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Last Tango in Paris | Year: 1973 Classification: Drama Directed: - Bernardo Bertolucci Actors/Actresses: - Marlon Brando - Maria Schneider Brando and a stick of butter! Before watching this movie I heard nothing but great things about this film. I heard people say it Bernardo Bertolucci's best film. I heard people say it's Marlon Brando's best performance ever! And I've even heard people say, it stands as one of the greatest films ever! I'm mixed between this movie. On one hand I can say, it's an intriguing piece of work, with wonderful directing by one of my favorite directors, Bertoluuci. It has great photography by Vittorio Storaro, and has memorable acting with memorable lines. On the other hand, I can see why one wouldn't like this film. It's not a family movie. It's not a "feel good" film either. It does seem to drag a bit. And the score by Gato Barbieri seems misplaced. But, trying to judge the movie fairly, I would have to say that people should try and make an effort to see this movie. It does offer many enjoyable moments. And it has also stood the test of time by staying with us after all these years. The screenplay by Arcalli and Bertolucci does get slow at times and can be boring at moments, but believe it or not, it does contain heart. It's about a man who has just lost his wife, and to me, seems as if, without her, life has lost it's meaning. Despite the fact she was cheating on him. So he meets Jeanne (Maria Schneider) and begin an unforgettable affair with a stick of butter and dead rats lol. The scene where Brando is paying his respect to his wife is considered a standout, and one can see why. But to say this is Brando's best film, I have to disagree. I personally like "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "The Godfather". But I think Bertolucci fans will be pleased with this movie as will many others. If your a bit skeptical about seeing this movie, I'll offer you a warning. Don't watch this movie and expect a fast paced, heartfelt, or romantic movie. And don't watch it when your in a "good" mood. The movie will just bring you down with it's "depressing" storyline. Still though, it remains, I feel, as one of Bertolucci's best directing efforts. Brando's Best If there is anyone out there that wonders why Marlon Brando has <BR>been called the greatest film actor of all time, one need only to<BR>see this film to get their answer. Although it is somewhat dated and certainly not for everyone, Last Tango in Paris is a true <BR>masterpiece of filmmaking.<BR>Tame by today's standards, it is easy to see why 1972 audiences were shocked by its brutal frankness and full frontal nudity. It is a film about isolation, betrayal and confronting<BR>one's own insecurities.<BR>I found the beginning most difficult to believe- middle aged man begins an affair with a beautiful young woman after having met<BR>her only moments before in an empty apartment. And then they <BR>continue to meet for sex even though he insists that they reveal<BR>nothing about themselves beyond the physical act of sex!<BR>Once past this impossible beginning, we begin to learn more about<BR>the characters- he is a lonely widower, she is engaged to a young<BR>film student. She eventually accepts the fact that their relationship is nothing more than sexual.<BR>Maria Schneider is very good in her role as the French girl and she seems completely comfortable with the graphic nude scenes she is in. But it is Brando who commands our complete attention. He dominates every scene and while Schneider spends a great deal of time being naked, he does not yet it is still his character that facinates us.<BR>The film gets bogged down in some areas and many viewers may become bored with the scenes that involve some of the supporting characters. But, and trust me on this, DO NOT miss the scene in<BR>which Brando visits the body of his dead wife. It is not a long scene but it alone is worth the price one will pay for seeing this film- be it in cash and/or time. It is a scene that all students of film and acting should be required to see. Once you have seen it I am sure you will agree- acting does not get any better than this. For Brando Fans, It Doesn't Get Better Than This! Marlon Brando's recent death effected me deeply. He has always been one of my favorite actors and I truly admire him for his extraordinary talent. During the last few weeks I have rented many of Brando's films and am still amazed, after all these years, at the force of his acting in "Last Tango In Paris." I believe that some of his best work was done in this film. Paul, (Brando), an aging American expatriate in Paris, comes home to discover that his marriage has ended. His French wife, Rosa, had slit her veins, leaving bloody bath water and spattered walls behind. She didn't leave much else - no good-bye note or explanation for her husband, parents or lover, a guest in the fleabag hotel she owned and managed. She did bequeath the hotel, and it's seedy occupants, to Paul. Overwhelmed with grief, Paul walks the streets and finds himself looking at an apartment for rent. He finds Jeanne, (Maria Schneider), a girl-woman, barely out of her teens, looking at the same apartment. She is to be married in a few weeks to her bourgeois, filmmaker fiancee. Paul and Jeanne circle each other warily in the empty flat, each contemplating the rental, (and each other), and wondering who will take it. Suddenly, they grab each other and have hard, fast sex against the apartment wall. Thus begins a most bizarre relationship. Paul makes the rules. Jeanne must follow them or she will not see him again. Their purely carnal relationship must remain anonymous, emotionless, and exist only within the walls of the apartment, which Paul rents for this purpose. There are to be no sexual taboos between them. He does not want to know her name or anything about her and refuses to give her any information about himself. They are not to see each other outside the apartment confines, nor even leave together. It seems as if Paul wants to bury his pain, his sense of betrayal and hurt in the mindless, sometimes brutal, act of sex. Director Bernardo Bertolucci's camera perfectly captures the impersonal nature of their coupling. The shots are blunt, without sensuality or eroticism, but an enormous sexual energy is captured. I think Jeanne is fascinated by the mystery that is Paul. She is bored, perhaps, and looking for something, maybe excitement. She is certainly intrigued by Paul's dominant role, and seems to enjoy playing the passive partner most of the time. She is clearly not happy with her boyfriend, who relates to her as the object of his latest film. He talks at her, not to her. And he does not listen. However, I do not see Jeanne as merely an object here, as do some others. The film focuses on Paul, not Jeanne. It is unfortunate that Ms. Schneider's career fizzled after this movie. She is excellent as Jeanne and perfectly captures her character's capriciousness, playfulness, bewilderment, vulnerability, anger, frustration, seductiveness and curiosity. Brando is simply superb. There are times, when he and Jeanne are together, that it appears as if he is extemporiz Buy Last Tango In Paris at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Last Tango In Paris Search with the Priority Search Engine on Last Tango In Paris This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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