Orlando (1993)

Simply Perfect

Lack of good storyline.

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I didn't know anything about Sally Potter's adaptation of Virginia Woolf's novel when I rented it, and that made "Orlando" even more of a treat. In a way, it predicted the era when gender definitions would be less defined, as Tilda Swinton's title character undergoes a significant change over the course of the movie. The changes that the eternally young Orlando personally experiences are as significant as those in society over the centuries.I wouldn't call it one of the greatest movies ever made, but I like how it shows the protagonist accepting who she is. Were "Orlando" more famous, it might now be an iconic movie among the people who don't conform to the gender binary spectrum.Anyway, it's a fine piece of work. A particularly impressive scene is Orlando running through a room full of works of art, having to move her dress from side to side to avoid hitting them. Those dresses must have been a pain to wear.Also starring Billy Zane (Titanic), John Wood (WarGames) and Toby Stephens (Die Another Day).

Young nobleman Orlando (Tilda Swinton) is commanded by Queen Elizabeth I to stay forever young. Miraculously, he does just that. The film follows him as he moves through several centuries of British history, experiencing a variety of lives and relationships along the way, and even changing sex.We start out with some interesting ice skating, a hobby I was not aware had existed in the 1600s (though Wikipedia informs me it most certainly did). And from there we see Orlando go through life learning of poetry, politics and more.I found this film difficult because of the casting. Now, had I seen it in 1992, the transformation from male to female might have been more pronounced. But seeing it in 2014, Swinton is now a much bigger name, and it was obvious from the first frame that the actor was female. Was this intentional? Maybe, but I think not.

As someone who knows nothing at all about Virginia Woolf and her writing career, I found this film rather vacuous. Sure the costumes and sets were great, I do love much of those eras clothing styles, but that hardly makes a great film. Hollywood has this thing with books and IMHO if you need to know the book prior to seeing the movie then the movie is at fault either the screenwriter or director failed to make a film that can stand on its own. Maybe it was an impossible task I don't know since I haven't read the book.Too much seems to depend upon knowing the author and her relationship with her friend but without that foreknowledge it loses any irony or bite.Tilde Swinson simply cannot make a convincing male and for 2/3 of the movie that simply got in the way.

Absolutely superb movie...just saw it right before writing this...remember having seen the clip on YT,and it gave me the feeling I should enjoy it :I definitively did ! As say others comments, mesmerizing, mysterious, delicate...and very profound even though quiet hidden at the beginning...It reveals this aspect, like all the movie, like a woman in love,slowly, enigmatically, words after words, with great sensitivity...And Tilda Swinton, wow ! what an actress !Plus she's beautiful ! I didn't see any movie with her before,but for sure gonna see some more...Not at all a usual Jimmy Somerville fan, I just love his part too ;and last song leaves you full of hope in our humanity.Music, cinematography, set design and costuming are absolutely exquisite and stunning.But unfortunately guess this exceptional movie is not for everyone's taste..In one sentence, Sally Potter made a movie that you won't forget !Her film eventually expresses what Orson Welles wrote with so much accuracy :"a film is never really good unless the camera is an eyes in the head of a poet"