The Pillow Book

Starring:Vivian Wu, Yoshi Oida, Ken Ogata, Hideko Yoshida, Ewan McGregor, Judy Ongg, Ken Mitsuishi, Yutaka Honda, Barbara Lott, Lynne Langdon, Miwako Kawai, Chizuru Ohnishi, Shiho Takamatsu, Aki Ishimaru, Hisashi Hidaka, Dehong Chen, Ham-Chau Luong, Akihiko Nishida, Kentaro Matsuo, Nguyen Duc Nhan
Director: Peter Greenaway
Studio: Sony Pictures
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

The law of diminishing returns: It's the law--obey it! Someone should have posted that sign on the set of this, the third sequel to the film based on the DC Comics superhero. The "IV" in the title refers to medical supplies needed to resuscitate this anemic retread. This one reportedly was a pet project of actor Christopher Reeve, whose career seemed to flounder whenever he tried a role minus the blue underwear and red cape. Before agreeing to don the suit one more time, he insisted on a script that preached nuclear disarmament. So, in this film, Superman rounds up all the missiles and warheads and flings them into outer space. Which still leaves him to contend with Lex Luthor, who has a secret weapon: Nuclear Man. Yawn. Having pushed the envelope of special effects in the first film, it seemed as if the filmmakers simply stopped trying with this one. --Marshall Fine

Description

Christopher Reeve not only dons the title hero's cape for the fourth time but also helped develop the movie's provocative theme: nuclear disarmament. "For me, it's the most personal of the entire series," Reeve said. "It directly reflects what Superman should be, and should be doing." Superman does a lot this time around. To make the world safe for nuclear arms merchants, Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman) creates a new being to challenge the Man of Steel: the radiation-charged Nuclear Man (Mark Pillow). The two foes clash in an explosive extravaganza that sees Superman save the Statue of Liberty, plug a volcanic eruption of Mount Etna and rebuild the demolished Great Wall of China. Your quest for excitement is over!

Customer Reviews:

Poor film, Lots of deleted scenes!.......2007-06-06

Even though this is the silliest superman sequel, for a true and loyal superman fan this dvd is a must-have. Of all the recently released superman deluxe editions this one has the most deleted scenes of all. You get to see half an hour of scenes never seen before, some of which are pretty good. I like the extended flying scene and a typical Clark Kent's morning. The alternate version of Nuclear Guy looks very ugly and dumb. Thank God Mark Pillow ended playing it in the final cut. There are more fight scenes that were deleted and overall the studios really packed a good deluxe edition.

The Quest for CHEESE.......2007-04-23

I recently bought the Superman DVD box set. I can't remember ever watching this sequel.. and WOW is this BAD! The story would make a mediocre comic book, which this movie reminded me of.. Nuclear Man? I can say the idea is cool.. But the way in which this character is created is way absurd. Nuclear dude and Stupidman have a most ridiculous fight on the moon which is half bar room saloon stuff to half the 3 Stooges (Nuke dude hammers Superman into the moon like a golf tee)

When Nukeman kidnaps the girl Hemingway and flies her into space was way beyond STUPIDO! Superman fights Nucleardude and gets Hemingway and flies her back to Earth and comes back to fight Nukenerd more without any explanation how Hemingway didn't explode on re-entry or how she was breathing in space.

Most interesting about this DVD is the deleted scenes. These incredibly are some of the best extras on any DVD I seen. They show a complete sub-story of whom I assume is Bizarro. When Lex steals Superman's hair, I thought he would make a crude clone of Superman i.e. Bizarro. But no we get a badly conceived Nuclear Man. The deleted clips show a completely deleted idea of the creation of Bizarro. The actor of Bizarro is over-doing it and played out as a comic interlude. Even if he were not deleted he is killed off quickly as plot device to get to Nuclear Man. Unfortunate they made so many mistakes with Bizarro since the entire movie should have been about him, preferably played out a tad more seriously. The complications of Superman dealing with his evil clone, make for a better movie than the cheesy save the world from nuclear war story.

The special effects are SO BAD, I can see the ropes when Superman flies, and cutouts of the moon look like bad Photoshop. The parts when Superman and Lois fly all over the world- might be the cheesiest scenes in movie history.

Boggles the mind.......2007-02-05

1987's "Superman IV" made an attempt to return to the tradition of the first two Superman films, and steered away from the awful "Superman III," which was the most disappointing sequel in the history of film. But while it suceeded there, somewhat, it was actually more ludicrous than III in other ways. At least III didn't have Earth humans breathing on their own in space. Since this movie wasn't supposed to be a spoof, why would they just sit back and let this film be released with humans breathing in space? What were they thinking when they filmed that scene? Let alone when they allowed it to be released that way. You even see filmmakers today doing similiar things with today's movies. This is the most mind-boggling thing.

Superman IV: The Craps for Pee.......2007-01-21

I found 3 reasons to hate this movie
3. You can't watch Superman Returns if you watch this.
2. Nuclear Man, they had Bizzaro in the movie but they replaced him with a blond haired weirdo that never even appered in the comic adaption.
and 1. Weak plot, it sounded like a good plot for a 60's Batman movie sequal (I still want a DVD release of the TV show though) but not for a Superman movie. Sorry Christopher Reeve (He made the Plot) it's just too campy for even Adam West's Batman.
Though I can't wait until the NEW Superman Movie for 2009, do NOT watch this movie.

Depressing end to the Chris Reeve Superman films.......2007-01-16

Superman 4 was conceived by Chris Reeve as a great return to the orignal quality of the first 2 and hopefully to get the sour taste out of everyone's mouth's of Superman 3. What was delivered is a movie in shambles filled with plot holes galore and literally a fun house of 2nd rate special effects. The budget for Superman 4 was slashed in half by the now non-existant Golan Globus and the effects in this film are actually worse than what you saw in Superman the movie even though it was released 9 years prior to Superman 4. The plot is terrible Chris Reeve conceived a story about Superman saving the world from nuclear war by disarming the planet. Not a bad idea but the screenwriters did an awful job building upon that concept. The commentary by Mark Rosenthal one of the screenwriters is worth a listen because he is honest about just how awful the film is and tries to defend very little about just how lousy the production of the film was. Overall lousy movie and a tragic end to Chris Reeve's legendary portrayal of the Man Of Steel.

Average customer rating:

About the DVD release
Sensual and Erotic
See it
Not bad, but lackluster for Greenaway.
Beautiful and intriguing

The Pillow Book
Starring: Vivian Wu , Yoshi Oida , Ken Ogata , Hideko Yoshida , and Ewan McGregor
Director: Peter Greenaway
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 0767819772
Release Date: 1998-12-15

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

Customer Reviews:

About the DVD release.......2007-05-14

This is a great movie and i love Greenaway.
But iam very very disappointed that the viedo transfer quality is so bad.
This release has the worst transfer in my over 2000 dvd collection.

Sensual and Erotic.......2007-04-19

"The Pillow Book"

Sensual and Erotic

Amos Lassen and Cinema Pride

To describe "The Pillow Book" is a very difficult task. Is it exotic or is it erotic or maybe both? It is sensual, delicate and beautiful. The music is mysterious and the cinematography is stunning.
As a young girl in Japan, Nagiko's father paints characters on her face. Her aunt reads to her from "The Pillow Book" which was the diary of a lady-in-waiting during the tenth century. As Nagiko grows up she is obsessed with papers, books, and writings. Her sexual odyssey (and her own "Pillow Book") is a combination of modern Chinese, classical Japanese and Western film images.
At the beginning of the movie we see a little girl being written upon by her father. We then shift to see the girl as an adult who s looking for lovers who will write on her body once again. She meets a bisexual Englishman who also enjoys being written upon and she learns that he was once the former lover of a man who had once betrayed her father.
This is one of those rare films that transcend the limitations of film and text and this is probably due to its handling by Peter Greenaway. The movie is loosely based on writings from the tenth century of the imperial court observer, Sei Shonagon. Greenaway brings a visual feast to the screen that uses stunning sets and the physical beauty of actors Vivian Wu and Ewan McGregor as well as the ancient and modern writing systems that are known as the art of calligraphy.
What Greenaway does so brilliantly is to incorporate art, numbers, books and architecture into film. As a young child Nagiko celebrated her birthday by having her father write the story of creation on her face. With adulthood and marriage, her husband was neither interested nor did he want to continue this tradition. When she becomes frustrated that she cannot find a lover who is also a good calligrapher, she finally meets a bisexual translator, Jerome (McGregor). Who offers himself to her as a living canvas for her erotic creativity. Nagiko is inspired by the chance to get revenge on a publisher who had once blackmailed her father when she learns that Jerome's lover is the very same man. She creates the ultimate love poem which she illuminates in red, gold and black characters and delivers it to the publisher on Jerome's naked body.
This s pure visual eroticism and the story revels in the binaries of both the profane and the grotesque but it also is a delight for the eye in the way that Greenaway is able to translate a vision of both love and horror in a single statement of pure physical beauty and very passionate sexuality. Sometimes the beauty of the film detracts from the ability to concentrate on what is actually happening. Vivian Wu as Nagiko is very good and so is McGregor. This is quite a different role than he usually plays but he does a good job--and he also looks good naked. His character is innocent and gullible while Nagiko is very strong and overpowering.
As a film "The Pillow Book" is an erotic masterpiece. It unravels like a scroll and it teases and excites with floating images. Our attention is captured from the very start and our emotions are toyed with. Watching this film is an experience for the senses in which the ending is beautifully done. You will feel enchanted, perhaps even hypnotized by the film and if you like sensual eroticism, this is the film to see.

See it.......2007-03-10

A different sort of story. Creative. Worth seeing. Sometimes difficult to read the captions on TV. Still worth seeing. Beautiful photography. Not for children generally, but not offensive. Rare comfortablness with male nudity without being sexual or pornographic. If "five" is reserved for the absolute "best" ever, then this is a four; otherwise I'd have given it a five.

Not bad, but lackluster for Greenaway........2007-01-04

The Pillow Book (Peter Greenaway, 1996)

I've long had a hypothesis that every bad actor gets one good movie; Julia Roberts has Flatliners, Kevin Costner A Perfect World, Albert Brooks Taxi Driver. I've been trying to figure out for a number of years now whether Ewan MacGregor used up his allowance with Little Voice or not, and every once in a while I check out another Ewan MacGregor flick to see if it's the good one. The Pillow Book is not it, though it's the first of his films I've seen that at least achieves the same level of competence and watchability as Little Voice.

Peter Greenaway is known for creating plotless swirls of artistic film, and The Pillow Book did little to damage this reputation. It's less of a plot-based film than an extended character study of Nagiko (The Last Emperor's Vivian Wu), a woman obsessed with Sei Shonagon's erotic masterpiece The Pillow Book and determined to create a version of her own. During the course of her exploits, she meets Jerome (MacGregor), and the two start a tumultuous relationship. Nagiko has been trying to get her writing published by a top Japanese publishing house, headed by a character we know only as The Publisher (Madame Butterfly's Yoshi Oida), and is continually frustrated; Jerome hatches the idea of submitting her work not on paper, but on the bodies of men. Hilarity ensues.

As with all Greenaway's movies, this is quite nice to look at, but it's got that empty calorie feeling to it; you enjoy it while it lasts, but it's not filling, and you feel vaguely guilty for having consumed so much of it at once without really remembering what it tastes like. ** ½

Beautiful and intriguing.......2006-11-11

I should start by saying I'm a huge Ewan McGregor fan, so that was one aspect of this film that I enjoyed. The Pillow Book is lovely and tender as a father lovingly applies the calligraphy to his daughter, Nagiko's face each year on her birthday. With Jerome, her first choice of calligrapher in adulthood, she finds a wonderful lover, a less than acceptable writer, the perfect canvas for her book, and a link to unsavory character who brought her father so much pain. I don't want to give away too much, but this movie kept my attention throughout! If you are uncomfortable with full frontal nudity (both male and female), this movie will likely make you quite uncomfortable! But for all the rest, I highly recommend it - especially for Ewan McGregor fans.

Average customer rating:

Poor film, Lots of deleted scenes!
The Quest for CHEESE
Boggles the mind
Superman IV: The Craps for Pee
Depressing end to the Chris Reeve Superman films

Superman IV - The Quest for Peace
Starring: Christopher Reeve , Gene Hackman , Jackie Cooper , Marc McClure , and Jon Cryer
Director: Sidney J. Furie
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000059XUK
Release Date: 2001-05-01

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Customer Reviews:

Poor film, Lots of deleted scenes!.......2007-06-06

The Quest for CHEESE.......2007-04-23

Boggles the mind.......2007-02-05

Superman IV: The Craps for Pee.......2007-01-21

Depressing end to the Chris Reeve Superman films.......2007-01-16

El Libro De Cabecera (The Pillow Book) [NTSC/REGION 1 & 4 DVD. Import-Latin America]

Average customer rating:

El Libro De Cabecera (The Pillow Book) [NTSC/REGION 1 & 4 DVD. Import-Latin America]
Director: Peter Greenaway
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Average customer rating:

About the DVD release
Sensual and Erotic
See it
Not bad, but lackluster for Greenaway.
Beautiful and intriguing

The Pillow Book [Region 2]
Starring: Vivian Wu , Yoshi Oida , Ken Ogata , Hideko Yoshida , and Ewan McGregor
Director: Peter Greenaway
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

( P ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Velvet Goldmine
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ASIN: B00004CZOM

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Customer Reviews:

About the DVD release.......2007-05-14

This is a great movie and i love Greenaway.
But iam very very disappointed that the viedo transfer quality is so bad.
This release has the worst transfer in my over 2000 dvd collection.

Sensual and Erotic.......2007-04-19

See it.......2007-03-10

Not bad, but lackluster for Greenaway........2007-01-04

Beautiful and intriguing.......2006-11-11

The Pillow Book in English Multizonal Edition

Average customer rating:

The Pillow Book in English Multizonal Edition

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Product Description

Sleeves In portuguese, audio in English, optional subtitles in English Spanish and Portugues

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