Reviews (137)

Exquisite erotic classic
Jane Campion's "The Piano" does what many truly great films do: It inspires fascinating discussion and provokes mixed reactions. The male friend with whom I saw it back in 1993 and I were so enthralled that we kept our significant others waiting to leave for our respective Christmas vacations because we kept phoning each other to discuss symbolism and interesting themes in the movie. While I continue to absolutely love the film, I also recognize why some viewers have not shared my reaction. Perhaps you have to have at least considered a forbidden love affair or perhaps you have to have found yourself trapped in a relationship where you feel you have lost your voice to appreciate what Campion explores.

The story centers around Ada (Holly Hunter in an Oscar-winning performance) and her daughter, Flora (Anna Paquin--who also won an Oscar for her extraordinary performance). They leave their upper-class home in Scotland after Ada's father (apparently) arranges her marriage. Ada, who has willed herself not to speak since age 6, expresses herself through her beloved piano.

The true story of who fathered Flora is never revealed in the movie, but the context suggests that she is Ada's illegimate child born from an illicit affair. The hinted-at story of Flora's conception provides a key to understanding both why Ada later begins an affair with her New Zealand neighbor Baines (Harvey Keitel) and why she makes a mail-order marriage in the first place. I suspect that Ada's aging father may have wanted to see her settled--preferably far away so that her unconventional behavior would no longer be a source of social embarassment--and given Ada's muteness and out-of-wedlock child, her father probably couldn't find a suitable suitor in mid-Victorian Scotland.

Stewart (Sam Neill) first encounters his future wife on a lonesome gray beach surrounded by her crated belongings. His Maori porters begin carrying many household items up the muddy path to his dreary homestead. But Stewart refuses to bring the piano along, despite Ada's apparent distress and Flora's pleas that her mother MUST have her piano.

Ada's piano, abandoned on the barren New Zealand beach, captures the sense of what 19th century colonial life might have been like for too many women--treasured possessions, the last ties to "civilization" left behind.

Rendered voiceless without her piano, Ada begs Stewart to return for her instrument through notes and more pleas from Flora. Finally she persuades Baines--a colonist whose tattoed face evidences the extent to which he has "gone native" and who is considered less civilized by his neighbors--to guide her back to the beach. Ada comes to life again as she, at last, gets to play. Drawn by her passion for the piano, Baines arranges with Stewart to trade land for the piano. Without consulting his wife, Stewart assures him that Ada will provide lessons too.

During first of these lessons, Ada strikes her own bargain with Baines, whom she still considers a boor: She will trade sexual favors to earn back her piano, one key at a time. Ultimately, her reluctant bargain grows into full-blown love and passion. The dark, brooding tone of "The Piano," however, suggests that something in this situation will go tragically, and probably violently, wrong.

Campion has filled her movie with haunting piano music (actually played by Hunter) and intriguing imagery. The metaphor of piano as voice and losing and regaining one's voice, Flora's role in changing her mother's fate, the question of whether Ada's bargain reflects a woman taking control of her life or just being victimized in a different way, and many other complexities make this a movie worth watching again and again and again.

Words cannot convey...
Words cannot convey...and this is one of the things this incredible movie teaches us. The Piano is one of my favorite movies of all time. The scenery is breathtaking. Holly Hunter is brilliant as Ada, the mute (by choice) "victim" of an arranged marriage. Her facial expressions and physical movements express more than words could ever say. In fact, I found that once I become aware of watching her gestures, I began watching the expressions of other characters in the movie also. Harvey Kietel is cast in a very different role for him and the result is impressive and shows a much larger range of his acting ability. The music in the film is beautiful and is Ada's true "voice".

This movie must not be watched in the ordinary way one would watch any other movie. If you're just going to watch it in a literal way, this isn't the movie for you. The Piano is a wonderous combination of music, scenery and symbolism. It's like a dream sequence. The movie feels almost enchanted. The filming of 2 major scenes of violence is exquisite. I didn't notice the violence itself so much as I felt the pain of the characters.

I highly recommend this film...no matter how many times I watch it, it never fails to move me.

A moody drama that was very bittersweet.
This is the first film I have seen with Holly Hunter and Harvey Keitel. They both gave good performances, and the movie itself was strange but likeable. Anna Pacquin and Sam Neil also gave great performances. The movie did have a lot of nudity that was really un-neccesary. The cinematography was good and the setting was a cool, dark, but beautiful place. The film was very different and really surprised me, like most films do. I recommend this for romantic buffs, and people who love to watch great performances.

A Different Look At Romance
All the things that characterize a Hollywood romance are turned upside down and changed about in this film. The usual fare is the interactions between two urbanites with huge polished smiles stuck to their faces. They enter a relationship which is loud, giddy, and giggly.
In The Piano, the woman doesn't speak at all and both men are stoic sorts who have lived in a hard land. A lot happens under the surface where we can only guess at it. In mainstream films, the emphasis for the man is rushing in and grabbing the woman of his dreams with all possible speed.
But here, just once, the quiet, patient, and tender man emerges with the lady. And what's more, when we first see him, we fail to see through his hard exterior. Even the viewer comes to know this man's virtue only over time.
I found this to be an incredibly beautiful story and as if that alone wasn't good enough, I also greatly enjoyed the cinematography and the music. This is one of those films that I find guilty of being incredibly good on all counts.

And a final note about male nudity: Yes it is in this film. Both male and female are seen completely nude. And there's nothing wrong with the male part. We men have beautiful bodies too. Art of the past has had no compunctions about showing nude males and correctly so. I'm not sure I can understand this modern prudery.

BREATHTAKING!
I haven't seen this movie for a long time, but saw it again the other day. I forgot how powerful it was and how breathtaking all the actors are as well as the scenery. Strong performances and beautiful music (I bought the soundtrack long ago and had to dust it off after seeing this movie again!). As for some of the negative comments of seeing Harvey Keitel naked (full frontal, too), and found him disgusting looking, well, folks, that's how most people look in real life! ... Read more

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Originally produced as a three-part miniseries for New Zealand television, this extraordinary film is based on the life of Janet Frame, an introverted, sensitive girl who was later misdiagnosed as schizophrenic and spent eight years in a psychiatric hospital. She would later become one of New Zealand's most celebrated poets and novelists, publishing her first books while she was still confined to a mental ward. She had endured over 200 electroshock treatments and had almost been lobotomized by careless physicians who took no time to understand that she was merely awkward and shy and suffered from little more than routine depression. From a solid screenplay by Laura Jones, director Jane Campion (The Piano) tells this story without soapy melodrama, but rather as an exploration of a challenged creative spirit--a journey into a writer's mind, exploring the power of imagination as a mechanism of survival and self-defense. Three talented actors play Janet Frame at different ages throughout the film, with Kerry Fox giving a powerful performance as the young-adult Janet, whose own skill and creative tenacity would prove to be her salvation. Frightening, harrowing, and ultimately a source of humanistic enlightenment, An Angel at My Table (titled after Frame's autobiography) is a film you won't soon forget. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (13)

A Gun at My Temple....
This movie is, technically, a very good movie. Janet Frame's disturbing story deserves to be told, and Campion is the woman to tell it.

I gave it three stars because--by virtue of its subject--it is REALLY DEPRESSING. Do NOT watch this movie if you are feeling at all emotionally fragile or if you have had a bad day. Rent a musical instead. On the other hand, you could have a Lobotomy Film Festival and rent this and the movie FRANCES (and, for that matter, Frankenstein).

Janet Frame's story is a series of disturbing, painful, traumatic and scary events. It is compelling to watch her go through all of this, but then, instant replays of racetrack crashes are compelling, too.

Some possible sequel titles are: A Noose Around My Neck, A Razor at My Wrist, 500 Valium and a Glass of Water at My Bedside Table...you get my drift.

It is amazing that, despite all her challenges, Frame did follow her dream and became a well-known writer. So in that sense, it's inspiring. I wish I had been more familiar with her writing before I watched this movie, and actually, I will probably watch it again after I read some of her work.

Stunning, hauntingly brilliant.
As a writer I can clearly understand the world Janet Frame lived in growing up. I myself was sent to a shrink for being a writer as well as for being shy and introverted. However, this is an outstanding drama of human proportions. It echoes forthcoming images of what Campion did with "The Piano" three years after she made this film. The life of Janet Frame is beautifully realized from her youthful days with a lower-class family, suffering heartbreak, loss, labeled as insane, and finding ultimate redemption in her talent as a writer. The film explores both her personal and social conflicts as well as with the men who changed her life and stirred her emotions. Very few writers and directors can ever tell a story so vividly real and powerful as Campion and Laura Jones have done here. It should offer hope and strength to those who have great dreams of success in this life yet feel mowed down by overnight sensations and those who threaten to tear down their goals. The music score adds to the emotion this film evokes. The world of a writer was never more stunningly pictured than how it is here. I highly recommend this film, especially to my fellow writers out there in this world. It is a gem of a film from one of the most gifted writers and directors our movie industry has ever known.

Get to know a remarkable woman
This movie broke my heart in pieces the first time I saw it. I haven't been informed about Janet Frame's life before and this movie based on her autobiographies gave me the big picture that I find it too difficult to put it out of my mind.

Janet is lovely girl by all means, generous and caring to her friends, she has crooked teeth in her younger days but she was always an owner of a diamond heart. She was painfully shy too, and God knows how stupid people judged her as schizophrenic in the best days of her life. It was so scary to see stupid people
diagnosing a genius as schizophrenic when it was them who should
have been diagnosed like that. Anyways,they took eight years of her life, best part of her life in hospitals with real mentally ill people. It's a wonder how did she manage to stay sane in those circumstances but she did.

Today, Janet Frame is an old woman and I hope with all my heart that people will award her with a great world prize for the long eight years she spent in hospitals when nothing was wrong with her. She absolutely deserves some recognition as long as she's still alive.

She has written so many books apart from her autobiographies and I love her with all my heart for setting a great example to humanity that GOOD PEOPLE will ALWAYS TRIUMPH (un)fortunetaly in the long run that is.

A must see movie.

Touching and Memorable Indeed
An autobiography of a self-made New Zealand lady novelist. The struggle of her family with life is touching and how she distinguished herself from her peers and her sisters is memorable. So her life changed with the inspiration and encouragement of her teacher who introduced her to poetry. But life wasn't easy for her even after her initial success... Recommended.

AN ANGEL AT MY TABLE
Based on the autobiographies of Janet Frame. And from director Jane Campion (The Piano)

This is a wonderful portrait of the New Zealand author. Who was misdiagnosed as schizophrenic, she endured numerous treaments of electric shock therapy (over 200!) Spent eight traumatic years in a mental institution. And came very close to having a lobotomy!

It would be years before she would find the diagnosis of schizophrenia was wrong.

This movie examines Janet's early life to adulthood. A very hard childhood hampered by poverty. And many tragedies. Her older sister, Myrtle, drowned when Janet was young. One of her other sisters Isabel died (also by drowning!) when Janet was in college. And her older brother suffered from epilesy. In a time when there was not more they could do about it. He often had seizures, made him a vulnerable target for bullies at school, and it left him unfit for most work. And Janet herself suffered with terribly painful decaying teeth, she had to have ALL of them pulled at a very young age.

After her thankful release from the hospital she then went on a trip, first to England then to Spain. Where she met a young American poet, who she would formed her first relationship with.

It is a long film, but don't let that discourage you. There is never a dull moment. It's a facinating story. It's visually beautiful. Filled with tragedy but also funny and wonderfully touching moments. And the performances are fabulous. About an incredible woman who wasn't schizophrenic...just "different"

It's always remained one of my favorite films, the kind I can watch over and over. ... Read more

Reviews (148)

In The Cut: Brilliant!!
The movie was a great surprise to me and my friends when we went to see it. At first it appeared to be a typical independent type movie, with the usual expectation of a rather depressing outlook on life accompanied with a very raw cinematography, and usually little hope for a happy ending. However this is the first film I've seen that successfully incorporates the rawness and up front honesty of the characters lives, combined with the great, well written storyline and wonderful acting. And the cinematography, although raw, provided some beautiful scenes, and the symbolism and use of focus put the viewer in Franny's mindset of a very creative person, who doesn't see life through typical eyes. It was quite 'trippy' and I found it to be very original.

The movie centralises around Franny (Meg Ryan) and her encounter with a police detective (Mark Ruffalo) after she witnesses something that might be important to a murder that is committed. At first it seems that it would be impossible for a relationship to begin between the two but as the movie progresses a surprisingly sweet love story plays out. I first thought that the writers had resigned to a predictable 'who done it' in order to focus on the relationship that was blossoming, however I was pleasantly surprised that I didn't realise who the killer was, till it was actually revealed to the audience.

Meg Ryan's performance was brilliant and she really pulls off the change of image well!! And Mark Ruffalo was so magnetic, you can really fall in love with him. His character has a rough surface with a sweet caring middle and Mark Ruffalo really portrays this perfectly.

In The Cut was very dark, yet very enjoyable and satisfying. It has a beautiful balance of eroticism, romance and thriller. My friends and I honestly couldn't stop talking about it for at least three days and we've seen it many times since and still love it!! I've recommended this movie to all my friends!

much better than expected!!!!
This film was torn apart by the critic's, but i love Jane Campion's films- so I wanted to see for myself. I loved it!

I won't go into the plot, as many other reviewer's have already done so, but I will tell you, the acting is superb! I didn't think Meg Ryan had it in her! Get this woman some heavier roles Hollywood! She was excellent. Mark Ruffalo plays against type as well, and does a wonderful job.

The movie is sexy & scary- and it isn't porn, like one reviewer mentioned. It's erotic. But beyond that, Campion's method of storytelling is virtually flawless. I love what she says in the dvd extra's about seventies film & how during that period the actor's relaxed into their roles & let the film tell the story, insted of letting the actor's point the way.

This film is ripe with sensuality, not to be confused with sexuality- the blooming garden, the petal storm, the relationship between the two sisters (Jennifer Jason Leigh is also brilliant in this film)- the apartment's the women inhabit...it does go on.

I was startled by how well done the film was done!

Highly recommended!!

Hated the book
Because I hated the book, I was curious to see how they would make it into a film. Then I learned Jane Campion was directing, and was intrigued. Halfway through, I still wasn't impressed, but I waited. There is a quiet beauty to the film. The way Campion captures small details, like the way the protagonist would see them. I think it would have been horrible if it was completely true to the book. The additions are what make this film. The poetry in the subway. The garden outside her window. Meg Ryan playing against type. Mark Ruffalo is wonderful in his role, not giving the end away. And I loved the ending. I felt unresolved at the end of the book, and this ending made me happy.
This movie is not for everyone. There is a lot of gore, and violence, and sex, but I think it was done well. But, I think attention was payed to the important things in the character's life. In some ways, I like it more every time I see it.

Beautiful Meg, Horrible movie.
This is an example of a less than mediocre detective's movie. The characters are phony, the dialogues false, come on, an english teacher does not speak like that, and her would be lover wouldn't speak like that either. Neverteless Meg Ryan's character is a visual attraction in this movie. Terrible plot and terrible direction.

Reasonable thriller; with a decent performance by Ryan.
This movie, based on the Susanna Moore novel, shows Meg Ryan can play more than "cutesy" types. She's a lonely woman, who has a hard time finding a satisfactory relationship with a man. She goes through a series of encounters. Jennifer Jason Leigh is good as her half-sister; who tragically gets killed. Not a bad movie and Ryan does a little bit of revealing skin in the movie. Better than I expected, from her; given her previous movies, which are mostly (as previously stated) comedies, where she plays "cutesy". Her relationship with the one detective is also interesting; as she suspects he's the one who is about to kill her. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

"I thought a big snail was sliding up my nightie."
After watching director Jane Campion's film "Sweetie" for the third time, I am more impressed than ever. "The Piano" is Campion's more mainstream film, and some viewers may be disappointed in "Sweetie."

It's the tale of a dysfunctional Aussie family--Mum & Dad (Gordon and Flo) and their two daughters--Kay (Karen Colston) and Dawn (Genevieve Lemon). Kay, a nurse, is a very odd, quiet and withdrawn character. She's terrified of trees and despised by her workmates. Kay and boyfriend, Louis, have serious problems, and Louis is mystified by Kay's sudden recent withdrawal. But when Sweetie arrives on the scene, the root cause of Kay's problem is suddenly clearer. Kay's sister Dawn--also known as "Sweetie" is a perfect horror. Sweetie arrives announced at Kay's house one day, breaks in, and makes herself quite at home. "You stopped taking your medication, didn't you?" asks Kay in frustration, and apparently, Sweetie is unleashed on an unsuspecting world. Sweetie brings along her boyfriend/producer, Bob. Bob is apparently the only person left in the world who believes that Sweetie has talent. But he's under the influence of illegal substances, so he's hardly a reliable source. Sweetie is idolized by her dotty father, and she trades on a childhood skill of stepping off of a chair and tap-dancing. This is supposed to be the great talent that is going to get Sweetie a recording contract.

Sweetie's behaviour may have drawn adoring crowds of relatives in her childhood, but now she's delusional, and destructive. Meanwhile, Sweetie's mother, Flo, unable to take the stress of living under Sweetie's despotic rule, takes a job in the outback as a cook for a ranch full of Jackaroos.

Every family has a "Sweetie." In this film, Sweetie is encouraged in her deviant behaviour by her father--note the bathtub scene. The film reminds me of a sentence from Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina" -- "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." Sweetie's arrival has serious consequences for everyone, and her presence is sobering. A lifetime of doting parenting catches up with the characters in a catastrophic way. Louis has to take a long hard look at his relationship with Kay, and tells her "illusions don't go away--they become more subtle."

Many of the scenes take on a surreal quality and echo the bizarre nature of life with Sweetie. I've seen this film called a comedy, and it's true that it definitely does have a strong element of black comedy to it. Humour must be a pervasive element in Australian culture, but the story really is too serious to be classified as a comedy. Genevieve Lemon as Sweetie really steals the film with an incredible performance--displacedhuman

pure pleasure
I've seen three Campion movies. It took a long time for me to forgive 'The Piano''s humorless, heavy hands and move on to 'Holy Smoke!'. But HS revealed a comic sensibility that 'The Piano' never suspected. 'Sweetie,' Campion's first feature, is by far my favorite yet.

'Sweetie' is an odd film. Mostly, it's an examination of what it means to be an individual--inside of and outside of the repetitive struggles of family dramas--and the perils and joys of exclusion and elitism. Campion uses her sharp wit to draw blood, and without the comforts of a privileged moral voice (e.g. the competent parent or maternal sufferer of most family dramas), the humor can seem a little mean-spirited at times. But 'Sweetie' tempers its alienated perspective with moments of grace that are as terrifying, joyful and sublime as the dry open spaces of its Australian landscape.

Moving the viewer through a fractured world of beautiful and unsettling images, Sweetie is this director's most richly creative and psychically adventurous work.

family trees
This film is to director Jane Campion's The Piano what David Lynch's Eraserhead is to his The Elephant Man - a personal highly stylised experiment before the challenge of the more conventional big budget assignments that would allow for both a controlling of each director's excesses and a streamlining of their obsessions. The parallel between Lynch and Campion can also be extended to their mutual interest in loners, misfits and eccentrics, and they both treat them with piteous dignity, in much the same way photographer Diane Arbus did for her "freaks". Sweetie is similar to Eraserhead also because it's an endurance test for those who hold a high opinion of each director's later work. The fine line between pleasure and pain can be felt with great artists and their fine line between genius and crud. Campion here uses a song "Love will never let you fall" sung by Tony Backhouse and The Cafe of the Gate of Salvation Choir as a backdrop to her tale of two sisters. Campion dedicates the film to her own sister and the screenplay written by herself and Gerard Lee is based on Campion's idea, so we know this is a personal story. (Campion's sister Anna is now also a director). Campion doesn't introduce the title sister until she has established the nature of the first, Kay, but also we don't fully understand why Kay is the way she is until Sweetie arrives, and is soon followed by their father. Sweetie is a monstrous child/woman but when the arguments between sisters begin it's hard to know whose side to take, since Sweetie makes Kay just as dislikable. Perhaps because Campion knew the narrative could be reduced to the domestic struggle of those tied by blood, she employs an expressionist use of framing where the person on view is placed off centre, as well as stop motion footage of the growth of plants, a montage of the workings of Kay's mind when she attempts meditation, and a flashback to Sweetie as a childhood performer with a growling dog as audience. There are also strangely disturbing images - 2 men dancing together at a cattle station, and Sweetie bathing her father. However, like Lynch, Campion has a wicked sense of humour and the climactic incident in a tree is equally comic, tragic and metaphoric. As the sisters, Karen Colston and Genevieve Lemon are never allowed to become grotesques - they are both given touching breakdown scenes - and Campion appears to have a special gift for handling child actors, with the little boy neighbour and the girl playing Sweetie as a child at the end particularly good. And like Eraserhead, once you manage to adjust yourself to the slow rhythms and lower your too high expectations, you find that Sweetie gets better as it goes along. ... Read more

Reviews (61)

Smart, funny, bizarre.
I can safely say this is the strangest movie I've seen in a goodly long time. In a way, it's more bizarre than surreal classics like Eraserhead, because it deals with real people and the strange things they do with and to one another.

Kate Winslet plays Ruth, a callow young Australian who gets involved with a cult on a trip to India. Her talk of reincarnation and living in light baffles her parents, who are convinced she's been brainwashed (though Ruth's 'conversion' seems more of a whim than a rebirth). So they hire PJ Waters (Harvey Keitel), a 'cult exiter,' to talk her down.

Waters is all American swagger, dyed black hair, all-black wardrobe, snakeskin cowboy boots. He simmers with smooth arrogance; he expects no trouble from his troubled teen charge. He spirits her away to an isolated hut, and all heck breaks loose.

Refreshingly, this isn't a movie about faith and religion. I was none-too-eagerly anticipating long discussions about God. Instead, the conversation veers into sex and gender roles, exposing PJ's arrogance for the chauvinism it is, letting Ruth give him harsh lessons in female empowerment.

None of this makes too much sense -- the conversations are non sequitur, events unfold contrary to one's expectations. But it's fascinating and hilarious, so that's forgivable. The important thing to remember is that you're watching a *comedy*; don't make the mistake of taking the proceedings more seriously than did the filmmakers.

If nothing else, watch it for the cinematography. Campion knows how to set up a shot; the whole film is infused with Australia's glowing oranges and reds. In short, a beautifully shot, funny film, a bit nonsensical, sure to spark controversy and discussion. Definitely see it if you've got an open mind.

Entertaining but lacks a good ending.
The movie with the flip title of Holy Smoke, from the Academy award winning filmmaker Jane Campion (The Piano) has great cinematography, a good script and excellent performances by Harvey Keitel and Kate Winslet (The Titanic), but the story lacks something in its resolution.

Kate Winslet plays a twenty-something who leaves her family in Australia to become a follower of a guru in India. Her family in the outback is nuclear, and large, but they are somewhat frayed around the edges. Kate is very emotionally intelligent, uninhibited, sensuous, sexy, beautiful and full of life and love. (Hint: I'm in love with her!) She went to India with a friend looking for a higher love and more meaning to life than she found with her family in the outback. She feels and believes she has found it with her guru.

Kate's family, especially her narrow and close-minded mother, is terribly disturbed about this. To them travelling to India and following a guru are as screwed-up as one can get. Of course, her mother thinks she's doing drugs. Kate's mother in particular is a psychological basket case. She is blind to the fact that her daughter is bursting with life and freer than the whole rest of the family put together.

The family hires a professional cult deprogrammer, an old, very hard looking (like Charles Bronson ) and very macho Harvey Keitel to deprogram Kate. The general deprogramming process consists in kidnapping the person for several days and assaulting their most cherished beliefs until they give them up.

In going to India and following the guru, what Kate did was no different than going on a pilgrimage or retreat and having a religious conversion. By comparison, her life would have been several orders of magnitude more controlled had she joined a convent. One of the things Kate's family is so upset about is that she considers herself married to the guru. (She has had no relations with him.) This is no different than a Catholic nun who considers herself a bride of Christ, which is what all vowed nuns consider themselves.
I don't believe in differentiating between cults and the so-called legitimate religions, but nothing about Kate's new lifestyle and beliefs has any of the characteristics of what we popularly associate with cults.

I found the initial abduction scenes very disturbing. To see such a free spirit being captured like an animal is emotionally wrenching. Legally, it's kidnapping.
It feels all the worse because the kidnappers think they are doing a great good and because the parents are authorizing it. What they did is in the same moral category as murder, murdering your own child, but in this case it is murdering your child's spirit. The process, as depicted in the film, is beyond emotionally abusive. One feels rage at such a violent attempt to destroy a person's soul.

Throughout, the persistent and indomitable Kate tries several creative means to try and escape. Soon after Harvey Keitel has Kate sequestered, he starts have sexual relations with her. This occupies the longest part of the film. Harvey Keitel makes a colossal fool out of himself. Near the end, Harvey Keitel's girlfriend, an African American career woman, shows up unexpectedly from Houston, Texas. Her arrival and actions are not blended in to the film credibility. When she arrives, she finds Kate nude on a coach and puts two and two together. She appears only a little bit upset at Harvey, and intellectualizes by telling him that he could ruin the girl.

The film is full of ironies and paradoxes. The family believed Kate was under the control of the guru, but Harvey Keitel abducted her after freely returning to the outback to visit her family. At the beginning Harvey Keitel tells Kate how he followed a guru when he was a young man and was sexually abused by him. That is exactly what Harvey does to Kate the next day. At the end, when Kate's mother and aunt realize that Harvey has been abusing Kate, they get so desperate, they pathetically dig an old crucifix out of a closet and try to recite the Our Father. (This is the only indication of western religion in the film.) Kate's mother, ever pathetic, can't remember the words. Kate is the one who should be praying for her family not the other way around.

Harvey Keitel's job was to break Kate. In the end, it was Harvey Keitel who broke down. I can't call it a triumphant victory. Kate didn't break Harvey Keitel; he broke himself. All Kate did was survive.

The images of the outback, especially the deserted highways running are wonderfully. The are different enough from anything else as to appear surreal. I love he idea of a place where you can drive for hours without seeing another vehicle, where you can drive like a nut or on the wrong side of the road and no one will know or care.

I'm not sure if I should recommend this movie or not. See it if you're a Kate Winslet fan. To me she looks quite different in every movie. In The Beach (skip it -it's garbage), she looks very elegant and pure. For Holy Smoke, she must have put on thirty pounds. By the way, she's twenty-five, married and had a baby this past October.

I won't say where the smoke is being blown...
This film starts out so promising. It could have been a punchy dramatic piece about the nature of belief, and the legitimacy of the concept of free will. Instead, the characters dribble into infantile sexuality, and the film becomes a travelog. I can't believe this film found financing...a real waste of obvious talent. The effect of the ending is to trivialise the opening premise, hence the film winds up being an exercise in meaninglessness with an unpleasant aftertaste.

Off to a great start then ran amok
Maybe I'm a prude?

I thought the idea of a family kidnapping their daughter back from an Ashram in India and having her "deprogrammed" by Harvey Keitel was great and the movie started out great but it really derailed as the sexual relationship between the deprogrammer and deprogrammee developed.

I found the last 20 minutes uncomfortable to sit through.

holy mackerel
there are many reasons to perhaps watch holy smoke & even respect campions' work although this is far from her best in my opinion. overall, i really did enjoy this film but some of the scenes are a tad bit silly & don't really enhance what could've been a brilliant film. holy smoke opens up with some beautifully photographed scenes in india amidst neil diamond's classic song "holly holy". pretty classy if i do say so myself. in the next couple of scenes, a friend of ruth's informes a family that their daughter has been brainwashed by a guru which is cause for the mother to make a trip herself to india in hopes of bringing the impressionable young woman back to her happy home in australia. the scenes between mum & daughter are witty, intelligient, & very clever indeed i''ll be the first to admit. next, we are introduced to the family of somewhat lovable misfits & we are lead to believe that ruth(kate winslet) is perhaps the most sane one of them all. as you've probably heard, ruth's mother hires a deprogrammer(played brilliantly by mr.keitel) who agrees to try & help the young girl in a remote cabin somewhere in australia. the film is a bit sluggish from that point on although there are some hilarious scenes with ruth & the deprogrammer battling it out verbally. the best scenes are close to the end in which ruth has nearly wrapped poor keitel around her finger. we get to see her dress him in women's clothing, putting on the lipstick, & he allows all this with no resisitance. what i like best about holy smoke is the mere fact you never know exactly what to expect & where all the events will take you. the ideas here are certainly creative & the ending is definately a hoot but this film is far from being the masterpiece campion gave us with the piano back in the early ninities. holy smoke is definately worth a look but you may wish to rent before purchasing. if you do decide to purchase this dvd, look for a reasonable used copy. ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Jane Campion's The Piano struck a deep chord (if you'll excuse the expression) with audiences in 1993, who were mesmerized by the film's rich, dreamlike imagery. It is the story of a Scottish woman named Ada (Holly Hunter), who has been mute since age 6 because she simply chose not to speak. Ada travels with her daughter Flora (Anna Paquin) and her beloved piano to a remote spot on the coast of New Zealand for an arranged marriage to a farmer (Sam Neill).She gives piano lessons to a gruff neighbor (Harvey Keitel) who has Maori tattoos on his face, and, well, things develop from there.The picture takes on a powerful dream logic that simply defies synopsis. It's a breathtakingly beautiful and original achievement from Campion, a unique stylist.The Piano won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and Oscars for Hunt, Paquin, and Campion's screenplay. --Jim Emerson ... Read more

Reviews (137)

Exquisite erotic classic
Jane Campion's "The Piano" does what many truly great films do: It inspires fascinating discussion and provokes mixed reactions. The male friend with whom I saw it back in 1993 and I were so enthralled that we kept our significant others waiting to leave for our respective Christmas vacations because we kept phoning each other to discuss symbolism and interesting themes in the movie. While I continue to absolutely love the film, I also recognize why some viewers have not shared my reaction. Perhaps you have to have at least considered a forbidden love affair or perhaps you have to have found yourself trapped in a relationship where you feel you have lost your voice to appreciate what Campion explores.

The story centers around Ada (Holly Hunter in an Oscar-winning performance) and her daughter, Flora (Anna Paquin--who also won an Oscar for her extraordinary performance). They leave their upper-class home in Scotland after Ada's father (apparently) arranges her marriage. Ada, who has willed herself not to speak since age 6, expresses herself through her beloved piano.

The true story of who fathered Flora is never revealed in the movie, but the context suggests that she is Ada's illegimate child born from an illicit affair. The hinted-at story of Flora's conception provides a key to understanding both why Ada later begins an affair with her New Zealand neighbor Baines (Harvey Keitel) and why she makes a mail-order marriage in the first place. I suspect that Ada's aging father may have wanted to see her settled--preferably far away so that her unconventional behavior would no longer be a source of social embarassment--and given Ada's muteness and out-of-wedlock child, her father probably couldn't find a suitable suitor in mid-Victorian Scotland.

Stewart (Sam Neill) first encounters his future wife on a lonesome gray beach surrounded by her crated belongings. His Maori porters begin carrying many household items up the muddy path to his dreary homestead. But Stewart refuses to bring the piano along, despite Ada's apparent distress and Flora's pleas that her mother MUST have her piano.

Ada's piano, abandoned on the barren New Zealand beach, captures the sense of what 19th century colonial life might have been like for too many women--treasured possessions, the last ties to "civilization" left behind.

Rendered voiceless without her piano, Ada begs Stewart to return for her instrument through notes and more pleas from Flora. Finally she persuades Baines--a colonist whose tattoed face evidences the extent to which he has "gone native" and who is considered less civilized by his neighbors--to guide her back to the beach. Ada comes to life again as she, at last, gets to play. Drawn by her passion for the piano, Baines arranges with Stewart to trade land for the piano. Without consulting his wife, Stewart assures him that Ada will provide lessons too.

During first of these lessons, Ada strikes her own bargain with Baines, whom she still considers a boor: She will trade sexual favors to earn back her piano, one key at a time. Ultimately, her reluctant bargain grows into full-blown love and passion. The dark, brooding tone of "The Piano," however, suggests that something in this situation will go tragically, and probably violently, wrong.

Campion has filled her movie with haunting piano music (actually played by Hunter) and intriguing imagery. The metaphor of piano as voice and losing and regaining one's voice, Flora's role in changing her mother's fate, the question of whether Ada's bargain reflects a woman taking control of her life or just being victimized in a different way, and many other complexities make this a movie worth watching again and again and again.

Words cannot convey...
Words cannot convey...and this is one of the things this incredible movie teaches us. The Piano is one of my favorite movies of all time. The scenery is breathtaking. Holly Hunter is brilliant as Ada, the mute (by choice) "victim" of an arranged marriage. Her facial expressions and physical movements express more than words could ever say. In fact, I found that once I become aware of watching her gestures, I began watching the expressions of other characters in the movie also. Harvey Kietel is cast in a very different role for him and the result is impressive and shows a much larger range of his acting ability. The music in the film is beautiful and is Ada's true "voice".

This movie must not be watched in the ordinary way one would watch any other movie. If you're just going to watch it in a literal way, this isn't the movie for you. The Piano is a wonderous combination of music, scenery and symbolism. It's like a dream sequence. The movie feels almost enchanted. The filming of 2 major scenes of violence is exquisite. I didn't notice the violence itself so much as I felt the pain of the characters.

I highly recommend this film...no matter how many times I watch it, it never fails to move me.

A moody drama that was very bittersweet.
This is the first film I have seen with Holly Hunter and Harvey Keitel. They both gave good performances, and the movie itself was strange but likeable. Anna Pacquin and Sam Neil also gave great performances. The movie did have a lot of nudity that was really un-neccesary. The cinematography was good and the setting was a cool, dark, but beautiful place. The film was very different and really surprised me, like most films do. I recommend this for romantic buffs, and people who love to watch great performances.

A Different Look At Romance
All the things that characterize a Hollywood romance are turned upside down and changed about in this film. The usual fare is the interactions between two urbanites with huge polished smiles stuck to their faces. They enter a relationship which is loud, giddy, and giggly.
In The Piano, the woman doesn't speak at all and both men are stoic sorts who have lived in a hard land. A lot happens under the surface where we can only guess at it. In mainstream films, the emphasis for the man is rushing in and grabbing the woman of his dreams with all possible speed.
But here, just once, the quiet, patient, and tender man emerges with the lady. And what's more, when we first see him, we fail to see through his hard exterior. Even the viewer comes to know this man's virtue only over time.
I found this to be an incredibly beautiful story and as if that alone wasn't good enough, I also greatly enjoyed the cinematography and the music. This is one of those films that I find guilty of being incredibly good on all counts.

And a final note about male nudity: Yes it is in this film. Both male and female are seen completely nude. And there's nothing wrong with the male part. We men have beautiful bodies too. Art of the past has had no compunctions about showing nude males and correctly so. I'm not sure I can understand this modern prudery.

BREATHTAKING!
I haven't seen this movie for a long time, but saw it again the other day. I forgot how powerful it was and how breathtaking all the actors are as well as the scenery. Strong performances and beautiful music (I bought the soundtrack long ago and had to dust it off after seeing this movie again!). As for some of the negative comments of seeing Harvey Keitel naked (full frontal, too), and found him disgusting looking, well, folks, that's how most people look in real life! ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Leave it to New Zealand director Jane Campion(The Piano,Angel at My Table) to begin an adaptation of Henry James'sgreat novel (set in the late 1800s) with a group of late-20th-century women from Down Under talking about the importance of a kiss. Like any good film adaptation (and it's a very good one, indeed), this exquisitely framed and mounted Portrait of a Lady is at least as much Campion as it is James. The story of strong-willed, independent-minded Isabel Archer (Nicole Kidman, whose skin here is photographed like delicate porcelain) is a tricky one to dramatize, since it's largely about good intentions going awry, roads not taken, misguided decisions made for good reasons.Headstrong American orphan Isabel rejects the proposal of a decent, sensible English suitor, Lord Warburton (Richard E. Grant), because she wants to find her own destiny and identity first. Instead, she is seduced by Gilbert Osmond (John Malkovich), an effete collector of art (and women) whom one character describes as a "sterile dilettante." How Isabel's life, and the lives of those who love her, are affected by this fateful (but irreversible?) decision is what the bulk of the film is about. Portrait of a Lady is lovely, heartbreaking, and at times terrifying--as only coming face-to-face with the consequences of one's own life-changing decisions can be. Gorgeously photographed in anamorphic widescreen format.--Jim Emerson ... Read more

Reviews (46)

Beautiful film, though I disagree a little with the casting
Its amazing that Jane Campion stays so faithful to the novel, and the movie is every bit as captivating as the book. The end differs slightly but the good thing is that Campion's ending is almost as ambiguous and open to interpretation as James's. This stylized film is wonderfully shot, with the colours, dresses and hairdos reflecting various good and bad times of Isabel's life. I thought Kidman is extra-ordinary as Archer because she captures a good deal of what James took so much pain to describe about Isabel - the nervousness, the quick wit and a sense of wonder about the future, and a slightly frigid attitude (which so many people wrongly blame Kidman for! She has not really played to the gallery until Moulin Rouge and that probably is the reason it took so long for her to win everyone over.).

I wished Caspar Goodwood would be more animated and less brooding than Viggo Mortensen. Martin Donovan is good as Ralph, but I felt he hurried through some of his most important sentences (for e.g "I call people rich when .."). Also, when I read the book, I had imagined Osmond would be a lot less physical, though not less malicious, than Malkovich.

Its a great film overall, and it's sad that it didn't catch on as much as it should have. It was after all a very difficult story to film (much like the Bostonians) and I guess very few people liked it when it came out since the story always refrains from helping the reader/viewer. It is not like (say) Sense and Sensibility or Little Women where everything is happily resolved in the end.

Jane Campion's underated masterpiece
This movie was completely slagged off by US audiences, which just further illustrates the disaster that is American cinema. The Portrait of A Lady is brilliant film-making. It is a movie full of complex characters, divided emotions and intense drama. Most American's just don't get it. Campion's decision to begin the film in modern day with a series of women talking about love proves that not much has changed since Henry James wrote the classic novel on which the film is based. The film follows closely to James' story: Isabel Archer (Kidman in her finest role) comes to England to visit relatives and winds up inheriting a fortune. She falls under the spell of Madame Merle (Barbara Hershey deserved an Oscar)who introduces her to the sinister Gilbert Osmand (Malkovich in Dangerous Liaisons mode)who simply wants her money and another beauty to add to his art collection. Isabel rejects a number of suitors in her quest to be an independent woman. She claims to her smitten cousin that she will never marry, but falls under the spell of Osmond. There are scenes of horror and heartbreak here, imaginative moments such as Isabel's "travelogue" through Europe as she begins to obsess over Osmond's entreaty that "I find myself absolutely in love with you." The supporting cast lead by Martin Donovan, Christian Bale, Shelly Winters, Shelly Duval and the priceless Mary-Louise Parker are superb. The much discussed final scene (which for some reason people don't understand) is a fabulous coda to this film. It mirrors an earlier scene when Isabel refused the proposal of Lord Warburton, and now finds herself in the same situation with her American suitor. Isabel runs toward the house, but rather than going inside, she turns back and the image freezes. Isabel is reconsidering the proposal of a man who truly loves her. What people don't like, obviously, is that we don't see her run back to his arms and tearfully say yes as the screen fades to black. We see Isabel caught in a moment of change and decision. This haunting final image is superb. Get a clue, people.

Beautiful!
Nicole Kidman IS Isabel Archer! I don't understand why some reviewers here panned her acting as bad. She has never looked more beautiful than in this film. Her acting is also superb and expressive.

This is the story about a young American woman (Isabel) who is just orphaned and is invited to stay with her rich relatives, the Touchetts in Victorian England. While in England, she is wooed by the rich Lord Warburton but she rejects his proposal because she wants to see the world and be free. When her uncle later dies, Isabel inherits a big sum of money and becomes truly rich and "independent". It is actually her cousin, the consumptive Ralph Touchett (who is secretly in love with her) who pressed his father to leave the money to Isabel without Isabel's knowledge. By this time, Isabel has met the scheming and mysterious Madame Merle (who plays Schubert on the piano most beautifully, I must add). M. Merle introduces Isabel to "her friend", Gilbert Osmond, a poor and widowed American staying in Italy who has a young daughter, Pansy. Both M. Merle and Osmond scheme to make Isabel marry Osmond so that he could have her money. Isabel innocently falls into their trap. Despite advice and dissuasions from her relatives, she eagerly marries Osmond and her life after that becomes a true nightmare. There is also a sub-plot involving Pansy's impossible love affair with Ned Rossum (played by Christian Bale).

The accompanying booklet of the DVD provides valuable information on the making of the film and the cast profile e.g. the fact that Jane Campion finds this to be her hardest project. From the movie, it is easy to see that she had put in tremendous effort to bring Henry James' classic to life. Every shot, every scene and every movement of the characters is carefully and beautifully directed and filmed. The colors are so rich, the seem to jump out of the screen! And oh, the gorgeous costumes - especially Isabel Archer's!

The casting is also perfect - notably, Nicole Kidman and John Malkovich who plays the villain, Osmond. Martin Donovan also embraces the difficult role of "Ralph Touchett" perfectly. My favourite scene is the one nearing the end involving a sobbing, heart-broken Isabel by the bedside of the dying Ralph. It is here that she realizes she loves him. This scene is so tender to watch. To me, this film showcases Nicole Kidman's best performance and it is THIS particular scene that clinches it.

I got my copy of the DVD from Amazon.co.uk. If you love period dramas, this is a worthy title to have in your collection. Get the original soundtrack too - the music is absolutely gorgeous and dreamy, and is a fond favourite of mine.

Very Boring!
The movie is beautiful to look at but the story is so boring and weird, doesn't make much sence.

Love and Freedom don't go together
Henry James was realistic about women at the end of the 19th century, particularly those standing between the US and Great Britain. Isabel is such a woman. She gets into the world without any parents but with a tremendously good uncle and cousin. She is surrounded with men who love her and want to marry her out of love. She refuses them, three of them, to be able to see the world. And she falls in the hands of a social climber, a social parasite and a fortune hunter who covers up his liaison with the woman who introduced her to him, and whose daughter is the out-of-wedlock child of this very woman. She is of course deeply unhappy, alone, brutalized too, and yet she tries to save the daughter from her fate. She fails because the daughter is totally under the tyrannical authority of her father, an authority that is tyrannical only because the daughter accepts it and submits to it, particularly because of the teachings of some good Catholic nuns. Finally Isabel finds the energy to escape - for a while at least - from that husband when she learns his liaison and she can force him to accept. But she is so pent up in her stubborn decision that she can never step back and consider a real escape. Yet, maybe, at the end, there is a wavering touch of hope - for her. It is incredible how this woman, who wants to be strong-headed and independent, fails to see the men who love her and to recognize the man who uses her. As it is said in the film somewhere, Americans cannot become Europeans, and yet Isabel succeeds very well in becoming twisted and thwarted in Europe. Is that typically European ? Maybe. Nicole Kidman plays the role with style, delicacy, dainty and quaint nuances, but also with a tremendous amount of gusto, sentiment, feeling and emotion. She is probably ten times better than she had ever been, now she can measure herself with actors that are not stereotyped. Her freedom is probably the key to her present depth. Is the film a metaphor of her life ? Maybe. But who cares. What is important is that this Nicole Kidman is able to bring us such a marvellous masterpiece, though some of the « special effects » (strange camera angles and mirror effects) could have been avoided to reach a more intense purity.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU ... Read more

Reviews (46)

Beautiful film, though I disagree a little with the casting
Its amazing that Jane Campion stays so faithful to the novel, and the movie is every bit as captivating as the book. The end differs slightly but the good thing is that Campion's ending is almost as ambiguous and open to interpretation as James's. This stylized film is wonderfully shot, with the colours, dresses and hairdos reflecting various good and bad times of Isabel's life. I thought Kidman is extra-ordinary as Archer because she captures a good deal of what James took so much pain to describe about Isabel - the nervousness, the quick wit and a sense of wonder about the future, and a slightly frigid attitude (which so many people wrongly blame Kidman for! She has not really played to the gallery until Moulin Rouge and that probably is the reason it took so long for her to win everyone over.).

I wished Caspar Goodwood would be more animated and less brooding than Viggo Mortensen. Martin Donovan is good as Ralph, but I felt he hurried through some of his most important sentences (for e.g "I call people rich when .."). Also, when I read the book, I had imagined Osmond would be a lot less physical, though not less malicious, than Malkovich.

Its a great film overall, and it's sad that it didn't catch on as much as it should have. It was after all a very difficult story to film (much like the Bostonians) and I guess very few people liked it when it came out since the story always refrains from helping the reader/viewer. It is not like (say) Sense and Sensibility or Little Women where everything is happily resolved in the end.

Jane Campion's underated masterpiece
This movie was completely slagged off by US audiences, which just further illustrates the disaster that is American cinema. The Portrait of A Lady is brilliant film-making. It is a movie full of complex characters, divided emotions and intense drama. Most American's just don't get it. Campion's decision to begin the film in modern day with a series of women talking about love proves that not much has changed since Henry James wrote the classic novel on which the film is based. The film follows closely to James' story: Isabel Archer (Kidman in her finest role) comes to England to visit relatives and winds up inheriting a fortune. She falls under the spell of Madame Merle (Barbara Hershey deserved an Oscar)who introduces her to the sinister Gilbert Osmand (Malkovich in Dangerous Liaisons mode)who simply wants her money and another beauty to add to his art collection. Isabel rejects a number of suitors in her quest to be an independent woman. She claims to her smitten cousin that she will never marry, but falls under the spell of Osmond. There are scenes of horror and heartbreak here, imaginative moments such as Isabel's "travelogue" through Europe as she begins to obsess over Osmond's entreaty that "I find myself absolutely in love with you." The supporting cast lead by Martin Donovan, Christian Bale, Shelly Winters, Shelly Duval and the priceless Mary-Louise Parker are superb. The much discussed final scene (which for some reason people don't understand) is a fabulous coda to this film. It mirrors an earlier scene when Isabel refused the proposal of Lord Warburton, and now finds herself in the same situation with her American suitor. Isabel runs toward the house, but rather than going inside, she turns back and the image freezes. Isabel is reconsidering the proposal of a man who truly loves her. What people don't like, obviously, is that we don't see her run back to his arms and tearfully say yes as the screen fades to black. We see Isabel caught in a moment of change and decision. This haunting final image is superb. Get a clue, people.

Beautiful!
Nicole Kidman IS Isabel Archer! I don't understand why some reviewers here panned her acting as bad. She has never looked more beautiful than in this film. Her acting is also superb and expressive.

This is the story about a young American woman (Isabel) who is just orphaned and is invited to stay with her rich relatives, the Touchetts in Victorian England. While in England, she is wooed by the rich Lord Warburton but she rejects his proposal because she wants to see the world and be free. When her uncle later dies, Isabel inherits a big sum of money and becomes truly rich and "independent". It is actually her cousin, the consumptive Ralph Touchett (who is secretly in love with her) who pressed his father to leave the money to Isabel without Isabel's knowledge. By this time, Isabel has met the scheming and mysterious Madame Merle (who plays Schubert on the piano most beautifully, I must add). M. Merle introduces Isabel to "her friend", Gilbert Osmond, a poor and widowed American staying in Italy who has a young daughter, Pansy. Both M. Merle and Osmond scheme to make Isabel marry Osmond so that he could have her money. Isabel innocently falls into their trap. Despite advice and dissuasions from her relatives, she eagerly marries Osmond and her life after that becomes a true nightmare. There is also a sub-plot involving Pansy's impossible love affair with Ned Rossum (played by Christian Bale).

The accompanying booklet of the DVD provides valuable information on the making of the film and the cast profile e.g. the fact that Jane Campion finds this to be her hardest project. From the movie, it is easy to see that she had put in tremendous effort to bring Henry James' classic to life. Every shot, every scene and every movement of the characters is carefully and beautifully directed and filmed. The colors are so rich, the seem to jump out of the screen! And oh, the gorgeous costumes - especially Isabel Archer's!

The casting is also perfect - notably, Nicole Kidman and John Malkovich who plays the villain, Osmond. Martin Donovan also embraces the difficult role of "Ralph Touchett" perfectly. My favourite scene is the one nearing the end involving a sobbing, heart-broken Isabel by the bedside of the dying Ralph. It is here that she realizes she loves him. This scene is so tender to watch. To me, this film showcases Nicole Kidman's best performance and it is THIS particular scene that clinches it.

I got my copy of the DVD from Amazon.co.uk. If you love period dramas, this is a worthy title to have in your collection. Get the original soundtrack too - the music is absolutely gorgeous and dreamy, and is a fond favourite of mine.

Very Boring!
The movie is beautiful to look at but the story is so boring and weird, doesn't make much sence.

Love and Freedom don't go together
Henry James was realistic about women at the end of the 19th century, particularly those standing between the US and Great Britain. Isabel is such a woman. She gets into the world without any parents but with a tremendously good uncle and cousin. She is surrounded with men who love her and want to marry her out of love. She refuses them, three of them, to be able to see the world. And she falls in the hands of a social climber, a social parasite and a fortune hunter who covers up his liaison with the woman who introduced her to him, and whose daughter is the out-of-wedlock child of this very woman. She is of course deeply unhappy, alone, brutalized too, and yet she tries to save the daughter from her fate. She fails because the daughter is totally under the tyrannical authority of her father, an authority that is tyrannical only because the daughter accepts it and submits to it, particularly because of the teachings of some good Catholic nuns. Finally Isabel finds the energy to escape - for a while at least - from that husband when she learns his liaison and she can force him to accept. But she is so pent up in her stubborn decision that she can never step back and consider a real escape. Yet, maybe, at the end, there is a wavering touch of hope - for her. It is incredible how this woman, who wants to be strong-headed and independent, fails to see the men who love her and to recognize the man who uses her. As it is said in the film somewhere, Americans cannot become Europeans, and yet Isabel succeeds very well in becoming twisted and thwarted in Europe. Is that typically European ? Maybe. Nicole Kidman plays the role with style, delicacy, dainty and quaint nuances, but also with a tremendous amount of gusto, sentiment, feeling and emotion. She is probably ten times better than she had ever been, now she can measure herself with actors that are not stereotyped. Her freedom is probably the key to her present depth. Is the film a metaphor of her life ? Maybe. But who cares. What is important is that this Nicole Kidman is able to bring us such a marvellous masterpiece, though some of the « special effects » (strange camera angles and mirror effects) could have been avoided to reach a more intense purity.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU ... Read more

Reviews (4)

amazingly fantastic!
Actually I'm lying. I have to agree with the lone reviewer who gave this movie 1 star.

This movie sucked. The only reason I gave it 4 stars was so Amazon would post it, and unwitting readers (thinking I'd really liked the movie) would read my review, eager to see why I'd liked it, and learn the grisly truth.

I actually didn't even get 30 minutes into this 74 minute movie. It's that bad. Really. I actually was fascinated by how unengaged I was. It was really interesting to me.

You see the only reason I rented this movie was because I'm a big Jane Campion fan. The Piano, Portrait of a Lady, Holy Smoke - all intresting movies. But man, whew, this one's a stinker.

Stay away. To quote the other reviewer who was dead on about this movie, "YAWN!"

just australian
This movie is a must for all down under fans. The actors play really cool and the story is well done. I just liked it, the accent reminded me of OZ and I seen it on and on.

Appeals to Australian audiences
Two Friends is a must for anyone who grew up in Australia in the 1980's. I think a lot of other people may find the film tedious and hard to follow. A great movie to show in schools too. :)

BORING!!!!
I was very disappointed with this movie, I liked the idea of it better than the movie itself.. it was very slow .. and it was hard to follow... and there was no plot... if you need help falling to sleep, just pop this one in the vcr, and you will be asleep in no time... YAWN!!! ... Read more

Reviews (61)

Smart, funny, bizarre.
I can safely say this is the strangest movie I've seen in a goodly long time. In a way, it's more bizarre than surreal classics like Eraserhead, because it deals with real people and the strange things they do with and to one another.

Kate Winslet plays Ruth, a callow young Australian who gets involved with a cult on a trip to India. Her talk of reincarnation and living in light baffles her parents, who are convinced she's been brainwashed (though Ruth's 'conversion' seems more of a whim than a rebirth). So they hire PJ Waters (Harvey Keitel), a 'cult exiter,' to talk her down.

Waters is all American swagger, dyed black hair, all-black wardrobe, snakeskin cowboy boots. He simmers with smooth arrogance; he expects no trouble from his troubled teen charge. He spirits her away to an isolated hut, and all heck breaks loose.

Refreshingly, this isn't a movie about faith and religion. I was none-too-eagerly anticipating long discussions about God. Instead, the conversation veers into sex and gender roles, exposing PJ's arrogance for the chauvinism it is, letting Ruth give him harsh lessons in female empowerment.

None of this makes too much sense -- the conversations are non sequitur, events unfold contrary to one's expectations. But it's fascinating and hilarious, so that's forgivable. The important thing to remember is that you're watching a *comedy*; don't make the mistake of taking the proceedings more seriously than did the filmmakers.

If nothing else, watch it for the cinematography. Campion knows how to set up a shot; the whole film is infused with Australia's glowing oranges and reds. In short, a beautifully shot, funny film, a bit nonsensical, sure to spark controversy and discussion. Definitely see it if you've got an open mind.

Entertaining but lacks a good ending.
The movie with the flip title of Holy Smoke, from the Academy award winning filmmaker Jane Campion (The Piano) has great cinematography, a good script and excellent performances by Harvey Keitel and Kate Winslet (The Titanic), but the story lacks something in its resolution.

Kate Winslet plays a twenty-something who leaves her family in Australia to become a follower of a guru in India. Her family in the outback is nuclear, and large, but they are somewhat frayed around the edges. Kate is very emotionally intelligent, uninhibited, sensuous, sexy, beautiful and full of life and love. (Hint: I'm in love with her!) She went to India with a friend looking for a higher love and more meaning to life than she found with her family in the outback. She feels and believes she has found it with her guru.

Kate's family, especially her narrow and close-minded mother, is terribly disturbed about this. To them travelling to India and following a guru are as screwed-up as one can get. Of course, her mother thinks she's doing drugs. Kate's mother in particular is a psychological basket case. She is blind to the fact that her daughter is bursting with life and freer than the whole rest of the family put together.

The family hires a professional cult deprogrammer, an old, very hard looking (like Charles Bronson ) and very macho Harvey Keitel to deprogram Kate. The general deprogramming process consists in kidnapping the person for several days and assaulting their most cherished beliefs until they give them up.

In going to India and following the guru, what Kate did was no different than going on a pilgrimage or retreat and having a religious conversion. By comparison, her life would have been several orders of magnitude more controlled had she joined a convent. One of the things Kate's family is so upset about is that she considers herself married to the guru. (She has had no relations with him.) This is no different than a Catholic nun who considers herself a bride of Christ, which is what all vowed nuns consider themselves.
I don't believe in differentiating between cults and the so-called legitimate religions, but nothing about Kate's new lifestyle and beliefs has any of the characteristics of what we popularly associate with cults.

I found the initial abduction scenes very disturbing. To see such a free spirit being captured like an animal is emotionally wrenching. Legally, it's kidnapping.
It feels all the worse because the kidnappers think they are doing a great good and because the parents are authorizing it. What they did is in the same moral category as murder, murdering your own child, but in this case it is murdering your child's spirit. The process, as depicted in the film, is beyond emotionally abusive. One feels rage at such a violent attempt to destroy a person's soul.

Throughout, the persistent and indomitable Kate tries several creative means to try and escape. Soon after Harvey Keitel has Kate sequestered, he starts have sexual relations with her. This occupies the longest part of the film. Harvey Keitel makes a colossal fool out of himself. Near the end, Harvey Keitel's girlfriend, an African American career woman, shows up unexpectedly from Houston, Texas. Her arrival and actions are not blended in to the film credibility. When she arrives, she finds Kate nude on a coach and puts two and two together. She appears only a little bit upset at Harvey, and intellectualizes by telling him that he could ruin the girl.

The film is full of ironies and paradoxes. The family believed Kate was under the control of the guru, but Harvey Keitel abducted her after freely returning to the outback to visit her family. At the beginning Harvey Keitel tells Kate how he followed a guru when he was a young man and was sexually abused by him. That is exactly what Harvey does to Kate the next day. At the end, when Kate's mother and aunt realize that Harvey has been abusing Kate, they get so desperate, they pathetically dig an old crucifix out of a closet and try to recite the Our Father. (This is the only indication of western religion in the film.) Kate's mother, ever pathetic, can't remember the words. Kate is the one who should be praying for her family not the other way around.

Harvey Keitel's job was to break Kate. In the end, it was Harvey Keitel who broke down. I can't call it a triumphant victory. Kate didn't break Harvey Keitel; he broke himself. All Kate did was survive.

The images of the outback, especially the deserted highways running are wonderfully. The are different enough from anything else as to appear surreal. I love he idea of a place where you can drive for hours without seeing another vehicle, where you can drive like a nut or on the wrong side of the road and no one will know or care.

I'm not sure if I should recommend this movie or not. See it if you're a Kate Winslet fan. To me she looks quite different in every movie. In The Beach (skip it -it's garbage), she looks very elegant and pure. For Holy Smoke, she must have put on thirty pounds. By the way, she's twenty-five, married and had a baby this past October.

I won't say where the smoke is being blown...
This film starts out so promising. It could have been a punchy dramatic piece about the nature of belief, and the legitimacy of the concept of free will. Instead, the characters dribble into infantile sexuality, and the film becomes a travelog. I can't believe this film found financing...a real waste of obvious talent. The effect of the ending is to trivialise the opening premise, hence the film winds up being an exercise in meaninglessness with an unpleasant aftertaste.

Off to a great start then ran amok
Maybe I'm a prude?

I thought the idea of a family kidnapping their daughter back from an Ashram in India and having her "deprogrammed" by Harvey Keitel was great and the movie started out great but it really derailed as the sexual relationship between the deprogrammer and deprogrammee developed.

I found the last 20 minutes uncomfortable to sit through.

holy mackerel
there are many reasons to perhaps watch holy smoke & even respect campions' work although this is far from her best in my opinion. overall, i really did enjoy this film but some of the scenes are a tad bit silly & don't really enhance what could've been a brilliant film. holy smoke opens up with some beautifully photographed scenes in india amidst neil diamond's classic song "holly holy". pretty classy if i do say so myself. in the next couple of scenes, a friend of ruth's informes a family that their daughter has been brainwashed by a guru which is cause for the mother to make a trip herself to india in hopes of bringing the impressionable young woman back to her happy home in australia. the scenes between mum & daughter are witty, intelligient, & very clever indeed i''ll be the first to admit. next, we are introduced to the family of somewhat lovable misfits & we are lead to believe that ruth(kate winslet) is perhaps the most sane one of them all. as you've probably heard, ruth's mother hires a deprogrammer(played brilliantly by mr.keitel) who agrees to try & help the young girl in a remote cabin somewhere in australia. the film is a bit sluggish from that point on although there are some hilarious scenes with ruth & the deprogrammer battling it out verbally. the best scenes are close to the end in which ruth has nearly wrapped poor keitel around her finger. we get to see her dress him in women's clothing, putting on the lipstick, & he allows all this with no resisitance. what i like best about holy smoke is the mere fact you never know exactly what to expect & where all the events will take you. the ideas here are certainly creative & the ending is definately a hoot but this film is far from being the masterpiece campion gave us with the piano back in the early ninities. holy smoke is definately worth a look but you may wish to rent before purchasing. if you do decide to purchase this dvd, look for a reasonable used copy. ... Read more

Reviews (137)

Exquisite erotic classic
Jane Campion's "The Piano" does what many truly great films do: It inspires fascinating discussion and provokes mixed reactions. The male friend with whom I saw it back in 1993 and I were so enthralled that we kept our significant others waiting to leave for our respective Christmas vacations because we kept phoning each other to discuss symbolism and interesting themes in the movie. While I continue to absolutely love the film, I also recognize why some viewers have not shared my reaction. Perhaps you have to have at least considered a forbidden love affair or perhaps you have to have found yourself trapped in a relationship where you feel you have lost your voice to appreciate what Campion explores.

The story centers around Ada (Holly Hunter in an Oscar-winning performance) and her daughter, Flora (Anna Paquin--who also won an Oscar for her extraordinary performance). They leave their upper-class home in Scotland after Ada's father (apparently) arranges her marriage. Ada, who has willed herself not to speak since age 6, expresses herself through her beloved piano.

The true story of who fathered Flora is never revealed in the movie, but the context suggests that she is Ada's illegimate child born from an illicit affair. The hinted-at story of Flora's conception provides a key to understanding both why Ada later begins an affair with her New Zealand neighbor Baines (Harvey Keitel) and why she makes a mail-order marriage in the first place. I suspect that Ada's aging father may have wanted to see her settled--preferably far away so that her unconventional behavior would no longer be a source of social embarassment--and given Ada's muteness and out-of-wedlock child, her father probably couldn't find a suitable suitor in mid-Victorian Scotland.

Stewart (Sam Neill) first encounters his future wife on a lonesome gray beach surrounded by her crated belongings. His Maori porters begin carrying many household items up the muddy path to his dreary homestead. But Stewart refuses to bring the piano along, despite Ada's apparent distress and Flora's pleas that her mother MUST have her piano.

Ada's piano, abandoned on the barren New Zealand beach, captures the sense of what 19th century colonial life might have been like for too many women--treasured possessions, the last ties to "civilization" left behind.

Rendered voiceless without her piano, Ada begs Stewart to return for her instrument through notes and more pleas from Flora. Finally she persuades Baines--a colonist whose tattoed face evidences the extent to which he has "gone native" and who is considered less civilized by his neighbors--to guide her back to the beach. Ada comes to life again as she, at last, gets to play. Drawn by her passion for the piano, Baines arranges with Stewart to trade land for the piano. Without consulting his wife, Stewart assures him that Ada will provide lessons too.

During first of these lessons, Ada strikes her own bargain with Baines, whom she still considers a boor: She will trade sexual favors to earn back her piano, one key at a time. Ultimately, her reluctant bargain grows into full-blown love and passion. The dark, brooding tone of "The Piano," however, suggests that something in this situation will go tragically, and probably violently, wrong.

Campion has filled her movie with haunting piano music (actually played by Hunter) and intriguing imagery. The metaphor of piano as voice and losing and regaining one's voice, Flora's role in changing her mother's fate, the question of whether Ada's bargain reflects a woman taking control of her life or just being victimized in a different way, and many other complexities make this a movie worth watching again and again and again.

Words cannot convey...
Words cannot convey...and this is one of the things this incredible movie teaches us. The Piano is one of my favorite movies of all time. The scenery is breathtaking. Holly Hunter is brilliant as Ada, the mute (by choice) "victim" of an arranged marriage. Her facial expressions and physical movements express more than words could ever say. In fact, I found that once I become aware of watching her gestures, I began watching the expressions of other characters in the movie also. Harvey Kietel is cast in a very different role for him and the result is impressive and shows a much larger range of his acting ability. The music in the film is beautiful and is Ada's true "voice".

This movie must not be watched in the ordinary way one would watch any other movie. If you're just going to watch it in a literal way, this isn't the movie for you. The Piano is a wonderous combination of music, scenery and symbolism. It's like a dream sequence. The movie feels almost enchanted. The filming of 2 major scenes of violence is exquisite. I didn't notice the violence itself so much as I felt the pain of the characters.

I highly recommend this film...no matter how many times I watch it, it never fails to move me.

A moody drama that was very bittersweet.
This is the first film I have seen with Holly Hunter and Harvey Keitel. They both gave good performances, and the movie itself was strange but likeable. Anna Pacquin and Sam Neil also gave great performances. The movie did have a lot of nudity that was really un-neccesary. The cinematography was good and the setting was a cool, dark, but beautiful place. The film was very different and really surprised me, like most films do. I recommend this for romantic buffs, and people who love to watch great performances.

A Different Look At Romance
All the things that characterize a Hollywood romance are turned upside down and changed about in this film. The usual fare is the interactions between two urbanites with huge polished smiles stuck to their faces. They enter a relationship which is loud, giddy, and giggly.
In The Piano, the woman doesn't speak at all and both men are stoic sorts who have lived in a hard land. A lot happens under the surface where we can only guess at it. In mainstream films, the emphasis for the man is rushing in and grabbing the woman of his dreams with all possible speed.
But here, just once, the quiet, patient, and tender man emerges with the lady. And what's more, when we first see him, we fail to see through his hard exterior. Even the viewer comes to know this man's virtue only over time.
I found this to be an incredibly beautiful story and as if that alone wasn't good enough, I also greatly enjoyed the cinematography and the music. This is one of those films that I find guilty of being incredibly good on all counts.

And a final note about male nudity: Yes it is in this film. Both male and female are seen completely nude. And there's nothing wrong with the male part. We men have beautiful bodies too. Art of the past has had no compunctions about showing nude males and correctly so. I'm not sure I can understand this modern prudery.

BREATHTAKING!
I haven't seen this movie for a long time, but saw it again the other day. I forgot how powerful it was and how breathtaking all the actors are as well as the scenery. Strong performances and beautiful music (I bought the soundtrack long ago and had to dust it off after seeing this movie again!). As for some of the negative comments of seeing Harvey Keitel naked (full frontal, too), and found him disgusting looking, well, folks, that's how most people look in real life! ... Read more

Reviews (148)

In The Cut: Brilliant!!
The movie was a great surprise to me and my friends when we went to see it. At first it appeared to be a typical independent type movie, with the usual expectation of a rather depressing outlook on life accompanied with a very raw cinematography, and usually little hope for a happy ending. However this is the first film I've seen that successfully incorporates the rawness and up front honesty of the characters lives, combined with the great, well written storyline and wonderful acting. And the cinematography, although raw, provided some beautiful scenes, and the symbolism and use of focus put the viewer in Franny's mindset of a very creative person, who doesn't see life through typical eyes. It was quite 'trippy' and I found it to be very original.

The movie centralises around Franny (Meg Ryan) and her encounter with a police detective (Mark Ruffalo) after she witnesses something that might be important to a murder that is committed. At first it seems that it would be impossible for a relationship to begin between the two but as the movie progresses a surprisingly sweet love story plays out. I first thought that the writers had resigned to a predictable 'who done it' in order to focus on the relationship that was blossoming, however I was pleasantly surprised that I didn't realise who the killer was, till it was actually revealed to the audience.

Meg Ryan's performance was brilliant and she really pulls off the change of image well!! And Mark Ruffalo was so magnetic, you can really fall in love with him. His character has a rough surface with a sweet caring middle and Mark Ruffalo really portrays this perfectly.

In The Cut was very dark, yet very enjoyable and satisfying. It has a beautiful balance of eroticism, romance and thriller. My friends and I honestly couldn't stop talking about it for at least three days and we've seen it many times since and still love it!! I've recommended this movie to all my friends!