Dangerous Liaisons

THE GIST: A scheming, cruel, high-society widow and a one-time lover, who prides himself on taking advantage of others, make a bet that he can seduce the meekly devoted and spiritual wife of a well-known man. Other unsuspecting souls fall prey to their intrigues.

Oh boy, what a disappointing bore Dangerous Liaisons turned out to be. I might have had too high expectations, possibly stemming from the fondness with which my friend Vittorio talks about this particular film (his favorite ever, really), but I hardly found it worthy of such lofty praise.

From a purely technical point of view, whether it's costumes, sets, or hair and makeup, everything is really well done. The direction is good and the acting appropriate to the period, albeit there are some weak spots.

Glenn Close is superb, giving us some of her best work. Michelle Pfeiffer is very good as well, in a part probably harder to sell than Close's as well. John Malkovich is good, but too theatrical, even though it might be argued that the character he was playing led a very theatrical life, in a sense.

Keanu Reeves and Uma Thurman, however, are really bad. I mean really, really bad. Weak roles, risible lines, delivered without conviction. Just a big no for me there.

Which leads me to the script, an adaptation of a literary work. That origin might have constricted its shape and scope, but the worst thing for me was its utter predictability. Virtually nothing came as a surprise and every character's moves were easily foreseen well in advance.

THE BOTTOM LINE: If you like Ms. Close than you should definitely check this out, but don't expect too much, or you'll be disappointed.

Grade: 6