I love Dangerous Liaisons Blu ray Cecilia Cheung
There is definitely something in Pierre Choderlos de Laclos' "Les Liaisons dangereuses," which has motivated the making of more than one movie version of this 18th century novel. You probably remember "Dangerous Liaisons" (1988) and "Valmont" (1989), two films based on the novel, which were released almost simultaneously years ago. "Dangerous Liaisons" is a provocative piece that, if executed well, generates great dividends, which is precisely the case with its brand new and extremely exquisite Chinese version.
If the previous versions of the novel took place in Baroque France, this new installment takes place in 1931 Shanghai. Xie Yifan (Dong-gun Jang) is a rich playboy who enjoys the good life and the company of women, no strings attached. His best friend and confidant is Mo Jieyu (Cecilia Cheung), a beautiful woman who happens to be the one that Xie hasn't been able to sleep with. One day, during a fund-raiser part y for political refugees offered by Mo, she tries to convince Xie to seduce a virgin, who is to marry a powerful man in the city. She wants the man to be the laughing stock in Shanghai. Xie discretely declines the offer. However, Mo tries again, and dares Xie to seduce Du Fenyu (Ziyi Zhang), Xie's second cousin and recently widowed from her activist husband. She is serious woman and very hard to impress. If Xie succeeds, Mo agrees to have sex with him. If Mo wins, Xie will give her some valuable land. In the end, both will find the meaning of true love, or, as they say in the film: "Careful - if you love, you loose."
This new take of "Dangerous Liaisons" is truly a delight, well-acted, beautifully photographed, and with awesome production design, reflecting Shanghai during the turbulent 30s. It is sensual, colorful, suspenseful, with some political overtones, and a great jazzy soundtrack. The Blu-ray includes behind-the-scenes and making-of features, and more. (Chine/South Korea/Singapore, 2012, color, 111 min plus additional materials)
Reviewed on February 13, 2013 by Eric Gonzalez for Well Go USA Blu-ray.
A beautiful Asian adaption of an ageless French classic..The girls are lovely and seductive,, the guys are dashing, the scenery is spectacular, the acting is beyond reproach coupled with a classy production ! The Bluray transfer and the sound are above par making it a good demo disc..A must have for romantics for repeated viewings. Say no more ! Rush and purchase it
ReplyDeleteExcellent movie! A great (and rare) opportunity to see the full humanity (love, sex, greed, etc) of another ethnic group, rather than tired stereotypes. As I was watching this movie, I was thinking of how rare it is to see Asian males and females -- together -- loving each other on American television, and this is common as well for all non-white people; blacks, Hispanics.
ReplyDeleteThe cinematography was excellent, the sexuality done tastefully, the ironic humor always beneath the surface, and the acting was superb. I would definitely recommend this movie!
There is definitely something in Pierre Choderlos de Laclos' "Les Liaisons dangereuses," which has motivated the making of more than one movie version of this 18th century novel. You probably remember "Dangerous Liaisons" (1988) and "Valmont" (1989), two films based on the novel, which were released almost simultaneously years ago. "Dangerous Liaisons" is a provocative piece that, if executed well, generates great dividends, which is precisely the case with its brand new and extremely exquisite Chinese version.
ReplyDeleteIf the previous versions of the novel took place in Baroque France, this new installment takes place in 1931 Shanghai. Xie Yifan (Dong-gun Jang) is a rich playboy who enjoys the good life and the company of women, no strings attached. His best friend and confidant is Mo Jieyu (Cecilia Cheung), a beautiful woman who happens to be the one that Xie hasn't been able to sleep with. One day, during a fund-raiser party for political refugees offered by Mo, she tries to convince Xie to seduce a virgin, who is to marry a powerful man in the city. She wants the man to be the laughing stock in Shanghai. Xie discretely declines the offer. However, Mo tries again, and dares Xie to seduce Du Fenyu (Ziyi Zhang), Xie's second cousin and recently widowed from her activist husband. She is serious woman and very hard to impress. If Xie succeeds, Mo agrees to have sex with him. If Mo wins, Xie will give her some valuable land. In the end, both will find the meaning of true love, or, as they say in the film: "Careful - if you love, you loose."
This new take of "Dangerous Liaisons" is truly a delight, well-acted, beautifully photographed, and with awesome production design, reflecting Shanghai during the turbulent 30s. It is sensual, colorful, suspenseful, with some political overtones, and a great jazzy soundtrack. The Blu-ray includes behind-the-scenes and making-of features, and more. (Chine/South Korea/Singapore, 2012, color, 111 min plus additional materials)
Reviewed on February 13, 2013 by Eric Gonzalez for Well Go USA Blu-ray.
ReplyDeleteA heart wrenching tale about love and lust. I have enjoyed the heroin play several different roles beginning with The Road Home, and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Both Chinese films. The cinematography is flawless, and beautiful sets make this a highly visual movie. The subtitles are done very well. It makes me which I knew the Chinese language so I could pick up subtle dialog details. All in all a very good addition to world cinema.
ReplyDelete