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Reviews
The Dying Gaul (2005)
Oh, please. Peter is cute; it ends there.
The acting is to die for; the cliff house is to die for; Peter Sarsgaard is to die for. In other words, the movie's not ALL bad; it just falls apart really quick - and unfortunately in just those key plot moments, so you walk out of the theater ready to slice it like a Ginsu, then talk about something else.
Like, did they really have to beat us over the head about the POISON PLANT that JUST HAPPENS to grow in the back yard. Didn't see that coming. Or about emailing with a dead person? Huh? Or how Peter conveniently FORGETS he told that woman his favorite online chat site. Oops. Or when one of the characters admits to being bisexual... HELLO, YA THINK??
Go. See it. Really. I MEAN it - if you want to get out of the house and/or satisfy your curiosity. But at the same time, prepare to cringe when Sarsgaard screams like a little girl during his orgasm. Actually, any little girl would sound like a grizzled old lumberjack next to Sarsgaard's orgasmic tittering.
Day of the Woman (1978)
coarse and violent; look elsewhere for a good rental
The movie is coarse and stark, which marks it as a product of the 70s. It also contains scenes of not just extreme but also disturbing violence, which is OK if you're a film scholar. But don't watch this one if you're simply looking for a thriller; it's not right.
The acting is OK, considering the material they had to work with. I watched it mainly to see what Roger Ebert was fussing about so much -- he loathes the movie because it depicts rape as an act of lust (which it is not) instead of an act of violence and domination (which it is). I agree that this IS a loathsome portrayal but I didn't feel as deeply offended. I read once it was based on an actual story but how close the movie followed I don't know.
BTW, a woman's clothing is not an invitation to rape her, period.
jm (a man)