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Talk about too little, too late. A year after Stephen Frears's marvelous Dangerous Liaisons, Milos Forman released Valmont, based on the same story. Shot at the same time but held so as not to compete, it suffered by comparison. The story--about a pair of aristocrats, former lovers, who wager that the man cannot seduce a particularly chaste woman--is still awash in lust and intrigue. But, while Forman's craft was exceptional, his cast couldn't match the power of its predecessor. In particular, Colin Firth, as the game-playing title character, lacked the snaky charm of John Malkovich, and Meg Tilly couldn't compare to the tragic beauty of Michelle Pfeiffer. Annette Bening, though born to play a vixen, seemed callow and insubstantial next to the sinister depths of Glenn Close. --Marshall Fine
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Valmont [VHS] Reviews
Valmont [VHS] Reviews
| 155 of 163 people found the following review helpful  I Like It Better than "Dangerous Liaisons (DL)"!, By anna-joelle (Malaysia) - See all my reviews This review is from: Valmont [VHS] (VHS Tape) Both "Valmont" and "DL" have their own merits.... but I personally find "Valmont" to be the better movie. REASONS:1) Its perfect casting - especially Fairuza Balk as the extremely naive and innocent 15-year old Cecile. You must watch this movie to find out just how wonderfully charming and adoring she is. By comparison, Uma Thurman's "Cecile" in "DL" seems too old and sophisticated for the character. Annette Benning is also brilliant as the calculating and scheming "de Merteuil". In "Valmont", de Merteuil appears more human - she shows both her good and bad sides i.e. she's not ALL bad/evil like Glenn Glose's portrayal of the character in "DL". Colin Firth also makes for a more likeable and dashing Valmont than John Malkovich in "DL". I find Glenn Close and John Malkovich's portrayals to be too "scary" for anyone to be genuinely attracted to them. Their characters seem a little... Read more 64 of 68 people found the following review helpful  An Exquisitely Beautiful Film, By Amazon Verified Purchase This review is from: Valmont (DVD) "Valmont" is one of my favorite films of all time. It is so lovely to look at, with lavish sets, lovely country locations, exquisitely crafted costumes, and brilliant production design, that I have literally watched it over and over again. When you watch this movie, you are transported into the luxury of 17th Century aristocratic France. It also skillfully integrates music into the production, when Cecile and Madame de Merteuile go to the Opera, or when Cecile is performing songs with her harp. Of course, I want to make it clear to you right now that all reviews claiming that "Dangerous Liaisons" is a better film than Valmont are dead wrong! It is truly a tragic circumstance when a film as beautiful as "Valmont" is overlooked because of an inferior product such as "DL", just because "DL" came out first. Colin Firth is so much more likeable and dashing than John Malkovich. Annette Bening is much better than Glenn Close. In fact, the entire cast is perfect, as is every other detail of... Read more 35 of 36 people found the following review helpful Sexual decadence before the time of the guillotine, By This review is from: Valmont [VHS] (VHS Tape) I liked this better than Dangerous Liaisons which came out at about the same time. Of course Dangerous Liaisons was very good, and John Malkovich, who played Vicomte de Valmont, is an actor of power, and Glenn Close, who played the Marquise de Merteuil, is highly accomplished, but I preferred the charm of Colin Firth in this film to the brutality of Malkovich, and I thought Annette Bening was just delightful. She played Merteuil with exquisite timing and an ironic witchery and warmth that I shall not soon forget. I preferred her playful, sly wit to Close's cool cynicism.The story comes from a novel by Choderlos de Laclos set in 18th century France that was made into a stage play by Christopher Hampton. It is a cynical satire on human sexuality as well as a very subtle examination of sexual hypocrisy and desire, a kind of oh so sophisticated laugh at bourgeois morality that would have delighted Voltaire and Moliere and greatly amused Shakespeare. It is a tale of elaborate... Read more |
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