Another 9 1/2 Weeks (1997)

Mickey Rourke moans and tries to look deep and meaningful in this unnecessary sequel to that 1984 steamy sexcapade. Kim Basinger did little in the original but look gorgeous and shed her clothes. That said, her performance positively shines next to the moribund Angie Everhart. Rourke is abusive, as he chases Everhart around Paris while ostensibly looking for his girlfriend. Eventually, he and Everhart have nonerotic, unappealing sex. There is much mumbling, pouting, and ineffective arty shots of the city. If you really crave obsessive, sadomasochistic sex, watch the original. --Rochelle O'Gorman Amazon.com

John, I don't get it either...

Okay, I'm going to go ahead and get the shallow part of my review out of the way.

Jesus Christ!!! Why, Mickey, why!!! In the original 9 1/2 Weeks, Mickey Rourke was a breathtakingly gorgeous man. Not only was he beyond handsome...he was really, really sexy. The movie overall was beautiful. There was this gorgeous, but simple monochromatic color theme that ran through the entire movie. It was so pleasing to the eye, and added to the movie itself.

Well, over a decade later Mickey looks like he's gotten beaten with the ugly stick...beaten badly. He looks terrible. So, that's your first major disapointment as soon as the movie comes on. All you can do is look at John and think of what he once looked like. The whole "russian roulette" thing seems cliched and makes John looks pathetic. Also annoying is the hooker. As she's leaving, she turns and asks John who Elizabeth is, since he kept calling her that the previous night. Now, if she had asked in a insulting, teasing manner...it might have been more realistic. No, the hooker is genuinely curious, judging by her tone. Tell, why would a hooker give a damn? She got paid, right? It feels as if they're trying to force us to realize that this is definitely a sequel...despite the oh-so-obvious title, and the recreated scene with the blade. So, those two little events are enough to cast some doubt on the movie right away.

So, the movie, as one reviewer already said, shows us the dirty gritty side of a historical and beautiful city. This film, even with its high fashion and models, is no where near the aesthetic caliber of the first film. Really, the whole fashion world theme doesn't even fit well with the theme of 9 1/2 Weeks.

There are also rehashed scenes...the blade thing at the beginning, the running through the seedy underbelly of the city and getting it on, the whole food thing. And yes, I know Lea is supposed to be intentionally getting John to relive these incidents that she read about in Elizabeth's journal, only with her instead. But, it all just feels like a poor excuse to try the same trick twice. Example: In the first one, that scene where John pours honey all over Elizabeth...I literally found myself near gasping for air because in my utter amazement, I'd stopped breathing. During this movie, when he's pouring wine and something syrupy looking on Lea, all I could think about was how messy and sticky that looked, and how that would be awful that would be to clean up. Not the intended effect I'm sure. Plus, the storyline of Claire and her boyfriend- unnecessary.

The only thing that had me mezmerized was Angie Everhart (Lea). I could not stop watching her...and I'm a girl. She is past beautiful. Her movements, her actions...wow. Yeah, she'd really want Mickey.I swear, when she and Claire were pulling his trousers off, I turned into a five year old momentarily, and covered my eyes. Because that's how much I want to see late-90's Mickey Rourke in his briefs.

Mid-80's Rourke, and I'd have given my right arm to be one of those chicks helping him out of those trousers. June 11, 2007

What became of John and Elizabeth

"Another 9 1/2 Weeks" shows us what became of John (Mickey Rourke) and Elizabeth. The sequel takes place about a decade after its first part where an older John Gray goes to Paris in search for clues to what became of the woman he fell in love with. There, he meets Elizabeth's friend Lea who knows a lot about him - and still wants to be with him. She wants excitement and thinks she just might even be too much for him. So this time the game of cat and mouse is not one sided, as she has a wild side to match his to make some sparks fly.

John isn't entirely the same man he once was, as his mind is still on his past. He is man of remorse and was never the same after Elizabeth left him. I found part of the storyline sad because he loved someone and knows she is gone from his life because of his own actions. Part of him seemed to want to make the past live on, and it did in his thoughts, but they really tormented him. This part of the story really struck a cord and made me reflect on my own life.

John thinking of Elizabeth and Lea knowing about his past doesn't stop them from developing a strange romance. She wants the thrills and dominating man she heard about. "Another 9 1/2 Weeks" didn't have the same level of suspense as "9 1/2 Weeks," but it definitely has some excitement and erotic moments like the first part. It was a more somber film that gives some conclusion to what happened to that once passionate couple and how both their lives were never the same. From there, this new romance leaves us with something to reflect on.
July 11, 2006

Not a Masterpiece, But Deserves Some Respect

As a sequel, there's a few things I respect about "Another 9 1/2 Weeks".
One: They didn't try to replace the same characters with different actors.
Two: They created a new story line based on the old one.
Three: Mickey Rourke is back.
Four: They didn't try to write off the character Elizabeth from the first one.
Usually in sequels (especially straight-to-video ones) they do the opposite of the above. It's a bunch of different actors playing the same characters and other characters have been forgotten about. Anyway, this movie isn't half as good as the first one; but it is entertaining. As for the people who call it mainstream "soft-core porn". I have to say that the first movie had more sex and nudity, then this film did. Anyway, Mickey Rourke returns as John, the millionaire from the first movie who can't rekindle the feelings he felt for Elizabeth (who was played by Kim Basinger) in the first film. After trying to recreate an experience from the first movie with a hooker, in the opening sequence, John flips through a catalouge of painting in Paris and finds Elizabeth's name. John hops on a plane and ends up buying all of her paintings. Then, John sees a beautiful woman wearing a scarf he had given Elizabeth. After approaching the woman, John discovers that she is Lea (Angie Everhart, who is hotter than Kim Basinger OK?), Elizabeth's best friend. As John tries to get Lea to tell him where Elizabeth is, he begins an affair with her which isn't even as erotic and romantic as the one in the original. But, yeah, I mean you have to give this movie credit as far as sequels go. Mickey Rourke, who's career was floundering at this point and has had great success since then with movies like "Sin City" & "Domino",
is excellent as John. Simalar to Sharon Stone being the only one to play Catherine is "Basic Instinct"; it's the same with Rourke as John. This certainly isn't an essential movie for one's collection, but it's not as bad as people make it out to be.

GRADE: B-
May 12, 2006

Sex and Carma Literly

If you are a fan of Mickey like I am then you will know just how special his movies are.
This one was better than the first his girl that he was with was better and hotter and the BMW Z3 was just cool the plot was hotter and it left me with a high motivation.
Yes he is older and a litte more aged in this movie but it is still Mickey so enjoy it.
It is worth all the $5.60 you will love it. October 11, 2005

bad movie

Not even a "B" movie. The first film was awsome. This one sux! July 17, 2005

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