Max-von-Sydow Movie Reviews

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VHS movie reviews for "Max-von-Sydow" sorted by average review score:
Hawaii
Released in VHS Tape by Mgm/Ua Studios (16 July, 1996)
MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Director: George Roy Hill
Starring: Julie Andrews, Max von Sydow, and Richard Harris
George Roy Hill (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) directed this adaptation of James Michener's novel about the history of the 50th state. Max von Sydow plays a zealous missionary with a Calvinist bent, intent on enlightening the natives even as his wife (Julie Andrews) is romanced by the dashing Richard Harris. The film is both a glossy vision of Hawaii in the early 19th century and a sometimes-brutal drama full of death, a rough childbirth, stormy weather, etc. Hill's blunt editing, meant to emphasize the more terrifying aspects of the natural order of life, makes the film look particularly dated and mannered today. This is best appreciated for its cast, all of whom were making inroads in Hollywood at the time. --Tom Keogh
Average review score:

An American Tale
George Roy Hill's "Hawaii" (actually,like "Gone With The Wind", it was completed by several directors)is a splendid example of Hollywood epic narrative at its best.That it is so much less well known than the rather soggy "Dr.Zhivago", done the previous year, is incomprehensible, except perhaps as a testament to the truth of P.T. Barnum's famous comment about American popular taste. This comparison is particularly apt, because "Hawaii" has a great deal more to say about American verve and energy -- both its laudable desire to improve the world, and its darker tendency to dominate it -- than the David Lean film has to tell us about the Russian Revolution.Max von Sydow is nothing short of transcendent as Reverend Abner Hale, who has to rank as the least likable or approachable hero ever to inhabit the center of an American epic film. (Scarlett O'Hara, with her husband-stealing and attempted fornication, was a piker next to a man who denies spiritual comfort to a sailor who just saved a ship from wrecking,and who prays for the death of a new-born baby because it was "conceived in sin".)Sydow accomplishes something almost impossible, something that Nathaniel Hawthorne,that great poet of the Puritan tradition, would have understood perfectly: showing how a narrow, humorless man, motivated by pure righteousness,can do great harm AND great good at the same time. The fervor that leads Hale to cruelly demand the end of the incestuous -- and utterly loving -- marriage of Malama and Keoki Kanakoa is the SAME force that leads him to teach the Hawaiian people to read, to save unwanted babies from being put to death,and to protect the rights of the Hawaiian people to their lands.(How the devil did the Academy miss this performance when selecting the Best Actor nominees for 1966?)I might add that this is a lesson in the complexity of cultural imperialism which is especially needed right now, when the U.S. is preparing to remake the world in its image by force with an intensity that might have given even those New England mission folk pause.
The rest of the cast is equally superb.Julie Andrews, as Hale's wife Jerusha, manages to convey the strength of a woman who finds the loving qualities in a man who seems to lack them with a sweet sincerity that has no whiff of feminism-avant-la-lettre about it. Jocelyne La Garde as the Alii Nui (Queen)of Maui, Malama, is so lovable that you FEEL her eventual death as you would that of a dear friend.Even the smaller parts, such as Torin Thatcher as the mission director and Gene Hackman as the courageous, humanistic missionary John Whipple, are memorable.
This film also has some really lovely images and line readings in it.The sight of Mrs.Hale's worn face as she looks wordlessly down the country road after her son as he leaves for Hawaii, knowing that she will never see him again,is like an Andrew Wyeth painting.The transition of looks on Sydow's face at the end, when he meets the adult man whom Jerusha saved from death as a baby -- calling her to come out of the house, and then gradually remembering, through his mental fog, that the beloved wife he is calling has been dead for years -- is like a miniature recapitulation of the entire story we have just seen.But my favorite moment is the one where the mission representative asks Hale how he can bear to stay on as an old man in Lahaina "without friends".Sydow looks at him, with the ageless wisdom of an Old Testament prophet,and says: "In this place I have known God, and Jerusha Bromley,and Ruth Malama Kanakoa; and beyond that a man has no need of friends." Anyone who can stay dry-eyed through that line is made of sterner stuff than I.
A treasure of a film , not to be missed.

Michener come alive
I own the VHS widescreen version of Hawaii. This is the uncut version with I think about 180 minutes. The film truly brings to life the characters in the first part of Michener's novels. Self-righteous missionary Abner Hale (Max von Sydow) is like I pictured him when I read the book. Julie Andrews also does a good job as wife Jerusha.

I am a native of Hawai'i, and I can suspend disbelief when looking at these fictional missionaries. Abner may be stereotyped, but he does come out as multi-dimensional and able to change over time. This helps to make him believable.

The second part of the novel was made into The Hawaiians, starring Charlton Heston, Geraldine Chaplin, Tina Chen and Mako. This film is more believable in some ways. Chen and Mako depict the Chinese immigrant couple in an authentic way. This film is often shown on TV, but it has NEVER been on commercial VHS, not to mention DVD.

I am waiting for DVD editions of both Hawaii and The Hawaiians: in a nice boxed set if possible. And I think the novel has enough material for one or two or three more films. But that is not as much a priority as trying to get DVDs of the ones already made.

THE RIGHT AND WRONG WAYS TO EVANGELIZE CHRIST!
"Hawaii" is a sprawling and episodic retelling of the mammoth book by James Michener. It is the story of the early Congregationalist missionaries to the Hawaiian islands. It is a story of fundamentalist intolerance, greed, abuse of power, yet is also a story of love, mercy and forgiveness. The beginning of the film is a bit uneven, but once the ship reaches the islands, all's well with the movie. Jocelyn LaGarde as the Malama, the Hawaiian matriarch is the cast standout. She is natural, funny and heartbreaking. I would count this film as one of the great religious movies of all time, since it deals with true dilemmas of faith: how religious faith can foster intolerance and contempt of others, and how missionaries must first accept their people as people, and not see them as potential converts. The last scene with the student and Max Von Sydow is a tear-jerker, and a great example of God's providential nature at work. The score by Elmer Bernstein is memorable as well.

Hawaii
Released in VHS Tape by Mgm/Ua Studios (13 November, 2001)
MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Director: George Roy Hill
Starring: Julie Andrews, Max von Sydow, and Richard Harris
George Roy Hill (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) directed this adaptation of James Michener's novel about the history of the 50th state. Max von Sydow plays a zealous missionary with a Calvinist bent, intent on enlightening the natives even as his wife (Julie Andrews) is romanced by the dashing Richard Harris. The film is both a glossy vision of Hawaii in the early 19th century and a sometimes-brutal drama full of death, a rough childbirth, stormy weather, etc. Hill's blunt editing, meant to emphasize the more terrifying aspects of the natural order of life, makes the film look particularly dated and mannered today. This is best appreciated for its cast, all of whom were making inroads in Hollywood at the time. --Tom Keogh
Average review score:

An American Tale
George Roy Hill's "Hawaii" (actually,like "Gone With The Wind", it was completed by several directors)is a splendid example of Hollywood epic narrative at its best.That it is so much less well known than the rather soggy "Dr.Zhivago", done the previous year, is incomprehensible, except perhaps as a testament to the truth of P.T. Barnum's famous comment about American popular taste. This comparison is particularly apt, because "Hawaii" has a great deal more to say about American verve and energy -- both its laudable desire to improve the world, and its darker tendency to dominate it -- than the David Lean film has to tell us about the Russian Revolution.Max von Sydow is nothing short of transcendent as Reverend Abner Hale, who has to rank as the least likable or approachable hero ever to inhabit the center of an American epic film. (Scarlett O'Hara, with her husband-stealing and attempted fornication, was a piker next to a man who denies spiritual comfort to a sailor who just saved a ship from wrecking,and who prays for the death of a new-born baby because it was "conceived in sin".)Sydow accomplishes something almost impossible, something that Nathaniel Hawthorne,that great poet of the Puritan tradition, would have understood perfectly: showing how a narrow, humorless man, motivated by pure righteousness,can do great harm AND great good at the same time. The fervor that leads Hale to cruelly demand the end of the incestuous -- and utterly loving -- marriage of Malama and Keoki Kanakoa is the SAME force that leads him to teach the Hawaiian people to read, to save unwanted babies from being put to death,and to protect the rights of the Hawaiian people to their lands.(How the devil did the Academy miss this performance when selecting the Best Actor nominees for 1966?)I might add that this is a lesson in the complexity of cultural imperialism which is especially needed right now, when the U.S. is preparing to remake the world in its image by force with an intensity that might have given even those New England mission folk pause.
The rest of the cast is equally superb.Julie Andrews, as Hale's wife Jerusha, manages to convey the strength of a woman who finds the loving qualities in a man who seems to lack them with a sweet sincerity that has no whiff of feminism-avant-la-lettre about it. Jocelyne La Garde as the Alii Nui (Queen)of Maui, Malama, is so lovable that you FEEL her eventual death as you would that of a dear friend.Even the smaller parts, such as Torin Thatcher as the mission director and Gene Hackman as the courageous, humanistic missionary John Whipple, are memorable.
This film also has some really lovely images and line readings in it.The sight of Mrs.Hale's worn face as she looks wordlessly down the country road after her son as he leaves for Hawaii, knowing that she will never see him again,is like an Andrew Wyeth painting.The transition of looks on Sydow's face at the end, when he meets the adult man whom Jerusha saved from death as a baby -- calling her to come out of the house, and then gradually remembering, through his mental fog, that the beloved wife he is calling has been dead for years -- is like a miniature recapitulation of the entire story we have just seen.But my favorite moment is the one where the mission representative asks Hale how he can bear to stay on as an old man in Lahaina "without friends".Sydow looks at him, with the ageless wisdom of an Old Testament prophet,and says: "In this place I have known God, and Jerusha Bromley,and Ruth Malama Kanakoa; and beyond that a man has no need of friends." Anyone who can stay dry-eyed through that line is made of sterner stuff than I.
A treasure of a film , not to be missed.

Michener come alive
I own the VHS widescreen version of Hawaii. This is the uncut version with I think about 180 minutes. The film truly brings to life the characters in the first part of Michener's novels. Self-righteous missionary Abner Hale (Max von Sydow) is like I pictured him when I read the book. Julie Andrews also does a good job as wife Jerusha.

I am a native of Hawai'i, and I can suspend disbelief when looking at these fictional missionaries. Abner may be stereotyped, but he does come out as multi-dimensional and able to change over time. This helps to make him believable.

The second part of the novel was made into The Hawaiians, starring Charlton Heston, Geraldine Chaplin, Tina Chen and Mako. This film is more believable in some ways. Chen and Mako depict the Chinese immigrant couple in an authentic way. This film is often shown on TV, but it has NEVER been on commercial VHS, not to mention DVD.

I am waiting for DVD editions of both Hawaii and The Hawaiians: in a nice boxed set if possible. And I think the novel has enough material for one or two or three more films. But that is not as much a priority as trying to get DVDs of the ones already made.

THE RIGHT AND WRONG WAYS TO EVANGELIZE CHRIST!
"Hawaii" is a sprawling and episodic retelling of the mammoth book by James Michener. It is the story of the early Congregationalist missionaries to the Hawaiian islands. It is a story of fundamentalist intolerance, greed, abuse of power, yet is also a story of love, mercy and forgiveness. The beginning of the film is a bit uneven, but once the ship reaches the islands, all's well with the movie. Jocelyn LaGarde as the Malama, the Hawaiian matriarch is the cast standout. She is natural, funny and heartbreaking. I would count this film as one of the great religious movies of all time, since it deals with true dilemmas of faith: how religious faith can foster intolerance and contempt of others, and how missionaries must first accept their people as people, and not see them as potential converts. The last scene with the student and Max Von Sydow is a tear-jerker, and a great example of God's providential nature at work. The score by Elmer Bernstein is memorable as well.

Pelle the Conqueror
Released in VHS Tape by Hbo Studios (05 February, 1992)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Starring: Von Sydow, Hvenegaard, and Max Von Sydow
Average review score:

Child is Father to Man
A poignant film -- lending credit to the expression that "child is father to man." With so many films being produced that explore the negative violence in mankind, it is refreshing to see a splendid film that relishes the wisdom in youth. Pelle allowed us to see the hope and strength that a new generation can bring to life. Although Pelle's father fell prey to his desires, Pelle struggled to keep his wits -- striving for something truly better. Pelle chose the hard road instead of always giving in to indugences.

This film would be an excellent choice as an initial exposure for young people to another genre of film. Yes -- there is more to life than the overly violent monters created for the big screen. Reality is much more compelling.

How can I find this film 12 years later?
I first saw this film in 1988 when it came out, and I saw it on Christmas day with my parents in Washington, D.C. I loved it, because it told me about the struggles of my ancestors. Now, as I prepare to take my mother and my little daughter to Sweden to retrace some of our family roots, I want to show them this film. But how can I find it? I can be reached at ellenhume@aol.com

Amazing movie but read the books for the full story.
Pelle the Conqueror is a great movie and can be seen as a movie that explains why Scandinavians migrated to the US. However the movie and the Martin Andersen Nexo books are really about the working class and what drove the Danes (and others) to set up the first labour unions. If you want to know what events made workers rebel, this is a movie that will show what went before labour rights in an inspiring and heart warming story.

The Best Intentions
Released in VHS Tape by Academy Home (27 October, 1993)
MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Director: Bille August
Starring: Samuel Fröler and Pernilla August
Average review score:

One of my favorite films
A big satisfying story of family and love. This is one of the best films ever. I've watched it three times and I never tire of the story or the richly drawn characters. The acting is superb. If you enjoy foreign films or family sagas, you'll love this film.

A staggering film.
A wonderfully-crafted film, stunning performances by Samuel Froler and Pernilla August, excellent supporting cast. Beautiful cinematography by Sven Nykvist. Ingmar Bergman's account of his parents early, troubled years of marriage.

a flawless masterpiece!
i am not a huge fan of either bille august or bergman but this could quite possibly be my most favorite film. Pernilla August is absolutely fabulous in this role. The complexities of the relationship between Henrik and Anna is astounding to me: she manipulates him, he hits her, but because they are doomed to love each other forever, it is as much of a balancing act as it is a true marriage. i must admit that i so wish i could get my hands on the six hour version because i hate wondering what i am missing in this story. but the version i have suits me just fine. Pernilla August will long be remembered for this film alone, more than STAR WARS, she outshines all the others in this film. thanx.

The Best Intentions
Released in VHS Tape by Fox Lorber (25 March, 1997)
MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Director: Bille August
Starring: Bille August, Samuel Fröler, and Pernilla August
Average review score:

One of my favorite films
A big satisfying story of family and love. This is one of the best films ever. I've watched it three times and I never tire of the story or the richly drawn characters. The acting is superb. If you enjoy foreign films or family sagas, you'll love this film.

A staggering film.
A wonderfully-crafted film, stunning performances by Samuel Froler and Pernilla August, excellent supporting cast. Beautiful cinematography by Sven Nykvist. Ingmar Bergman's account of his parents early, troubled years of marriage.

a flawless masterpiece!
i am not a huge fan of either bille august or bergman but this could quite possibly be my most favorite film. Pernilla August is absolutely fabulous in this role. The complexities of the relationship between Henrik and Anna is astounding to me: she manipulates him, he hits her, but because they are doomed to love each other forever, it is as much of a balancing act as it is a true marriage. i must admit that i so wish i could get my hands on the six hour version because i hate wondering what i am missing in this story. but the version i have suits me just fine. Pernilla August will long be remembered for this film alone, more than STAR WARS, she outshines all the others in this film. thanx.

Three Days of the Condor
Released in VHS Tape by Paramount Studio (15 August, 1991)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Director: Sydney Pollack
Starring: Robert Redford and Faye Dunaway
Robert Redford and Sydney Pollack continued their longtime collaboration (the actor and director have worked together on Jeremiah Johnson, The Way We Were, The Electric Horseman, and Out of Africa, among other films) with this taut spy drama. Redford plays a reader for U.S. intelligence who becomes a hunted man after he is not among the victims of a mass murder of his colleagues. Faye Dunaway does solid work as the frightened and mystified woman whom he forces to conceal him, and Max von Sydow is appropriately cool as a professional assassin. That same, sustained tone of danger and expectation that made Pollack's The Firm so much fun can be found in this 1975 thriller, albeit with an appropriate dose of post-Watergate paranoia. --Tom Keogh
Average review score:

PARANOID
Here are the seventies again ! At that time, Hollywood was ruled by such directors as Alan J. Pakula, John Frankenheimer or Sydney Pollack. The bad guys were the C.I.A., the F.B.I., the Big consortiums or the Army and the good guys had the face of Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Warren Beatty or John Doe. It was one of the only periods in the history of cinema during which Hollywood was the champion of morality. Alas, times change...

THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR stands very well the test of time with a solid plot involving a Faye Dunaway smiling for the first and last time in a motion picture, a Robert Redford gaining with this role a star status and a Max Von Sydow impersonating an official hitman. Nevertheless, there are a few gaps in the screenplay ; for instance, Robert Redford can a little bit too easily enter the Bell Central building and Faye Dunaway hasn't any difficulty to meet one of the C.I.A. big bosses. But, after all, it's only cinema !

THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR is a classic political thriller of above-average quality which deserves a place in every serious movie lover's library. Sound is very well balanced and clear and images reflect the sadness of an early winter.

A classic
This movie had me on the edge of my seat when I saw it when it first came out. You couldn't ask for more in a cast--it stars John Houseman, Cliff Robertson, Robert Redford, Faye Dunaway, and Max von Sydow. This is still one of the best movies in its category and beats a lot of the others in the genre hands down, including most of Tom Clancy's.

I saw the movie several years later and it still held up very well. If you like spy thrillers and haven't seen this one yet it's definitely worth renting for a lazy Saturday night.

A Quiet, Intelligent Movie
Like Klute, this is one of those thinking man's movies that works because of the actors. Little violence, much drama. Robert Redford is believable here as a bookish CIA type, and Faye Dunaway is excellent as a beautiful woman we all see on the streets, but hiding behind large clothes and hats.
I liked this movie a lot.

David Owens

Zentropa
Released in VHS Tape by Miramax (10 September, 1996)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Director: Lars von Trier
Starring: Jean-Marc Barr, Barbara Sukowa, and Udo Kier
Average review score:

A milestone in cinema, a gravestone for the human condition
Zentropa is simply the greatest film since "Citizen Kane." An American works as a sleeping-car conductor on a German railroad in late 1945. Viewers should note carefully the course of a dinner conversation early on in the film where neutrality is condemned by a priest: this is the theme of the film, with a profound relevance to today's political events. Try as he might, the American's attempts to be a understanding "nice guy" serve only to tighten the noose. Yet to be passionate and follow one's beliefs wherever they lead is shown to lead to disaster as well. We are doomed to go through the night of mass murder and war if we are to see the light of day.

The cinematography, utterly commensurate with the claustrophobic theme, brilliant in its conception, an encyclopedia of noire technique; most of the acting; and the conclusion, rivetingly harrowing as any in cinema--all come together in a magnificent work of art that belongs on the shelf of anyone who understands the power of cinema to speak to the heart and mind co-equally.

This is how movies are made...
"Zentropa" (or "Europa" as it is called in Europe) marks the end of Lars von Trier's (the director) Europe-trilogy, which started in 1986 with "The Element of Crime" followed by "Epedemic". "Zentropa" is a real film-noir in Hitchkock style. The movie, like the rest of the Europe-trilogy, was a co-production between Lars von Trier and Niels Vørsel; both great screenwriters.

The thing which is so special about "Zentropa" are: 1) It is made without ANY digital effects. 2) It is shoot in B/W. 3) All importent elements in the movie have colour (a thing Spielberg stole from Trier, when he made "Schientlers List"). 4) It has a great story. 5) It is a Trier film.

The cinematography is great, so is the acting; especially Max von S. is great. Also notice that Lars von Trier himself has a small role.

If you want to know more about this film, you should read the book "Lars von Triers elements". If you are just looking for some saturdaynight entertaintment...this is not what you want. However if you want so see a quality movie in world class, this is a modern classic... Don't miss it.

Follow the river...as days go by.
"You are not free not to choose". Kessler's efforts to remain in gray area makes him the only sinner in a railroad-hypnotic view of Germany right after WWII.

Hannah & Her Sisters
Released in VHS Tape by Orion Studios (16 November, 1994)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Director: Woody Allen
Starring: Woody Allen, Barbara Hershey, Michael Caine, Mia Farrow, and Dianne Wiest
Considered by many to be Woody Allen's best film, even over Annie Hall. Hannah and Her Sisters follows a multitude of characters: Hannah (Mia Farrow), who plays den mother to her extended family; her sister Lee (Barbara Hershey), emotional and a bit of a flake, who's involved with a much older artist (Max Von Sydow), who treats her like a child; and Hannah's other sister, Holly (Dianne Wiest), a neurotic who feels incapable of managing her life. Hannah's husband Elliot (Michael Caine) falls in love with Lee, which sets off a series of upheavals. Allen gives one of his best performances as Hannah's ex-husband Mickey, who--much like Allen himself--is obsessed with death and unhappiness. But a simple summary doesn't begin to capture the warmth and intimacy of this movie; though the story follows a capsizing family, the outcome is surprising, joyous, and richly human. --Bret Fetzer
Average review score:

Home For The Holidays
Woody Allen's "Hannah and Her Sisters" is one of my personal favorite films. Than again, many people see it as one of Allen's best films.
I think that along with "Crimes & Misdemeanors" this is one of Allen's best comedy\drama's and one of his best ensemble cast.
When I first saw this film, I didn't like it. All the characters story-lines tied up together, it just didn't seem interesting. Then one day I decided to watch the WHOLE film this time. As I watched it, I thought it was great. The acting was wonderful, infact to this day I can't understand why Barbara Hershey didn't win the Oscar over Diane Wiest instead. I think Hershey had the better role.
"Hannah and Her Sisters" tells the story of one very large family as marriages break up,people find new loves, and others carry around secret crushes. Without spoiling anything here's a somewhat brief out-line. Elliot (Michael Cane) is married to Hannah (Mia Farrow) but, Elliot has a crush on Lee (Barbara Hershey). Now, Lee on the other hand is living with a much older man, whom is more like a mentor now than a lover, the reclusive Frederick (Max von Sydow). There is also another sister, Holly (Diane Wiest). Holly is seen as the "wild" one and is the youngest of the three. A fraction of the story is about the bond these sisters have with each other.
Now, Hannah was married once before to Mickey (Allen) a once famous and respected tv producer now caught with a flop on his hands.
Meanwhile, Hannah, who is seen as the "center" of the family must keep her parents from driving each other crazy. They are played by Farrow's real life mother Maureen O' Sullivan and Lloyd Nolan.
"Hannah and Her Sisters" has such a bittersweet tone to it. Allen really displays a wonderful talent of being able to pull off these ensemble pieces. He is able to make each character seem exciting, and devotes enough time to each character where we get a sense of knowing them. Not to mention the way Allen throws in his style of humor when dealing with sometimes serious subjects. One character through-out the film is trying to find out the meaning of life (I'll leave it up to you to figure out who it is).
Some of my personal favorite moments in the film include a scene where Allen goes out on a date with Holly (Diane Wiest). She is the complete opposite of him. After a while Allen takes her to the Cafe Caryle to hear Bobby Short. Another favorite scene has to do with Elliot (Caine) and Lee (Hershey) going to a bookstore and finally Allen watching "Duck Soup" near the end of the film.
"Hannah and Her Sisters" won three Oscars; "Best Supporting Actor" (Caine), "Best Supporting Actress (Wiest) and "Best Original Screenplay" (Allen)
Keep your eyes open for Tony Roberts and Sam Waterson both appear unbilled. Carrie Fisher, J.T. Walsh,Julie Kaver, Daniel Stern, & Julia Louis-Dreyfus have minor roles.
Bottom-line: One of Woody Allen's best films. A modern classic. A movie that shows Allen's ability to combine comedy and drama so well. Sets a great pace and has a wonderful "feel" to it.

"woody allen's film hits the jackpot!"
In one of woody' best film, he is able to captivate the lives of 3 totally different sisters (and a hypocondriac husband) into an oscar winning film! The first sister is of course Hannah, the kind nurturing mother/ wife, who has remained good friends with her ex (allen) and her new husband (Michael Caine in an oscar winning role) who finds her hard to live with, because she gives so much and expects so little in return. The other sister is Lee (Barbra Hershey who is great) the beautiful, but emotionally sad sister, who wants to escape from her college professor boyfriend, and eventually falls in love with Hannah's husband.
The last sister is Holly (Dianne Wiest in an oscar winning role) the eccentric original person, who strives to find herself, while accidentally bringing down her sister hannah, and her rival April (Carrie Fisher). But by the end of the fillm they have all found happiness. Hannah has become more close to her husband. Lee has shrugged off her affair with Hannah's husband (who has fallen back in love with Hannah), and found new love. woody Allen (who has converted to Catholicism, but then tries several other religions) becomes lesser of a hypocondriac,and Holly & woody allen have married. And Allen (unable to have a child with hannah has a child with Holly)! crackerjack cameos by Maurren O' sullivan, and Daniel Stern! A great film all around! A+!

Great film, great story.
This film is considered by many to be Allen's comic masterpiece. The ensemble cast includes the best in the business during the mid 80's: Michael Cain, Mia Farrow, Barbara Hershey, Carrie Fisher and an extraordinary performance from Max Von Sydow. We have all the Allen concerns in this film - death, love, religion, ethics and the comic situations that arise in family relationships when its members choose the wrong path. The adulterous (Michael Cain) husband falls in love with his wife's sister, whom also happens to be involved in a relationship with an older man, (Max Von Sydow) which, ironically, in the end, frees her from this affiliation because of its smothering nature. Cain puts in a magnificent performance, as the guilt-ridden adulterer who cannot keep his impulses under control. The way he goes about instigating the affair is adolescent-love-struck-infatuation- behaviour at it most laughable form.

Allen plays Allen, of course, but at his most charming and funny best. As a hypochondriac, he needs his pseudo illnesses in order to have meaning in his life. After a simple physical, the doctor hints that he might have something seriously wrong him; soon Allen suspects that he could have a brain tumour (the size of a basketball) and frets and frets until almost having a nervous breakdown. Later, to his great relief, he's told he's fine, but his life changes and now must discover life's 'true' meaning. This is true to the mark because after a 'close call' some of us do in fact go on a 'what's the meaning of life' journey. This of course is a natural thing to do. He tries everything from Nietzsche to Catholicism and finally discovers something very simple.

This is a family saga that is at once tragedy and comedy where you'll be laughing one second and crying the next. All the characters are searching for one meaning or another except Hannah. In the eyes of her family she's perfect. But she's anything but perfect and comes to realize this ... Mia did a wonderful job playing Mia and I had a great amount of sympathy for the character by the end of the film.

This is a film that one never grows tired of - it is undeniably a work of genius.

Citizen X
Released in VHS Tape by Hbo Studios (07 August, 2001)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Director: Chris Gerolmo
Starring: Stephen Rea and Donald Sutherland
Average review score:

Superlative Thriller based on real-life events.
I'm a big Jeff DeMunn fan, so where he goes so go I.

Accordingly as HBO began to tease their upcoming made-for movie, Citizen X, I know nothing of a Russian serial killer, Andre Chikatilo (brilliantly played by DeMunn) nor filmmaker Chris Gerolmo who adapted and directed this tale under the made-for-HBO banner. I only know that if Jeff DeMunn is in it, it will be worth the watch.

And it was...even more so.

The story is true, of a dangerous Russian serial killer and molester of children, who's apprehension is delayed by a defensive Russian government. A government afraid to admit to themselves and to their people that such an animal can exist in Soviet Russia.(Chikatilo murdered 52 people)

A brilliant cast: DeMunn, Stephen Rea, Donald Sutherland, and Max Von Sydow are supported by stark and stunning Eastern European landscapes, and a nail-biter of a story that will not turn you loose.

Get out the popcorn and the pickles.

As Good A Thriller As Any In Theaters Near You
This is the best film never released to the general public. Produced for HBO, this movie tracks the true story of the hunt for the most prolific serial killer in Soviet/Russian history.

The story focuses on the "detective", Burakov, (played by Stephen Rea) who dedicates himself to finding the killer that is stalking young children in the Soviet Union. Rea does an excellent job of bringing to life the character, who faces road blocks everywhere he turns from the Soviet government who refuse to admit they have a serial killer in their nation. Donald Sutherland plays the sympathetic superior to Rea's detective. As Rea fights an uphill battle to cut through bueracratic red-tape, Sutherland queitly works behind the scenes to smooth the waters for his less polically astute subordinate. Toghether, the two make headway in their increasingly tense search for the killer. The true depth of the friendship and respect they have developed is revealed late in the film, in a scene immediately after the Soviet government is replaced and Sutherland reveals the new resources available to them. One of the most poignant scenes in recent films, this moment defines the toll that this type of investigation takes on the investigator who undertakes to seek justice against all odds. Without saying a word, Rea manages to convey the deep emotions his character is feeling as his superior finally reveals the true admiration he has for the work his subordinate has done. Rea and Sutherland play their roles masterfully throughout this drama.

The supporting cast is also excellent. Jeffrey DeMunn, Max Von Sydow, Mike Navrides and John Wood lead a group of actors who most will know by face but not by name and who provide excellent support throughout. DeMunn in particular is impressive as Chikatilo.

It is a shame this film is seen in some circles as a "made for t.v. movie". If this movie had been released in the theaters, it would have earned similar praise to such thrillers as Silence of the Lambs or Seven. The story is first rate and keeps the viewer enthralled until the very end.

Well acted, written and directed, Citizen X is a first rate thriller. If you missed it on HBO, don't miss it now.

Two of my favorite actors
I have always loved both Donald Sutherland and Stephen Rea so it was a dream come true to see them together in such a great film.

The movie is about how the ex U.S.S.R.'s soviet government couldn't admit that the perfect russian society they had created could produce such a thing as a serial killer and therefore was quite unable to catch him - how can you find a solution when you are not allowed to ackowledge that a problem exists?

It's about how a relatively unimportant man, through mind bogling perseverence and patience never gives up on catching the murderer.

Superbly done.

Shame
Released in VHS Tape by MGM/UA Video (03 October, 2000)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Director: Ingmar Bergman
Starring: Liv Ullmann and Max von Sydow

Related Subjects: Mary-Beth-Hurt
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