Count Laszlo de Almasy (Ralph Fiennes) is a Hungarian map maker who is employed by the Royal Geographical Society to chart the vast expanses of the Sahara Desert along with several other prominent explorers. As World War II unfolds, Almasy enters into a world of love, betrayal and politics.
I'll start off with the obvious: I really liked The English Patient, though I thought it was slow in some parts. The cinematography is GORGEOUS. The score is just beautiful. The performances from Fiennes, Kristin Scott Thomas and Juliette Binoche, as well as Colin Firth and Willem Dafoe, are top notch. There has been debate if The English Patient deserved to win Best Picture over Fargo. After seeing both of them, it's hard to say which deserved that coveted statuette since both are excellent, well-acted films. And to those who avoid The English Patient for its slow pace and length: give it a chance. You might like it. I know I did.
My Rating: ****1/2
I love both Fargo and The English Patient and have found myself sticking up for this film quite a bit. I may be one of the only diehard Coens fans who actually think The English Patient deserved the Oscar.
ReplyDeleteI'm one of the very few that found Fargo to be a boring and simple flick with silly little characters. To this day I am still bewildered by all the love for it.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, I think I've watched The English Patient at least 20 times and each time, I still love it.
Geoffrey Rush was amazing in The Shine, but I would have given the statue to Fiennes.
Wow, if I didn't know better I'd think that anonymous above was me commenting in my sleep. (although I don't dislike Fargo that much).
ReplyDeleteOf course you know I approve of your grade, and that cinematography? Just brilliant.
:)
It has a very slow pace, but it does work so well, with creating a beautifully enchanting story, as well as beautiful visuals.
ReplyDeleteI was one of them who bored down after watching this film. On the other, my friend enjoyed this film till the film. I think that the movie pace was very slow and I was slept in the half of the film :-)
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