Intimate Betrayal (1999)

Starring:Monica Calhoun, Khalil Kain, Erica Gimpel (II), T.E. Russell, Kenneth Ransom, L. Scott Caldwell, Brent Jennings, Ernest Harden Jr.
Director: Diane Wynter
Studio: Urban Works
Product Type: DVD

Average customer rating:

Clive looking good
an ugly movie about uglier people
I don't want to get closer or why did not they ask Helen?,
I just love this movie
Great acting all around, at times spectacular performances by Owen and Law

Closer (Superbit Edition)
Starring: Natalie Portman , Jude Law , Julia Roberts , Clive Owen , and Nick Hobbs
Director: Mike Nichols
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0007OCG4W
Release Date: 2005-03-29

Amazon.com

Four extremely beautiful people do extremely horrible things to one another in Closer, Mike Nichols' pungent adaptation of Patrick Marber's play that easily marks the Oscar-winning director's best work in years. Anna (Julia Roberts) is a photographer who specializes in portraits of strangers; Dan (Jude Law) is an obituary writer struggling to become a novelist; Alice (Natalie Portman) is an American stripper freshly arrived in London after a bad relationship; and Larry (Clive Owen) is a dermatologist who finds love under the most unlikely of circumstances. When their paths cross it's a dizzying supernova of emotions, as Nichols and Marber adroitly construct various scenes out of their lives that pair them again and again in various permutations of passion, heartbreak, anger, sadness, vengeance, pleading, deception, and most importantly, brutal honesty. It's only until you're more than halfway through the movie that you'll have to ask yourself exactly why you are watching such a beautifully tragic tale, as Closer is basically the ickiest, grossest, most dysfunctional parts of all your past relationships strung together into one movie. Ultimately, it falls to the four actors to draw you deeper into the story; all succeed relatively, but it's Law and Owen whose characters will cut you to the quick. Law proves that yet again he's most adept at playing charming, amoral bastards with manipulative streaks, and Owen is nothing short of brilliant as the character most turned on by the energy inherent in destructive relationships--whether he's on the giving or receiving end. --Mark Englehart

Description

The Superbit titles utilize a special high bit rate digital encoding process which optimizes video quality while offering a choice of both DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. These titles have been produced by a team of Sony Pictures Digital Studios video, sound and mastering engineers and comes housed in a special package complete with a 4 page booklet that contains technical information on the Superbit process. By reallocating space on the disc normally used for value-added content, Superbit DVDs can be encoded at double their normal bit rate while maintaining full compatibility with the DVD video format.

Customer Reviews:

Clive looking good.......2007-06-27

A really good pick if you want a slew of good actors and especially Clive Owen. Interesting, kept me from falling asleep, a problem I have now that I have a yound child at home, ha! had some nice dreams after this too, what a plus.

an ugly movie about uglier people.......2007-05-12

forty years ago a great young director named mike nichols made his film debut with a movie ("whos afraid of virginia wolff?" for those who dont know) about 4 lost lonely self-deluded people who are forced to confront the lies of their lives in one long night. and now, rather than edward albee, we get someone calling himself patrick marber, who wrote both the screenplay and the play on which it is based, and has with nichols, (and four otherwise talented actors whose names i wont embarrass you and them and myself by listing) succeeded in making one of the uglist most nasty movies i have ever seen. these people could only exist in the minds of a misanthrope, and their stilted dialogue is evidence of his being an untalented misanthrope to boot. women are [...] and deceivers, men are cads and betrayers, sex is a commodity, art is a farce, &c: if these are the lessons nichols has learned in 4 decades, i pity diane sawyer ...

I don't want to get closer or why did not they ask Helen?, .......2007-04-17

My three favorite films from 2004, "Sideways", "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind", and "Before Sunset" have a lot in common; they all deal with ability to connect with other people, with meeting one's true love and losing it, with memories that will not go away, and with possibilities of second chances.

There are more similarities in three my favorite films - they all have characters I liked, I care about; often, weak and certainly not perfect; sometimes, confused and immature but sympathetic, and real.

This is not the case with "Closer". My problem is that none of its four main characters was at least slightly interesting, appealing, likable or just realistic. And it is not the biggest problem that they were not likable - I can live with that and still love and enjoy the film. Examples - Nichols's own fascinating debut, "Who is Afraid of Virginia Woolf". George and Martha (Liz Taylor and Richard Burton) were a couple from hell but like a theme song in "Closer" goes, "I could not take my eyes off them". I still remember Taylor saying in the end of the film, "George and Martha: Sad, sad, sad" and it was sad. I'd learned something about the characters that were deep and complex, troubled and disturbed. They were persons, the human beings, not the caricatures. Another example, Ingmar Bergman's "Scenes from the marriage":

"Bergman and his leading actors Liv Ullmann and Arland Josephson give one of the most truthful, honest, heartbreaking and credible portraits of a couple, one of the most intense character studies ever done on film. For five hours, we share twenty years from the lives of Johan and Marianne as well as their love, hate, misunderstandings, insecurities, anger, jealousy, denial, sadness, pain, despair, and loss. We witness the moments of incredible tenderness and unexpected and shocking violence, both physical and mental. There are no depth that they have not descended in the search of themselves and the meaning of their relationship."

As far as a film about the selfish, self-obsessed, unsympathetic characters goes, "Faithless", directed by Liv Ullmann and written by Ingmar Bergman could be the most similar in its theme to "Closer" and they both have almost identical twist plot toward the end. The difference is huge, though. "Faithless" has a high and unbearable tragedy that characters brought upon themselves, "Closer" is smug, full of itself and tries to hide its emptiness behind often disgusting and unnecessary dirty language. Did I learn something about four beautiful people in "Closer"? Sure. Dan's sperm tastes like Larry's but sweeter; Alice's c*** tastes like heaven, and Anna does not kiss strange men and does not understand why sex is so important. I don't want to get closer to learn all this; instead, I'd like to respond like Helen Sinclair, "No, no, don't speak. Don't speak. Please don't speak. Please don't speak. No. No. No. Go. Go... Don't speak."

Enormously talented and famous (and rightly so) Mike Nichols made an elegantly looking, well acted (Natalie Portman and Clive Owen are very good) and quite amusing film which is a screen adaptation of a popular play of the same title. Popular or not, the play was not a great work of writing and its problems are very obvious after adaptation to the big screen.

2.5/5

I just love this movie.......2007-04-02

I saw this movie for my first time a couple years ago and I love it so much that I had to buy my own dvd. I can watch this movie over and over and I still don't have enough. It is one of my top five movies.

Great acting all around, at times spectacular performances by Owen and Law.......2007-04-01

First off, the acting is really consistent and very good
throughout the whole movie. The screenplay by Marber and
the direction by Nichols are fantastic.. I certainly agree
that this is one of Nichols best in years..

Initially, I didn't know who Clive Owen was.. after having watched
the movie for the seventh or eighth time, I have to admit that he
stood out.. but Jude Law's performance is also noteworthy.. he's just
a spectacular actor.. both Natalie Portman and Julia Roberts deliver
solid performances.. this is an intense, entertaining and thought
provoking film about love and passion.

Average customer rating:

MEN CRY IN THE DARK
Men have feeling s
I Can't Rate This to High....
Men Cry In The Dark
A Hot Mess!

Men Cry in the Dark
Starring: Allen Payne , Rhona Bennett , Richard Roundtree , and Christopher Williams
Director: Je'Caryous Johnson
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000KGGZYE
Release Date: 2007-02-06

Description

The future has never looked better for Derrick Reed. Bachelorhood is great, he has a group of guys he can really call friends, and he's the publisher of a magazine that he named after his philosophy of life, Happily Single. Little does Derrick know that appearing on Atlanta's hottest radio station morning talk show will send him on a whirl-wind ride, which will eventually take him to the heart of a woman who will change his life forever. He finds the perfect woman and the perfect reason to stop womanizing and make a commitment. This mystery woman is about to have a lasting impact on Derrick's life by changing the way he thinks and feels about women and relationships.

Customer Reviews:

MEN CRY IN THE DARK.......2007-05-24

THE MOVIE QUAILTY WAS GOOD & AMAZON SHIPPED THIS REALLY FAST & THAT'S THE ONLY REASON WHY I'M GIVING THIS 4 STARS. THE STORY LINE SUCK.

Men have feeling s.......2007-05-23

Women think man don't have feelings and don't hurt, but this movie showed a man can hurt like us. Great job.

I Can't Rate This to High...........2007-05-21

I only bought this because I'm such a fan of Allen Payne. Sorry but this play was sooooooo utterly boring.

1. There were two scenes that I had to just fast forward through because they lasted so long and were so dry, and then I just stopped the DVD altogether.
2. It was too much like the movie, "the Brothers." Now had this been called, "The Brothers (the Play)", I could have gotten in to it. But it wasn't so I couldn't. There was the sexy light skinned guy getting getting engaged, there was the bitter black guy who didn't like black women, there was the super sexy player who could never commit, and the fat guy was the comic relief. There was nothing original about this play and I hated it. The 15-20 minutes that I saw of it anyway.
3. Someone said this was "so real", but no it wasn't! It was cliche matter of factly.
4. Allen Payne is pretty good actor but I don't think the stage is his forte. He may need a little more practice at stage plays because he really wasn't that good here.

Like someone else said, rent or borrow before you buy. This play was awful.

Men Cry In The Dark.......2007-05-15

Very good presentation. Outstanding vocal performances. Would like to see more plays with this crew of actors.

A Hot Mess!.......2007-05-08

This play was HORRIBLE!!!..I desired to see it because it was here in my city and i missed it..needless to say i fell asleep on the DVD and come to find out i did not miss anything when it came here. not sure who's play came first, but i noticed that this play was fashioned after some of Tyler Perry's stuff. two thumbs down on this one.SAVE YOUR MONEY...if someone is giving it away then view it and make sure you give it back to them...LoL my brother on the crutches was fine as wine (Christoper Williams)..you hear me? but his acting was HORRIBLE! all that falling around and laying on the floor when he asked ol girl to marry him?!?!?...What was that? Pay attention when dad goes back over Derrick's house when he rings the door bell watch how the sound effects was delayed...(UGH)

Average customer rating:

A feel good film for ALL women!!!!!
Waiting to Exhale DVD
Understanding!
Desperate women who need to BREATHE.
Read the book and saw the movie!

Waiting to Exhale
Starring: Whitney Houston , Angela Bassett , Loretta Devine , Lela Rochon , and Gregory Hines
Director: Forest Whitaker
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00000ILEE
Release Date: 2001-03-06

Amazon.com essential video

Based on a novel by Terry McMillan, this weepy melodrama about four African American women and the men who wronged them became an instant cultural phenomenon when it was released back in 1995. It's easy to see why Exhale struck a nerve: the movie boasts an attractive cast of African American actresses and personalities, including Whitney Houston, Angela Bassett, and Lela Rochon. Unfortunately, though, Exhale sags under the weight of its soapy, crisis of the week plotting and relentlessly cheery "you go, girl!" optimism. And African American men, cast here as insensitive lovers and pigheaded materialists, get the very short end of the feminist stick. Perhaps moviegoers were simply responding to the brilliant soundtrack by R&B superstar Babyface, who provided the movie's only real groove. --Ethan Brown

Description

Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett star in this funny and touching film about four women who find strength through their rare and special relationship. Savannah, Bernadine, Robin and Gloria are all searching for the Real Thing: true love. Bernadine thought she had it, until her husband left her for another woman. Savannah and Robin are successful in business but their love lives are bankrupt. And divorcee Gloria is getting back in the game by flirting with her new, very eligible neighbor. Based on Terry McMillan's best-selling novel, and featuring the #1 smash hit "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)," "Waiting to Exhale" is the film you and your friends have been waiting for! Original score by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.

Customer Reviews:

A feel good film for ALL women!!!!!.......2007-07-04

I have to say that this is one of my favorite films of all time. Everyone did a good job in this film, especially Whitney Houston. My favorite character in the film would definitely have to be Bernadine. This film makes you laugh, cry, and also makes you aware of the fact that you do need friends to get you through the difficult times, especially when it comes to dealing with no good men!!!!

Waiting to Exhale DVD.......2007-06-15

Great Movie! I am glad to have it as part of my collection.

Understanding!.......2007-03-09

As a female, I enjoy watching what men call Chick Flicks but never watched them more than I had to. I enjoy horror movies, suspense, actions...
Watching Waiting to Exhale when I was a bit younger, I did not totally understand the concept of their struggles, often wondering why it is that the one girl would repeatedly put herself through a man that obviously did not really want anything to do with her but for sex only to hook up with a man that she obviously is not attracted to just for him to treat her coldly in the workplace. I could not understand why Bernie would burn some of her husband's belongings even the car then have garage sale with the rest, I could not understand why Gloria was hung on her very gay son's father hoping he would come back to her, I could not understand why Savannah would not hook up with the hunky fine chocolate brother... I could not understand why most of the things happened, but going through life itself, having children and friends I now do understand, which is why I decided to purchase this movie for my collections. Because inside of every female, there is a Savannah, Bernie, Robin and a Gloria.

Desperate women who need to BREATHE........2007-01-23

At first I loved this movie, it was one of my favorites. As a young lady who just turned 21, at that time I completely related to their struggles. A year later, I re-watched the film with more maturity. Surprising, my perspective of it was totally different.

Essentially, it is the story of four horny black women who think men are the key to happiness.

Yes, everybody craves sex at some point, some people more than others. The audience can resonate with their lust for sex, the characters' weaknesses, and minor faults. Still, after watching the movie a couple times, I realized that the characters in this film are simply naive.

I'm not trying to imply that females should be totally independent, and should never desire to date. However, they need to have standards!

Since the four characters are desperate for sex and a stable relationship, they lower their standards. This compromises their self-respect, morals and personal interests in order to "get a man". Obviously, they lure the sleaziest men the world has to offer. Even the four characters know that the men they're dating are worthless, as they repeat to themselves throughout the film. Nevertheless, the ladies waste time on these dogs in order to fuel they need for sex and attention.

At the end, it seems that they find more solidarity and happiness amongst each other. Though they don't seem to have fully learned from their mistakes, and seem likely to repeat the immature behavior.

To conclude, they need to breathe first, and with that added energy, they should cultivate some sense.

Read the book and saw the movie!.......2007-01-04

Read the book and saw the movie! NEXT!

Average customer rating:

REVIEWING A LESBIAN MOVIE IN ENGLISH DONE WELL
Boring, Boring, Boring
Intelligent Relationship Drama
not what the summary promises
Hot and funny

Girl Play
Starring: Robin Greenspan , Lacie Harmon , Mink Stole , Dom DeLuise , and Katherine Randolph
Director: Lee Friedlander
Manufacturer: Wolfe Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0009Q0EMY
Release Date: 2005-08-16

Description

When Gabriel (Dom Deluise) casts "real" lesbians in a play about two female actors falling in love, he unintentionally sparks a raging passion between the women. As rehearsals progress, the action behind the scenes takes off in ways both comic and sexy. Also stars Mink Stole as a hilariously distraught mother.

Customer Reviews:

REVIEWING A LESBIAN MOVIE IN ENGLISH DONE WELL.......2007-05-12

EXCELLENT MOVIE ABOUT THE LAYERS AND LEVELS OF FEMALE WITH FEMALE COMPANIONSHIP. A PLEASUER TO WATCH AND NOT TO EXCESSIVE ABOUT SEX PARTS

Boring, Boring, Boring.......2007-04-13

I was never so bored with a movie. I could not wait until it was over. Thank God, I didn't buy it before I watched it.

Intelligent Relationship Drama.......2007-03-23

****
I enjoyed this film. It is definitely not a "typical lesbian film". Instead, it is like a play at a theater that is brought to film with the best of the theatrical show interspersed with fine film.

It is the true story of two comedians who decide to do a play together and fall in love. The story is narrated by the real two women standing on a stage telling the story of their relationship. Their narration is interrupted by a sort of reenactment of what they are telling you about, starring them but including actors playing the other parts. It is a creative and entertaining way to do a film.

The movie explores universal themes, not even primarily lesbian themes---things like falling in love with someone else when you're in a committed relationship, how it feels to be unable to resurrect a dead relationship, how it feels to try to make love to someone you are committed to but whom you have drifted far away from.

I loved it. I thought it was intelligently done, well-written, and that the acting was great. I even watched the special feature describing the making of the film.

This is definitely a film for adults. Teens (even older teens, in my opinion) and children would not understand the complex issues involved and would not be entertained; also there are some explicit lesbian love-making scenes.

Definitely recommended.
****

not what the summary promises.......2007-03-14

this is another horrible lesbian drama with horrible acting. this "story" is meant for a play theater or something. It is almost all narrative, where you watch the narrators tell you about what is happening, rather than a good movie.

this is yet another bad gay movie to add to the piles of bad movies that are considered good to the gay community merely b/c they are gay oriented.

save your money

Hot and funny.......2007-03-12

This movie iis great! A two woman stage play brings the actresses to sexy and funny self revalations. A fun movie with lots to offer lesbian viewers and friend thereof.

Average customer rating:

Superb drama
Seperate Tables
A Study In Relationships
Rita Acts!
All the hotel's a stage

Separate Tables
Starring: Deborah Kerr , Rita Hayworth , David Niven , Wendy Hiller , and Burt Lancaster
Director: Delbert Mann
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00005PJ6X
Release Date: 2001-12-11

Amazon.com

Terence Rattigan's pair of one-act plays are deftly woven together into this intelligent, handsome drama, a kind of somber Grand Hotel of lonely and repressed lives at a British seaside hotel in the dreary off-season. David Niven and Wendy Hiller earned well-deserved Oscars for their subdued turns, as a blustery old warhorse hiding a guilty secret and the efficient hotel proprietress, respectively. Burt Lancaster is the alcoholic American whose secret affair with Hiller is complicated when his former wife (Rita Hayworth) breezes in and reopens old emotional wounds, and Deborah Kerr is a mousy woman whose secret love for Niven is shattered by scandal. Director Daniel Mann (Marty) remains true to the good manners and quiet desperation that keeps these sad souls isolated at separate tables. He gracefully floats between the two dramas and patiently allows his repressed characters to open up and reveal their true feelings in their own quiet fashion. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews:

Superb drama.......2007-07-04

This is a movie which is a must-see for those of you who like a classic. It is one of Rita Hayworth's best movies, and it was made two years before she contracted Alzheimer's Disease. Deborah Kerr is truly her character and doesn't appear as Deborah Kerr. She utilizes her craft and makes a convincing character. David Niven puts on a very fine bit of acting which reminds me of his superb movie "Enchantment" (1949). Wendy Hiller (who was in the Broadway performance of "Enchantment") is perfectly cast as Burt Lancaster's mistress. Burt Lancaster is Burt Lancaster, but I think he does a pretty good job and is convincing in his character. The way this movie is presented, you'd swear you were watching the play (also written by Terrence Rattigan). This is a movie you should own and watch often.

Seperate Tables.......2007-06-26

What in lesser hands could have been a mucky soap-fest becomes instead a subtle, sensitive, intelligent film thanks to director Delbert Mann's deft handling of Rattigan's Oscar-nominated script. The first-rate group of ensemble players include Niven, Kerr, Lancaster, Hayworth, and the fabulous Wendy Hiller--who (like Niven) won an Oscar for her performance as Pat Cooper, the innkeeper having an affair with Lancaster. "Tables" remains a multi-layered human drama of the highest order.

A Study In Relationships.......2007-03-16

What a splendid story filmed with a beautiful cast doing their best work.

This film can be seen many times for enjoyment and a chance to get away from today's horrible events. It shows once again that people often display kindness when an attack is made on a wounded person. It also depicts various relationships in this small hotel by the sea.

Rita Acts!.......2006-11-10

Rita Hayworth, unexpectedly, shows great sensitivity in this role. David Niven is a 5 star hit
in his part.

All the hotel's a stage.......2006-10-17

Delbert Mann did some very ingenious things in turning Terrence Rattigan's famous pair of one-act plays into a film: he combined them into one continuous work, and he also retained the plays' sense of confinement by refusing to let the camera leave the setting of an English seaside hotel and its terrace for the entire film (until the film's lovely final shot, a crane shot that zooms back from a shot of the proprietress, Wendy Hiller, through the window of the dining room). Instead of allowing this confinement to be too visually deadening, he makes beautiful use of mise-en-scene to keep the viewers' interest in the action of the work. Although it does seem stagebound, the film seems purposefully so: this is a film, after all, about the kinds of roles people play for one another when they know they're on display.

Mann's unwise decisions were not to take a stronger hand in the performances of several of the film's stars, particularly those usually excellent actors Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr who both here seem berserk. Lancaster is given the very stagey role of the character who rips others' illusions from them, telling them hideous truths while he clings to his own illusions, and he hams it up quite a bit, though not to the extent of Kerr. Although she made a career of superlative performances as hysterics (particularly in BLACK NARCISSUS and THE INNOCENTS), she shows none of the restraint an actress needs, and which she has elsewhere shown, to play a histrionic character effectively and believably. Surprisingly, Rita Hayworth, an almost staggeringly inferior actress to the other two usually, is much more effective as a sexually predatory and deceitful woman who can be capable of human decency; unsurprisingly, Wendy Hiller outshines everyone, in a thoughtful and beautifully modulated performance, as Lancaster's rock-steady fiancée. She won the Oscar for her work here, as did (less deservedly) David Niven, as Kerr's would-be suitor, a military man who secretly molests women at movie theaters.

Average customer rating:

Love !Love It
Great acting...terrible story, how can you love this?
Realistic love story
A pleasant surprise! 4.5 stars.
(:D) ....(some serious acting going on here)

Disappearing Acts
Starring: Sanaa Lathan , Wesley Snipes , Regina Hall , Lisa Arrindell Anderson , and Q-Tip
Director: Gina Prince-Bythewood
Manufacturer: Hbo Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00005ASOO
Release Date: 2001-06-19

Amazon.com

He's a semi-employed construction worker and she's a music teacher with ambitions for a singing career. But when they meet at her Brooklyn brownstone their socio-economic differences melt away--or do they? This is the question that drives this 112-minute HBO movie based on Terry McMillan's best-selling novel. Zora wears fabulous clothes, decorates her hardwood-floored apartment with unusual furniture, and dines with her girlfriends at chichi restaurants, while Franklin can't even make regular child-support payments to his estranged wife. She's college educated; he doesn't have his GED. Sanaa Lathan (Love and Basketball) gives Zora dignity and grace throughout the film, while Wesley Snipe's Franklin starts out with those qualities but eventually degenerates into sullenness. Director Gina Prince-Bythewood (Love and Basketball) starts out strong by making Brooklyn a third vibrant character and creating fun takes on the awkward events in every couple's early stages--meeting the friends, dining with the parents. But she loses her way a bit in the middle and seems to rush the end. With much of the transitional material of the book missing in the movie, female viewers may find the ending tough to swallow. The film is rated R for language, brief nudity (specifically of coproducer Snipes's rear quarters), and sexual content. --Kimberly Heinrichs

Description

A construction worker meets an aspiring singer;songwriter. He dreams of his own business; she dreams of fame. As they face the challenges of their chosen paths, they discover together that it's easy to build an affair...and hard to make it last.

DVD Features:
Audio Commentary
Biographies
DVD ROM Features
Deleted Scenes
Documentary
Featurette
Filmographies
Interactive Menus
Multiple video angles

Customer Reviews:

Love !Love It.......2007-01-19

Wesley was so fine. i think I'm going to watch it again tonight.

Great acting...terrible story, how can you love this?.......2006-07-03

WARNING: SPOILERS

Zora (Sanaa Lathan) is an aspiring singer and song-writer recently moved to Brooklyn. She meets Franklin (Wesley Snipes) a carpenter as she is moving in to her newly renovated brownstone. Sparks fly between the two and they quickly wind up in bed. This movie is pretty standard up to this point and then we learn more about the characters. We find out Franklin is married (though separated), has two children (but rarely pays child support) and has not managed to finish high school (though he is well-spoken and can play a mean game of Scrabble).

Now for some women the breaking point to a relationship with a guy would be finding out he is married with two kids. In this movie? No way. Instead when Zora, a woman we think is intelligent, finds out these things about Franklin she is initially upset but quickly "gets over it" and even invites "Fast Frankie" to live with her. When he lets her know that he can't even afford to split the rent with her she doesn't mind! Instead she gives him the keys to her home and tells him not to worry about. This is first of the many improbable events that occur in this film.

Once Zora stupidly allows Fast Frankie into her home and life she gets pregnant and seriously contemplates abortion. She makes the decision to go ahead with it and in a distasteful scene argues with Fast Frankie as he begs her not to "kill his baby". Of course Zora being Zora she decides to go ahead with having a baby with Franklin (who barely takes care of the kids he already has). Franklin resolutely promises that he will take care of Zora and the baby and will work THREE JOBS if he has too. The story progresses and Zora is heavily pregnant and it appears Franklin keeps his word as he finds a steady gig at a unionized construction site.

Things go well until Franklin drinks on the job, falls down injuring himself and is ultimately fired. Zora has the baby and since Franklin is too proud to accept work from his father or former boss, Zora carries the entire family financially. Keep in mind she works full-time as a music teacher, is pursuing a music career and, oh yeah, has recently had a son she has to care for. Although Franklin doesn't have a job and won't go look for work because, as he explains it, "it's too cold" he doesn't try to cook, clean or change wet baby diapers. That of course is women's work.

It is at this stage that we finally see some hope for this hopeless story of strange love. Zora finally gets fed up and asks Franklin to leave. Even in this though she makes a mistake. After telling Franklin to pack his things and go, she leaves the house with their child. When she returns she finds that Franklin, in a drunken self-pitying stupor, has completely trashed her home. We see scenes where Franklin takes his hammer and rips everything he has built. He breaks down a coat rack, a mantle, a book case, etc. Now, as the viewer, you can only believe that Fast Frankie, a selfish waste of space, is a truly terrible person. He trashes the home where his own child lives! Honestly, who is this person!? Thankfully this is near the end of the film. We see Zora getting on with life alone with her son. She appears lonely in scenes, although after her ordeal with Fast Frankie you would think she would be shouting with glee. But not in this movie, no she is lonely without her shiftless man. When Franklin knocks on Zora's door out of the blue one day, she is surprised (as are we). We hear that Franklin has been sending money to her for their son (I guess $20 can go toward diapars). It's been over a year (!) and Franklin wants to see his son. Later Zora and Franklin talk about things and we find out Franklin is taking an exam to become a licensed contractor. Zora is suitably impressed because this means Franklin now has his GED (and boy is he proud of himself). Zora can't believe the changes in Franklin (hmmm...he received his diploma for high school equivalency and he isn't drunk, what accomplishments) and looks at him with new eyes. Their visit over, Franklin walks down the stairs leaving Zora to further contemplate the new Franklin. A few seconds later she rushes to the stairs and calls him back up to the apartment. The final scene of the film finds Zora and Franklin sitting happily with their son playing their favorite game, Scrabble.

Once you see this final scene, you can't help but be confused and disgusted. Although I think the acting and directing in this film are outstanding, the characters and story line are deeply disturbing. This film is based on a book written by Terry McMillan, an author that has made a career of writing about the desperate and curiously crazy behavior of middle-class black women in relationships. I am not a fan of Ms. McMillan, but I am a fan of Gina Prince-Bythewood who I can only assume took on this project as a challenge but could not quite pull off overseeing a film that makes black women appear incredibly self-deluding and obsessed with being in a relationship (any kind of relationship) even to their detriment. If you want to see a well acted and directed feature, this is for you. However, the movie itself is incredibly infuriating and disturbing in its portrayal of an adult woman being so completely blinded by the insecurity and fear of being alone. I would not recommend the film for content, except as a cautionary tale.

Realistic love story.......2006-06-30

I was getting tired of watching this movie probably because I didn't really like the charactor Franklin he was just getting on my nerves he just felt like bagage to the girl friend (I forget the charactors name) I got mad when Franklin wasn't doing his part in the relationship, even if he couldn't get a job, he could have at least helped out with the baby more so the mother of the child didn't have to lose out on her dream of becoming a singer. Perhaps if she didn't meet him she might have made it. In all fairness to Franklin there were times when the girlfriend provoked Franklin insecurities. For example when he had brought tickets for a concert for them for her birthday and she traded them in for better seats. Thats a no no you don't take a gift back in front of the person who brought you the gift, that would hurt anybody and make them feel unappreciated.

All in all I thought it was a somewhat realistic story about a relationship between a man and a woman and trying to keep it togetherarguments and breakup an all. The ending kind of leaves you hanging but you can assume they try to get back together.

A pleasant surprise! 4.5 stars........2006-06-23

I saw "Disappearing Acts" a couple of times on HBO, and bought the DVD several months ago. I must admit that I was a tiny bit skeptical about whether I'd like a made-for-HBO movie. But I should have known that the "Dream Team" of Gina Prince-Bythewood directing and Sanaa Lathan acting, would deliver the goods. From the beginning, this movie just felt real - no glossy sets, clothes, etc. Just the genuine simplicity that you would find in the homes/lives of everywoman or everyman. This lack of unnecessary trappings allowed the characters to take the spotlight. As usual, Sanaa Lathan lit up the screen with a natural talent and presence rarely seen in film nowadays. She demonstrated incredible acting range in this movie, conveying Zora's initial infatuation, lust, and ecstasy, which gave way to pain, frustration, hurt and, ultimately, forgiveness and self-realization. Wesley Snipes gave a surprisingly good performance as Franklin, showing why typecasting him as only an action hero would be a sheer waste of talent. While a more conventionally- handsome actor could probably have been cast as Franklin, I don't know whether he could have done the job here. Wesley has always done a superior job playing characters that are more significant by what they don't say rather than what they do. That was a good fit for the role of Franklin, with his multiple demons and insecurities. Plus, Sanaa and Wesley had a strong on-screen chemistry that made you understand why Zora and Franklin found it so difficult to let each other go. (That refrigerator love scene practically melted my TV screen!)
I thought that the movie was pretty true to the book, although, naturally, there was some cinematographic license taken here and there. The movie did a fine job of getting across the book's message that although lust/passion are easy, forging a real relationship takes work and sacrifice, even if it means letting the person you love go so that they can deal with their own issues. I think that many women (and men) can relate to what it's like to get into a co-dependent relationship where both parties lose themselves to some extent (hence the title of the movie/book).
The only reason "Disappearing Acts" is getting a 4.5 rather than a 5 is because deep down, I always wished that they could have cast an absolutely stunning black actor to play Franklin, who would have had the chemistry that Wesley had with Sanaa. That would have been a bit truer to Franklin's character as he was portrayed in the book. But like I said, there's no guarantee that a beautiful male lead would have generated the same sort of sensuality that made this movie so riveting. Overall, this was a very good, well-acted movie, which made me want to re-read the book. Not to mention the soundtrack is on point. (Definitely get it if you are an R&B/soul fan).

(:D) ....(some serious acting going on here).......2006-06-11

I think anyone that has or has had a relationship can sympathize with this film. The scenes and the plot was so realistic and wonderfully played by these 2 actors. Sanna Lathan is becoming one of my favorite actresses. She's talented and beautiful. Only a movie this good can make a girl stay up until 3 in the morning crying and laughing alone. I loved it and i would watch it 100x

Average customer rating:

YOU CAN'T ALWAYS RUN!
It is about you
All About You
All About You
I Don't Deserve This Kind of Treatment

All About You
Starring: Renee Goldsberry , Terron Brooks , Debbie Allen , LisaRaye , and Lou Myers
Director: Christine Swanson
Manufacturer: Urban Works
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Big Ain't Bad
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A Private Affair

ASIN: B00014K5MS
Release Date: 2004-03-09

Description

Nicole Taylor (Renee Goldsberry) postpones law school to be with Robbie, the love of her life. Ambitious, intelligent, successful and irresistible… he was everything a woman wanted. Until one night at a party celebrating Robbie's success, she painfully discovers that she was just a pit stop on his roadmap through life. She leaves Los Angeles to start a new life in San Francisco, where she moves in with her best friend Lisa (LisaRaye) and gets a job waiting tables at Toomies, a jazz supper club. Nicole's caught by surprise when Lisa leaves for a month, subletting her room to Brian (Terron Brooks), Robbie's estranged younger brother. Brian has wandered the globe the past few years escaping the pressures of his family name and all that comes with it. Forced to share living and work spaces, Nicole and Brian can't avoid each other. As their attraction grows, they are also forced to deal with their painful pasts to open themselves to another chance at love…

Customer Reviews:

YOU CAN'T ALWAYS RUN!.......2007-06-27

I'M GOING TO KEEP IT SHORT AND SIMPLE. THE MOVIE WAS GREAT! THE CAST RENEE GOLDSBERRY AND TERRON BROOKS WAS THE PERFECT COUPLE. I JUST LOVED HIS VOICE ON EVERY SONG. AFTER EACH PERFORMANCE TERRON PERFORM I REPEAT THE DVD SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE I GO ON TO FINISH THE FILM. ALSO THE SONG CALLED SUPRISE. IT MAKES ME CRY, I REWIND THAT PART OF THE MOVIE ABOUT 5X WHEN I WATCH IT.

AND SUPRISE AS WE RISE, AS WE LIGHT THE SKY AS WE'RE FALLING. THROUGH THE AIR WITH NO CARE AND GROUND BELOW, CAUSE WE KNOW THAT WE KNOW THAT WE KNOW.
SUPRISE!!!

THE MOVIE IS A MUST SEE, IF YOU LOVE LOVE STORIES..

It is about you.......2007-03-12

Great love story. Truly enjoyed it, loved the singing. would recommend.

All About You.......2007-01-16

I loved this movie. I saw it once before visiting my cousin in Sacramento and that's why I purchased it.

All About You.......2006-08-08

I absolutely loved this movie!! I have watched it about twenty times. When I want to watch a good clean movie, a love story between a man and a woman, I pop in "All About You." I applaud Christine Swanson and the Actors who gave her masterpiece life.

I Don't Deserve This Kind of Treatment.......2006-07-03

This is a good movie. I have watched it over and over again. There is a very strong message in it. This girl was in a relationship with this guy for about a year; she cared very deeply for him but he didn't feel the same. At his birthday party, that she prepared for him, she found out that he only thought of himself as far as the future which was not with her. I don't want to tell the movie but for me, it was an excellent movie with a very strong storyline especially for young ladies who put their lives on hold waiting for someone who does not have them on the mind for a future in marriage. You are important, don't allow yourselves to be used by someone who does not think of you as a "wife". This guy was on the rebound from his previous girlfriend who decided not to marry him. So, while getting into a relationship with Nikki, he still had feelings for the other girl and was waiting to see if she would take him back. You really need to see this movie. "great".

Average customer rating:

An Extremely Smart And Sexy Film
BEYOND BAD !!!!
Well Done

Kissing on the Mouth
Director: Joe Swanberg
Manufacturer: Heretic Films
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Shortbus (Unrated Edition)
Lie With Me
Private (FALLO, Italian Version)
Antares
Battle In Heaven

ASIN: B000GI3KRQ
Release Date: 2006-08-29

Description

Chicago filmmaker Joe Swanberg's Kissing on the Mouth is a confrontational and startling film that pulls out all the stops in the way it explores issues of sex and infidelity within post-college relationships. Ellen is sleeping with her ex-boyfriend and trying to ignore the fact that he's looking for more than just sex. Her roommate, Patrick, isn't helping matters with his secretive and jealous behavior. The small cast served as the only crew on this intimate, often humorous film featuring frank dialogue, explicit sex, and real interviews with recent college graduates.

Customer Reviews:

An Extremely Smart And Sexy Film.......2007-03-15

Its refreshing to see a sexy film that is grounded in reality. Certain to become a classic.

BEYOND BAD !!!!.......2007-03-01

This movie was BAD from beginning to the very end. Poorly written,Poorly acted and HORRIBLY FILMED . I couldn't wait to rip it out of my DVD player and throw it in the garbage.

Well Done.......2007-01-13

This was by far one of the better movies I've purchased. I loved the documentary stay real world format the film makers used. I really liked the up-front Real People do this approach to sex and nudity in the film. It was immesely refreshing. At last a frank intelligent film that deals with real people having sex, relationship issues and career problems that hasen't been glittered over in the fake style that Hollywood is becoming famous for. The actors were normal looking everyday attractive people who actually lived everyday lives. No Pre-fabbed pretty boys or Boob-job inhanced starlets. Highly recommend this movie for the serious movie buff.

Average customer rating:

One of the Best Period Dramas Ever Filmed!
Overlooked Merchant/Ivory
feast of july --- my favorite movie that nobody knows
feast for the heart
Purefoy a Delight in Feast

Feast of July
Starring: Embeth Davidtz , Tom Bell , Gemma Jones , James Purefoy , and Ben Chaplin
Director: Christopher Menaul
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00008L3TM
Release Date: 2004-04-06

Description

A compelling tale of passion's dark secrets -- critics applauded FEAST OF JULY as one of the best films of the year! A mysterious young beauty, Bella Ford, searches hopelessly for the lover who betrayed her. Weary and alone, she is offered shelter by the Wainwright family, who help her find new hope ... and whose three handsome sons battle for her affections! But just when she is ready to begin her new life, Bella's former lover unexpectedly reappears to haunt her with the secrets of their past! From Merchant Ivory Productions -- award-winning creators of HOWARDS END and THE REMAINS OF THE DAY -- you'll find this motion picture passionate and powerfully entertaining!

Customer Reviews:

One of the Best Period Dramas Ever Filmed!.......2006-03-18

I have watched literally hundreds of period dramas over the years and own many on VHS and DVD. Believe me when I write that "Feast of July" ranks as one of the best and should be owned on DVD. This movie has it all - absolutely BRILLIANT acting, beautiful cinematography and a storyline that is at once heartbreaking, romantic and dramatic. I could not tear my eyes away from the screen and I am sure I must have unconsciously held my breath for long seconds during the many poignant and suspenseful scenes.

Set in late Victorian England, the story is about a young, penniless girl named Bella Ford (beautifully played by Embeth Davidtz) who arrives at the small industrial town of A- to look for her lover, Arch Wilson (Greg Wise) who has seduced her and left her destitute. She is found wandering in the night by a rural farmer, Mr Wainwright who takes pity on her and brings her home to stay with his family. She recovers her health and gradually adjusts to life with the Wainwrights. But she did not count on the 3 sons of the family (Jedd, Con and Matty) falling in love with her. Jedd (James Purefoy) is a soldier, smooth-tongued and quite the ladies man. Con (Ben Chaplin) is quiet, strong-willed and a loner. The youngest, Matty (Kenneth Anderson) is an industrious man who makes beautiful leather shoes. The matriach of the family (played by Gemma Jones) only very reluctantly accepts Bella into her family because she foresees that Bella can cause trouble among her 3 sons. Each son has his own way of courting Bella and only one will eventually win her heart. And just when the future appears to look rosy for Bella, she crosses path with her past lover, Arch Wilson (a most despicable scoundrel), resulting in violence and tragedy for all concerned.

I cannot remember the last time I cried so much at a movie. It is not just the eventual tragic scene. The romantic scenes (guess which son?) are wonderful and so full of beauty and passion that I felt so happy, I cried! Tears sprang to my eyes during the marriage proposal scene - in that suspenseful moment when I thought Bella might just say "no" and cause a major heartbreak, I must have stopped breathing! After an incredibly long silence, when Bella finally speaks, my tears just flowed from sheer happiness and relief.

I was sorry the movie did not end happily but I knew the ending will be tragic so I was 'prepared'. Though sad, I felt that the ending was appropriate as it reminds me of the saying that "It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all." And Bella has loved and been truly loved in return.

This movie was made in 1996 and executive-produced by the incomparable Merchant-Ivory team. I feel that Embeth Davidtz deserves an Oscar nomination for her flawless, heartbreaking performance here. She is so beautiful and talented, but yet is so under-rated. And I must gush about Ben Chaplin who is absolutely brilliant in this film (and really good-looking too!). You can tell both actors have put their whole heart and soul into playing their characters.

This movie affected me deeply and I had to write this review in the hope of getting some of the "emotions" out of my system. But I will never forget this wonderful film and the beautiful performances. The DVD does not have any special features but it has subtitles for those who require it. The picture and sound qualities are excellent. This sumptuous film is a must-watch and I highly recommend it!

Overlooked Merchant/Ivory.......2005-06-26

This is the hidden gem you are looking for. It spent about a week in the theaters and few have heard of it, but it is as good as Room with a View or Howard's End. Darker but deeper than both. Not as popular perhaps because the ending is tragic, but the story and acting are top-notch. Embeth Davitz is fabulous (and fabulous to look at). I will never understand why these wonderful period actresses come and go with barely a whisper, while sub-mediocre actresses like Nicole Kidman and Julia Roberts prosper. Titanic makes a billion and this movie makes almost nothing. Flee the topsy-turvy world and buy this movie. It is a great escape to quality and feeling.

feast of july --- my favorite movie that nobody knows.......2003-03-01

This is an amazing film --- exquisitely executed, shot and acted with a simple story and gorgeous period detail --- both Embeth Davidz & Ben Chaplin are brilliant.
I saw this movie twice in the theatres because it was such a "gem" and then nobody was interested --probably because there were no stars in it --- but see it,,,,it's a tragic and beautiful love story. Pay special attention to the cinematography which is extraordinary.
steven

feast for the heart.......2002-11-18

This movie is one of the few that made me cry! I was pleasantly surprised to see Davidtz in a more compassionate and warm character than the one we remember as 'Natasha' from 'Bridget Jones's Diary'....the costumes were lovely in this film, and although the character goes through so much burden, she comes out on top with strength and understanding. A touching film that moves the heart.

Purefoy a Delight in Feast.......2001-06-06

I mainly bought this film to see James Purefoy. Purefoy did a masterful job as the charming yet bossy older brother in his small role. This film was vintage Merchant Ivory in terms of the lovely scenery and great costuming. The film also had a tragic story in rural England Thomas Hardy type quality reminiscent of Tess of the D'Urbervilles and The Woodlanders, eventhough this is not a Hardy story. I'm glad I got the film, but be prepared for an unhappy ending.

Average customer rating:

Intelligent and absurdist filmmaking -- you will walk away smiling and thinking
Wonderful movie, indifferent transfer
Deeply Felt
"Trouble and Desire" = Another Terrific Hartley Project
poor effort

Simple Men
Starring: Robert John Burke , Bill Sage , Karen Sillas , Elina Löwensohn , and Martin Donovan (II)
Director: Hal Hartley
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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