Sweet Revenge
by Malcolm Mowbray
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DVD details
Actor: Helena Bonham Carter, Kristin Scott Thomas, Martin Clunes, Rupert Graves, Sam NeillDirector: Malcolm Mowbray
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 90 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2001-02-13
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Miramax
DVD Reviews of Sweet Revenge
DVD Review: Clever punchy British black comedy
Summary: 4 Stars
Taking a cue from American ex-pat Patricia Highsmith's Strangers on a Train, playwright Alan Ayckbourn penned the plays on which Sweet Revenge was based, in whith two strangers each agree to bump off the person causing him/her the most misery in their respective lives.
Of course Ayckbourn can't duplicate what Highsmith had already brilliantly done, so he starts things off with both parties being suicidal (definitely NOT part of the Highsmith story), then moves in very different directions from Highsmith indeed.
Malcolm Mowbray, the talented director of this movie, (he also directed another punchy black comedy, but set in the States, Out Cold--with Teri Garr, John Lithgow and Randy Quaid--highly recommended), has done a great job deftly blending wry British humor with black comedy (very black, indeed) as well as romantic highjinks and some outright guffaws.
When you see sparrows blithely flying around a living room, part of a huge mansion in which the younger son rides his motor scooter on a regular basis and the older sister (one of the two parties involved in the revenge pact) changes her appearance in the blink of an artistocratic eye, you can tell there's a lot of fun to be had.
And there is. Highsmith's story has no comedy whatsoever, but Ayckbourn is a master of this mesh of comedy and biting stuff, and that comes across beautifully in this film version. The acting by the three leads (Sam Neill, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Helena Bonham Carter) is great, with the definite nod for scene stealer going to Ms. Carter, who seems capable of doing basically anything in front of a camera (see Fight Club and Twelfth Night for radically different and consistently excellent performances).
A very nice piece of work. Recommended!
DVD Review: An oh-so-black comedy
Summary: 3 Stars
I purchased this because of the rave reviews on Amazon and because I loved Aykbourn's brilliant The Norman Conquests. But this film, while it has its moments, is a studiously black comedy that doesn't come off. It works too hard at being completely off the wall, and ultimately disappoints. It's just mayhem, designed to draw laughs. Well, it does, but only occasionally. (Imagine playing Count Basie at the expiration of a villain. That's Mel Brooks country.) Yes, Helena Bonham Carter is an excellent actress. But it's all so contrived, complete with a wink at the camera at the end. Save your money.DVD Review: Strangers on a Bridge
Summary: 5 Stars
As the story begins, Henry (Sam Neill) has lost his job to an unscrupulous co-worker, and has decided to end it all by jumping off Tower Bridge. There he meets eccentric Karen (Helena Bonham Carter) who has just bungled her own suicide attempt (her lover went back to his wife). They start talking about how much they wish their enemies were dead and Karen gleefully suggests they each do the job for the other. Henry assumes she's kidding, of course, but the next morning he finds Karen has gone ahead with the plan.
If you think this plot sounds a lot like Hitchcock's thriller, "Strangers on a Train," you're right. The difference is this one's played for big laughs with dark humor that I really enjoyed. Neill is very good as the innocent man who gets caught up in the wacky plot hatched by Bonham Carter's character. She steals the show with her outrageous cheekiness. Kristin Scott Thomas is the lover's haughty wife, and no one plays the disdainful aristocrat better than she does. Comic actor Steve Coogan is hysterical as Henry's nemesis. If you like British comedies, you'll love "Sweet Revenge;" it's fast, funny, and loaded with droll upper-class humor. Excellent!
Kona
DVD Review: Some great moments, but ultimately lacking cohesion
Summary: 3 Stars
I generally enjoy British comedies and prefer a good, thoughtful snicker over slapstick fun. When I watched this, I wanted to like it. And when I read the reviews after watching it, I'm really trying to like it. But I can't entirely agree with the other reviews...not because they're wrong, just my taste differs.
I feel like the movie had so many great elements (including as others have said some excellent acting) and could have been truly hilarious, but it just went a little off kilter somewhere and couldn't quite stay on track. Just as you warmed up to one element, something else would spoil the moment.
My initial reaction was "what a crazy movie!" Karen appears to be a complete maniac and Henry is extremely slow to catch on in some ways (i.e., he realizes Karen is quite dangerous from the start but doesn't seem to have any other way of dealing with her than really unitelligent honesty). The brother Oliver is great and there are a lot of small scenes that the film does quite well (when the kippers cause an embarassing stain, the way the young maid Norma is treated, etc).
But I disagree that Imogen was affected and arrogant. She responded to the view of Karen (her husband's former mistress) with the cold fury of someone attempting to maintain composure in the face of great strain. If a spouse brought me to an outing with their former "lover", I'd be pretty mad too. Her first comment to Henry is indicative of her frustration and she says it without thinking.
But how would anyone like Karen or Imogen find Anthony appealing? I found it farfetched how quickly Imogen fell for Henry and vice versa, upon their second meeting he tries to kiss her. And it seems unlikely that someone who suffered from frequent asthma would not carry their ventilator in their pocket (but maybe I am uninformed on this score).
Towards the end, it began lacking a feeling of cohesion and felt more like random funny moments appended to each other. The ending didn't feel like you arrived at a destination, more like it just stopped somewhere when we ran out of time and patched on a quick finish. Anyway, some people liked this so it's definitely got a following, just didn't appeal to me. Maybe it will grow on me in time.
DVD Review: Perfect!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I loved every second of this film. I can't imagine how anyone could not like it. It's funny, full of talented actors esp Sam Neill. Thoroughly entertaining!! A great buy.
Description of Sweet Revenge
Screen favorites Sam Neill (BICENTENNIAL MAN, THE HORSE WHISPERER), Helena Bonham Carter (FIGHT CLUB, THE WINGS OF THE DOVE), and Kristin Scott Thomas (THE ENGLISH PATIENT, GOSFORD PARK) form a winning combination in this offbeat, uncommonly funny comedy! Quite by chance a downcast businessman Henry Bell (Neill) and quirky aristocrat Karen Knightly (Bonham Carter) save each other's life just as they were both attempting to leap from London's Tower Bridge! Then, Karen quickly invents a plot of devilish retaliation against those who drove them to the edge! She will punish the man who stole Henry's job and he will destory the life of the woman (Scott Thomas) who broke up Karen's love affair! With memorable performances from its stellar cast, this broadly entertaining comedy plays for big laughs when revenge is the name of the game!As Henry Bell (Sam Neill from Jurassic Park and The Piano) is preparing to throw himself off the Tower Bridge in London, he hears cries of help, which lead him to Karen Knightly (Helena Bonham Carter, Fight Club, Howard's End), who has just thrown herself off of the bridge and gotten her belt caught on a protuberance. In short time they're telling each other what led them to take this drastic step, how they'd each like to kill a certain person who has made each of their lives miserable. Karen hatches a plan: They'll each take on the other's act of revenge. Henry's not so sure about this, but when he wakes up the following morning Karen's plans are already underway. She's fiercely determined that he keep up his end of the bargain and ruin the life of Imogen (Kristin Scott Thomas, The English Patient, Four Weddings and a Funeral). Unfortunately, Henry falls in love with Imogen instead, leaving Karen with no choice but to enact revenge on Henry as well. Adapted from a play by Alan Ayckbourn, Sweet Revenge is blessed with sweet and funny performances by the three leads (who seem delighted by the opportunity to be frivolous), as well as capable work from a supporting cast of British character actors. --Bret Fetzer
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