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Stealing Beauty
Fox // R // January 8, 2002
List Price: $19.98 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
In Stealing Beauty, director Bernardo Bertolucci (The Last Emperor) invites us into the life of 19-year-old Lucy (Liv Tyler) as she arrives in Italy from the United States, to spend a summer with her late mother's artist friends. It's far from being a simple summer of relaxation and recreation, however, because Lucy is determined to unearth the truth about the identity of her real father. Her most important discoveries, however, are about sex, love, and friendship; all in all, it will be an unforgettable summer.
Stealing Beauty is a movie to watch and appreciate on its own terms; it doesn't quite fit into any conventional pigeonholes of theme or plot. It seems at first to be lacking a sense of direction, but that's not in fact the case: rather than a linear plot, we have a slow unfolding of events connected to the film's main themes.
Almost novel-like in its number and depth of characters, Stealing Beauty nonetheless manages to keep the focus on Lucy throughout the film. The other main characters are relatively easy to keep track of, and they're presented sufficiently in context that there are only a few names to remember. Performances are strong all around; most noteworthy among the supporting actors is Jeremy Irons as an ailing visitor to the villa, who takes a fatherly interest in Lucy and, most particularly, in Lucy's romantic relationships.
Visually, Stealing Beauty is extremely appealing. Director Bertolucci gets the most out of every image, not just the obviously picturesque shots of the Italian landscape, but also simpler shots of the characters or the interior of the house. Each scene is arranged artistically, as if it were a painting, with generous use of lighting and color to create beautiful and memorable images.
Video
For a movie with cinematography as lovely as Stealing Beauty, it's a pleasure to be able to report an outstanding DVD transfer. The 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen image is extremely clean and noise-free, with no edge enhancement in sight. The images are clear and sharp, and the vivid colors and lighting are captured perfectly.
Audio
Stealing Beauty's Dolby 5.1 soundtrack offers a sound that's nice and clean. There's no particular use of surround effects, but it's also not a film that really provides much by way of surround sound in any case. The music is balanced well with the dialogue, never overpowering it.
Extras
The DVD features a selection of TV spots, a handful of trailers for other Fox films, and a short, promotional-style featurette; just enough to keep the disc from being bare-bones, but just barely.
Final thoughts
Stealing Beauty is a movie that lends itself well to repeat viewing; it's visually appealing as well as interesting as a story. It's certainly not a typical drama, and shouldn't be approached with any expectations about the direction that the plot will go in, which is in fact precisely why I enjoyed it.
Stealing Beauty is a movie to watch and appreciate on its own terms; it doesn't quite fit into any conventional pigeonholes of theme or plot. It seems at first to be lacking a sense of direction, but that's not in fact the case: rather than a linear plot, we have a slow unfolding of events connected to the film's main themes.
Almost novel-like in its number and depth of characters, Stealing Beauty nonetheless manages to keep the focus on Lucy throughout the film. The other main characters are relatively easy to keep track of, and they're presented sufficiently in context that there are only a few names to remember. Performances are strong all around; most noteworthy among the supporting actors is Jeremy Irons as an ailing visitor to the villa, who takes a fatherly interest in Lucy and, most particularly, in Lucy's romantic relationships.
Visually, Stealing Beauty is extremely appealing. Director Bertolucci gets the most out of every image, not just the obviously picturesque shots of the Italian landscape, but also simpler shots of the characters or the interior of the house. Each scene is arranged artistically, as if it were a painting, with generous use of lighting and color to create beautiful and memorable images.
Video
For a movie with cinematography as lovely as Stealing Beauty, it's a pleasure to be able to report an outstanding DVD transfer. The 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen image is extremely clean and noise-free, with no edge enhancement in sight. The images are clear and sharp, and the vivid colors and lighting are captured perfectly.
Audio
Stealing Beauty's Dolby 5.1 soundtrack offers a sound that's nice and clean. There's no particular use of surround effects, but it's also not a film that really provides much by way of surround sound in any case. The music is balanced well with the dialogue, never overpowering it.
Extras
The DVD features a selection of TV spots, a handful of trailers for other Fox films, and a short, promotional-style featurette; just enough to keep the disc from being bare-bones, but just barely.
Final thoughts
Stealing Beauty is a movie that lends itself well to repeat viewing; it's visually appealing as well as interesting as a story. It's certainly not a typical drama, and shouldn't be approached with any expectations about the direction that the plot will go in, which is in fact precisely why I enjoyed it.
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