 |  | As wonderful as the book!!! |  |
This an absolutely beautiful movie equal to the extraordinary book. Although touted as "sexual" in nature this magnificent film is about life and struggles.Inspiring & uplifting ..a reminder of the truly important things in life.
July 1, 2008I have no idea how I was talked into watching this movie. I totally believe this was a waste of good film-and a lot of it. A young Daniel Day Lewis with a hipper Fonz impersonation and a whiney Juliette Binoche. Only Lena Olin was worth watching, but not for any depth or anything. This film actually made a communist invasion dull. I absolutely didn't care for this couple. Below par acting, horrible direction, terrible editing, annoying soundtrack and dialogue so bad I think someone should take away the screenwriter's guild card. Don't waste your time on this one.
May 22, 2008| | | "UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS OF BEING" MOVIE REVIEW BY MICHAEL ELLIANO | |
Prepare to be enlightened. This is what movie making was supposed to be about. The movie and characters draw you in for different reasons and gives you a taste of one of the most sexual (not dirty) movies ever put on screen. Temptation, reality, and real history mixed into one. A movie for the senses for those that enjoy good filmmaking. A top one hundred film of all time. A movie that will add to any movie collection and change your taste in movies forever.
March 18, 2008The Unbearable Lightness of Being is a masterpiece, the most underrated American film of the past 30 years. Poetic, haunting, subtle, and terribly sad, it says more about the crushing impact of repressive (i.e. communist) regimes than a thousand documanteries or inflammatory speeches could tell. While idealizing the free-wheeling Prague of the late 60's the film also examines the emptiness of such a non-commital lifestyle- the unbearable lightness. If this all sounds very somber, ULOB is also one of the sexiest films you will ever see, and one of the few intelligent studies of sex in cinema. More surprisingly, it is a heartbreaking romance. Like a great novel, ULOB grows on you, and you'll hate to see the characters leave you at the end. Perfectly acted by its then unknown leads, and beautifully photographed, this is a film to grow old with.
October 26, 2007| | | Read the novel then watch the film. | |
It is unfortunate this film is no longer in print. Set in 1968 Prague, and based on Milan Kundera's best-known novel, The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1984), this faithful film adaptation (by Jean-Claude Carrière and Philip Kaufman) tells the captivating story of a womanizing brain surgeon, Tomas (Daniel Day-Lewis), who loses his employment because he is critical of Czech Communism (he compared the Soviets to Oedipus Rex). He has had more than 200 lovers in his lifetime, and is determined to live his life unfettered by things like commitment. "Kundera's Quartet" of characters also includes Tomas's photographer wife, Tereza (Juliette Binoche), his painter mistress, Sabina (Lena Olin), and her academic lover, Franz (Derek de Lint). The title of the film refers to Kundera's idea that because we only live once, our lives are insignificant, and our decisions do not matter. Because our decisions do not matter, existence seems to lose its substance or weight, making our being unbearable. Tomas represents this philosophy in the film. He feels that nothing matters, that his life has the lightness of mortality. Conversely, enigmatic Tereza carries with her the weight of the world and is heavily impacted by life. She does not judge Tomas for his infidelities, because she knows that although he sleeps with many women, he loves only her. She is fond of animals, particularly her dog, Karenin, and a pig named Mefisto. Her relationship with Tomas is the center of the film. After meeting her by chance, Tomas gradually begins to understand through his love for Tereza that, because we only live once, everything matters. The inscription on his grave reads, "He wanted the Kingdom of God on Earth." Sabina lives her life in opposition to "kitsch" in any form, whether it is domesticity, unoriginality, mediocrity, or untruth. Her lover, Franz is a Geneva professor who seeks lightness of being through books and academia, which Sabina also considers kitsch. The Unbearable Lightness of Being is a profoundly-moving film, and among my top ten favorite novels of the last 25 years. Day-Lewis, Binoche, and Olin all bring Oscar-worthy performances to the nearly three-hour-long film.
G. Merritt
September 17, 2007More reviews at Amazon.com ...
Daily Birthdays
(104 reviews)