best.

Quelle Surprise! This DVD version has, without fanfare, at least two entirely new scenes in the film that I have never seen before (and I first saw this in 1977). The first is a lengthier "homily" by Monseigneur Marguerite (aka Bishop Daisy) in the church before Charles' coronation. But the real grabber is an added scene at the very end of the movie that offers a parting glance at the primary players and a final bittersweet twist. Where on earth did this footage come from, and why has it been missing from this film for so long? Does this DVD version offer a "better" ending than the familiar one? It's debateable. But it's certainly intriguing.

Best Ending Ever!
This movie has the very best ending ever. I'd like to see someone try and find a more surprising, happier, funnier ending than this one. The loonies are in town and they've found their king and my heart. This movie takes the bag. It's my father's very favorite movie and one of mine. I definitely recommend this movie.

A buck-naked skip with birdcage!
This gem should hit many different emotions for the avid viewer. A true parade of carnival characters set in an antiwar theme -- this bit of royalty of the heart brings up aTHE enigma: Is the difference between psychosis and psychic just a paper-thin line of cultural subjectivism? Is the lunacy of blowing up yet another vacant city on the path to glory any different that skipping naked down a path with a birdcage in one's hand?

This film started the boomers reading subtitles and (hopefully) brought them out of their fears of foreign film. (Don't get the dubbed version, it lacks so much charm.) Its popularity had a great deal to do with the country's mass-consciousness about the Viet Nam war; but I hope it would have found the same audience without such a catalyst.

One feels like dancing in a fountain and blowing bubbles on the back of a bus after seeing this great flick. Keep a kazoo handy; you'll want to have something to toot after the film is over and you are left to your organized sanity!

Better yet, follow it up with the 1972 release of "The Ruling Class" and have yourself a truly insane evening of jocularity.

Is there something extra on this DVD?
King of Hearts was, in my younger and more vulnerable years, one of my favorite movies, but I had not seen it in many years. In fact, I'd rather forgotten about it. Then I came across the DVD and bought it and watched it again. Still a great movie, but I was puzzled. My recollection was the final scene of the movie is Plumpick (Alan Bates) appearing at the gate of the asylum naked. Then the credits began (rather abruptly as I recollect). In the DVD, however, there is a short scene after this where Bates has joined the inmates and there is a brief exchange of dialog. I don't recall ever seeing this before, but maybe my memory is foggy. No one else seems to have mentioned this either in ... of IMDB, nor does the DVD tout a restored scene. Can anyone tell me if they recall this scene? ... Read more

Reviews (152)

Ignorance is bliss
...Anyone who has done the least bit of research will know that David Lynch has final cut of everything he does. He chose to cut the movie down from its original inception. Please know that this is a fantastic movie, and the DVD IS Lynch-approved. As for the commentary and deleted scenes, Lynch has stated many times that he will NEVER do commentary, and does not agree whole-heartedly with including deleted scenes. He also refuses to use chapter stops (this is good). If you need someone to hold your hand while you watch this movie, and explain how to think for yourself, then I propose you find a different film to watch.

Goodbye Cherry Pie
Remember Laura Palmer? She's the one who was into sex, drugs and..., ended up killed by..., wrapped in plastic, and then it all began. Well here is the oft-times lurid, unsettling and sometimes plain scary film about Laura. This is not the eccentric drama/comedy we know as "Twin Peaks:TV series, and it's not for the fair weather Peaks fans. David Lynch lets us know that this is the flip side right at the opening credits when the violent destruction of a television is followed by a bloodcurdling scream. No wonder they hated it! I love it, and thanks to NewLine who in conjunction with none other than the maestro himself have produced a gorgeous digital transfer of this essential work. Forget the deleted scenes fiasco..with this quality sound and picture, and a good price, this is a no brainer for true Twin Peaks fans. I docked a star because the only substantial extra, the "documentary" is quite a disappointment. If you have absorbed the series and permit the Lynchian universe to enfold you, "Fire Walk with Me" will reveal itself as a coherent,disturbing and beautiful adventure. Great performances by Sheryl Lee and Ray Wise, but the real star is the director who gave us something that we never expected, and it gets better at each viewing.Wow Bob Wow!!

The Reason this movie wasn't as good is becuz.....
In the David Lynch "motion pictures" collection, there are 8 films that have been made since 1978. "Eraserhead," "Elephant Man," "Dune," "Blue Velvet," "Wild at Heart," "Fire Walk With Me," "Lost Highway," and his latest, "Straight Story." The four best are Eraserhead, Fire Walk With Me, Blue Velvet and Lost Highway.

David Lynch's vision of "FIRE WALK WITH ME," is not bad because he wanted it to be. The original fire walk with me movie is romoured to be over 3 and a half hours long. There is PROMISED to be a FIRE WALK WITH ME DVD coming out soon. It should be out later this spring with all the cuts that werent originally in the TWIN PEAKS movie. Please.... dont be disappointed with the original though, it is a good movie. You should try this movie, I THINK, before you watch, rent or buy the TWIN PEAKS TV series.

thanks

garmonbozia, all right.
See, this movie is yet another intentional turkey in the David Lynch stinkography. When will you people believe me when I tell you the man simply likes to make bad movies?!? The picture comes off as a demented episode of Northern Exposure with the plot-wiring torn out and the character development up on blocks. Throw in the obligatory sinister midget and sundry unemployed freaks and... Weee're in business! Oh, wait... we need something for the characters to do... well, they can all just take turns going insane, can't they? Problem solved! David Lynch is a modern freak show operator. The freak show has never gone away. It has just been billed as something else.

Prequel sets the stage for series pilot
Shot after the series was cancelled because there was a demand overseas for more "Twin Peaks" material, "Fire Walk with Me" gives us a glimpse of what occurred just prior to Laura Palmer's murder in the pilot. While it spells out some things only hinted at in the pilot and is a bit more literal than the series, "Fire Walk with Me" also has the benefit of being a theatrical film and, as such, we get to dig deeper into the underbelly of the town.

The first thirty minutes of the film are devoted to a murder similar to Palmer's that occurs in another town. A pair of FBI agents are sent in to investigate (Chris Issak and Keifer Sutherland). When they run into resistence from the local law enforcement, they're forced to flex their FBI muscles a bit. While investigating a clue in a trailer park, one of the agents vanishes. Agent Cooper (MacLachlan)is called in to find the missing agent.

Far more surreal than the series with a number of high profile cameos (David Bowie, Harry Dean Stanton), this is a bit more bizarre as well when compared to the series (and even the pilot). The DVD is chapter encoded (unlike the frustrating "Mulholland Drive"), has an original documentary that's shot in a style like Lynch might have used with the original cast (save Piper Laurie, Michael Ontkean, Jack Nance and a couple of other cast members)about the impact of the show.

It's an excellent companion piece of the pilot (available as of now only as a region 0 DVD from Taiwan)and the series (available as a boxed set for the first season only with, reportedly, the second season coming next year some time). Picture quality is exceptionally good with the sound particularly outstanding in its use of 5.1.

A solid cast with a good script that meanders a bit, "Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me" plays better than parts of the first season but isn't quite as strong as both the pilot and first 8 episodes of the series. It's still worthwhile for fans of the show. ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Two cool guys head out on motorcycles in search of... well, America, but they'll settle for sex and drugs and rock & roll. There's plenty of each as Captain America (Peter Fonda) and paranoid Billy (Dennis Hopper) encounter a commune, convert a small-town drunk (Jack Nicholson) to the Grin Reefer, pick up two pretty lilies of the alley, Karen Black and Toni Basil (who hit the pop charts in the '80s--check out "Mickey"), and get shot for having long hair. Nicholson won an Oscar nomination and Best Supporting Actor nods from the National Society of Film Critics and the New York Film Critics Circle, but his acting was better than they knew: he had to pretend to be straight and gradually get plastered in many, many takes using real weed. Find out the far wilder, funnier story behind the film in the book Easy Riders, Raging Bulls and Peter Fonda's Don't Tell Dad. --Tim Appelo ... Read more

Reviews (102)

"Helmut? Oh, I got a helmut..."
Easy Rider is a truly landmark film in the true sense of the meaning of the term. Produced on a very low budget and set in the late 60's it was, in my opinion, the first movie to really capture a particularly interesting moment in time. While many films sort of used the notion of the late 60's, drugs, sex, rebellion, idealism, as a means to make money, this seemed really the first film to accurately reflect a realistic image of the time period with an unflinching eye.

Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper play Wyatt, or Captain America, and Billy, two free type spirits who, after a making quite a bit of money through a sale of drugs, decide to hit the road and drive cross country to Mardi Gras. Along the way, they pick up George Hanson, a southern lawyer, played by Jack Nicholson.

While watching this movie, you may get a sense that it is sort of a western, with the western landscapes and the main characters riding 'iron' horses. This was the intention of the filmmakers, especially the director, Dennis Hopper. One of my favorite scenes was at the beginning, right before Wyatt and Billy are about to embark on their trip, Wyatt removes his watch and throws it on the ground. This symbolized a sense of throwing off the constraints of the old world and an effort to embrace true freedom, if there is such a thing.

Nicholson tends to steal the scenes he is in, and gives a particularly wonderful piece about what freedom is, and why people are so afraid of it. He sort of represented to me one who has been fed many misconceptions about the individuals and movement Wyatt and Billy represent, but once in their company, finds that much of what he has been told may not be true. A sort of individual caught between the generations.

The film is dated, but that didn't detract anything for me. The only scene I really didn't care for was when Wyatt, Billy, Mary (Toni Basil), and Karen (Karen Black) drop acid in a Louisiana cemetery and proceed to trip for an extended period of time.

Along with wonderful performances, much credit must go to the cinematographer, as the landscapes are beautiful, especially the wide shots of the western scenery. They are truly breathtaking. And the music used was exceptionally good, fitting each scene and helping to create the proper mood throughout the film.

The movie presented here looks excellent, in anamorphic wide screen, and includes a commentary by Dennis Hopper. Also included is a wonderful 'Making of' featurette called Easy Rider: Shaking the Cage which really helps to illustrate all that went into making this film. The production, at time, often reflected the turbulent times of when the film was made, and helps to give more flavor to the movie, really enhancing the overall effect. All in all, Easy Rider is a wonderful slice of outsider Hollywood that captured the true essence of an exceptionally turbulent time in America.

Wholly overrated
"Easy Rider" (1969)

"A classic...a great film for its day...everyone is sure to love it", those were the comments I had been hearing about Easy Rider before I rented it. I expected this movie to be great because it was called a counterculture classic and topped many people's lists of the best film of the 1960's. In my opinion, Easy Rider is a case of don't believe everything you read.

Sure, the movie has its good points. The music is fantastic. The songs are all very memorable and suit the road theme, styles of the film and the time in which it is set very well. Many of the songs of the movie have become classics since the films release. Easy Rider is also shot gorgeously, with heaps of great sunset shots and motorcycle journeys.

The performances in the movie are also very good. Jack Nicholson is the stand out as the innocent comic relief Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda meet when they go to jail. Nicholson deserved another Oscar for this role! Hopper clearly put a lot of effort into the film being a writer, director and lead actor, but his continuous "man's" and hippie references annoyed the heck out of me, as did his monologues about what he "sees" after he takes drugs. Peter Fonda was hailed as the leading actor of the movie but he really doesn't say that much and he has very little facial expression. His acting definitely got better.

There was also way too many drugs in this movie. In the film, this is basically the story: these 2 guys take drugs, encounter people, take drugs, make the people they encounter take drugs, take some drugs, sleep, take a couple more drugs, have sex, and then take drugs. And apparently this story is all about "freedom" according to Dennis Hopper. Yeah right. Also, Easy Rider doesn't present any ideas why or why not the characters should be doing this. Why are they doing it in the first place? Is taking drugs a way to make people free and express freedom? No. I found the use of drugs both pointless and excruciatingly unrealistic in this film.

So, the movie does have its good points - the cinematography, bikes and Jack Nicholson - but not enough to overcome the whole pointlessness of the entire production. This is one big disappointment for me, and I can't believe such a film that was hailed as a "classic" could be so banal and stupid.

MY GRADE: C-

The best portrait of a hopeless generation!
Dennis Hopper made a cathartic movie. I 've always recognized his talent as actor and film maker . He's an outsider artist , in all the sense of the expression.
This picture, is reflect of his own character. The tale about two renegades , every one of them trying of seeking his destiny, decide to make a journey (the mythical approach) to New Orleans Mardi Grass (evasion once more) , in his powerful motocycles .
This journey will allow Hopper to express the alienated existence of these guys and the people who surrounds in every point they decide to rest. The violence is free ; and you watch in the visual language of the people who simply don't accept their way of living , the way they dress ; they establish a spiritual rapport with that hippie community in the middle of the road, where the psichodelia images suggest you what's going on.
This film was a low budget . 394.000 bucks , but the script depicted as any other american film of its age the sense of going to nowhere abaout a generation tired of waiting for a change.
The increase dark shadows will cover the landscape and will carry to that magnificent and poetic ending.
I still have the original vynil soundtrack of this picture. If six was nine of Hendrix, Born to be wild and the Pusher of Steppenwolf , or the weight were emblemeatic songs of its age which reflected wise and sincerely , the expecatations of a generation just in the year in which the man reached a superb scientific and technological triumph in Jul 29 1969 .
In a certain way this outlaw couple behaves in similar terms that Butch Cassidy (Western) , Scarecrow (existential mood city) , Midnight cowboy (outsiders in New York).
May be the film age a bit but its descriptive script from its release became in a cult movie.!

Still an Important Film
Every reviewer who has commented on the dated-ness of this film is accurate. However, just because the film cannot be enjoyed in its original context does not mean that it cannot be enjoyed in another -- especially by people who did not live during or do not remember the late '60s. There are different battles to be fought, but the film is still pertinent in this current era of engaging the amorphous "war on terror" and its subsequent erosion of our civil rights, and the continued corporatization of America. Everybody who said that this film doesn't really have a plot is also accurate, but so what? The point isn't to give the viewer a story with a bunch of twists and turns, but to simply show the lives of two cultural rebels (who probably seem quite tame by contemporary standards) as they trek across the southwest to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. The cinematography is excellent, especially considering the age of the film and its budget. The acting is really good and Jack Nicholson gives one of the best performances of his long career. He would have completely stolen the show had his character's screen-time not been cut short.

Here's why the film is still important: despite there no longer being a widespread, vicious divide in the nation between people like Fonda and Hopper and mainstream America, the themes of the film (freedom, freedom of expression, and how some are more free than others) remain totally relevant and Fonda and Hopper's characters can be seen as even more iconic than they were in 1969, because now that they don't actually represent you or me (as they could in 1969) they achieve larger-than-life status.

The scenes at the commune may elicit confusion or even a giggle from younger members a contemporary audience, but hopefully these people will look a bit deeper than the long hair and the funny clothes to realize that these characters represented a very real subculture in the late '60s; a movement that not only decided that the ballooning consumer culture was eroding their freedoms, but who also decided to do something about it. How many people today would be brave enough leave behind most of their possessions and live off the land, to protect the values they hold dear? Virtually none.

"They're gonna make it," declares Fonda about the food-strapped commune, and in 1969 it was possible for this line to be legitimately optimistic and to have enough strength and resonance to encompass the entire countercultural movement. Today, we know that they didn't make it. What did America lose by Fonda, Hopper, Nicholson and the commune not making it? That is for the viewer to decide, and that is why the film remains very important. In its day, the tragedy that befalls Fonda and Hopper could have been intended as a rallying cry. Today, it is reason to pause for introspection on the larger issues: What is important to us? What has been taken away? How much have we willingly sold away? And, most importantly, what would we sacrifice to get it back?

Two for the road
Revolutionary in its time but appearing somewhat dated now, "Easy Rider" was the ultimate road trip: two bikers on a cross-country ride from the west coast to Mardi Gras in New Orleans after scoring big in a drug deal. Produced and directed by, and starring Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda, and almost stolen by a then-unknown named Jack Nicholson playing a hippie lawyer, "Easy Rider" follows its two heroes across some of the most stunning scenery in the Southwest as they head towards Louisiana in search of "freedom", whatever that means. "Easy Rider" not only brings us two (or three, counting Nicholson) of society's dropouts, we also meet a community of hippies, some narrow-minded small-town lawmen, and some rednecks in Louisiana who seem to have a more-than-passing relationship to Neanderthals. We wonder if the film's perhaps unwitting message is that the search for meaningless "freedom" results in meaningless and wanton death and destruction. More than any film of its time, "Easy Rider" caught the mood of the late 1960s in America and the fear of the "establishment" for society's rebels. It may be of its own time, but its timeless rejection of mindless conformity echoes down to us. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Dissipation in extremis
While the sprinkling of poor performances and more than a little stereotyping of Mexico's peasantry prevent me from giving it a full five stars, UNDER THE VOLCANO deserves more than a mediocre three. Albert Finney, of course, cannot carry the movie, but that doesn't make his work any less a wonder. Huston's direction, I'm in the minority but I don't care, is a tour de force. Years and years after seeing this movie, so many scenes are etched in my memory, from the floating toy skulls in the film's opening credit, to the final crushing moments. This is not an easy movie to take--watching somebody willfully self-destruct is painful. There's a good deal of humor in between the alcoholic forays, and they ease the burden. I recommend that UNDER THE VOLCANO be given a chance, just one viewing, and then decide for yourself.

oh we try so hard
there is nothing in the world that can compare to the depth and complexity of the book. The movie tries hard, with all the histrionics and well meaning ambition that Huston can muster. Albert Finney as the consel is a well meaning if dated choice. The speculation as to his actual sobriety during filming is a nice ancedote, but offers little insight into the day in the life of Firmin. J. Bissette is a poor choice as Yvonne, as she has all the acting ability of a brick, and cannot even pretend to the specifics of the role. Poor at best.

"Some things you can't apologize for."
In John Huston's film "Under the Volcano," Albert Finney delivers a masterful performance as Geoffrey Firman, an alcoholic ex-British consul in Mexico. Firman lingers in Mexico long after resigning his position with the embassy and indulges in drunken binges bewailing the departure of his long-suffering wife, Yvonne (Jacqueline Bisset). Yvonne, it seems, suffered long enough and returned to America for a divorce. Geoffrey may be continually drunk, but he manages to still be remarkably perceptive about the political situation looming in Mexico, and the alcohol just works as a disinhibitor. Geoffrey--in other words--is a bit of a loose cannon.

The year is 1938, and the film begins on the Day of the Dead. Firman, on yet another bender, prays for the return of his wife, and amazingly, the next day, she returns--ready to give married bliss 'another chance.' She returns to the family home and expects to pick up life just as she left it.

Geoffrey Firman remains drunk for the entire film, and Albert Finney's performance is marvellous. Finney, however, could not carry the film alone, and the other two main characters--Hugh and Yvonne were not strong enough to rouse any great interest from me. Anthony Andrews is Hugh--Geoffrey's younger brother, and in many ways, Hugh is just a younger version of Geoffrey. Hugh, recently returned from the Spanish Civil War, is an idealist too, but he is not yet as disillusioned as Geoffrey. To me, the film remained rather dated and predictable. The return of Yvonne was inadequately explained by the plot or the character, and Hugh's character was too mediocre to explain all the passion that supposedly bubbled beneath the surface. I did enjoy the scenes with the dwarf, though, and the beauty of Mexico was spectacular--displacedhuman.

An Unspeakable Waste of Talent
I simply don't know where to start in pointing out the disastrous flaws in this film-- especially in comparison to the book. There is never even the slightest hint of character development or character arcs, so the actions of the characters simply seem arbitrary and inexplicable. We are never shown anything of Geoffrey Firmin's inner life-- of what drives and has driven him to drink-- so Albert Finney does a lot of silly overacting that would be a lot