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debbie_collins
Reviews
Liebe und Verlangen (2003)
Has its flaws, but the lesbian relationship has its rewards.
I've only seen this movie without subtitles and don't speak German, so I can't comment on the dialogue or all the subtleties of the performances. Like the previous reviewer, I have certain issues with the plot. However, I agree that the sexy Natalia Worner's acting as Jeanne is a standout, but I have to give Katja Flint credit here too, because to me the relationship between the two women has a credibility about it that comes across even without words. The loving way they look at each other and the physicality between them - which is quite erotic in several kissing scenes as well as a seriously hot sex scene - makes the movie worth seeing as a lesbian love story, even without subtitles! And the spoiler? The women get a happy ending, which makes all the crap heaped on poor Jeanne throughout most of the film almost bearable. Search on www.myvideo.de for the whole film, which a fan has currently posted in 9 parts - it was made for German TV and hasn't been released on DVD.
Million Dollar Baby (2004)
The Overlooked Moral Dilemma of M$B
Nowhere, in all the debate about Million Dollar Baby, have I seen the moral point raised that bothered me when I saw the film (I had no problem with the ending). When Clint Eastwood tells Hilary Swank to cheat in the fateful fight (ie. to hit up under the fighter's backside), she queries him and he tells her not to let the referee see her do it. So they both know it's wrong, yet she does it and sinks to the level of the other, 'bad' fighter. This enrages the other woman and prompts THAT punch after the round has ended. Yet, later, Clint has the gall to blame Morgan Freeman for what happened, but neither he nor anyone else ever even refers to the heroine's cheating.
This to me is a major missed opportunity by the film to explore the implications of Hilary and Clint's characters' own lapse of morality, and I can't understand why everyone has ignored it. What do others think?
By the way, I think the film was very good but not the untouchable masterpiece some are hyping it as. Martin Scorsese and The Aviator would have got my vote.