F-0171

Title:

Dangerous Liaisons

Category:

S

Produced:

1988

Country:

USA / UK

Released:

Film: Dec 1988 (USA)
DVD: Oct 1997
VHS: Dec 1992; Apr 1993; Feb 2001
Soundtrack: Jul 1996 (CD)

Director:

Stephen Frears

Writer:

Christopher Hampton (play, screenplay); Choderlos de Laclos (novel "Les liaisons dangereuses")

Actors:

Glenn Close (Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil); John Malkovich (Vicomte Sébastien de Valmont); Michelle Pfeiffer (Madame Marie de Tourvel); Swoosie Kurtz (Madame de Volanges); Keanu Reeves (Le Chevalier Raphael Danceny); Mildred Natwick (Madame de Rosemonde); Uma Thurman (Cécile de Volanges); Peter Capaldi (Azolan); Joe Sheridan (Georges); Valerie Gogan (Julie); Laura Benson (Emilie); Joanna Pavlis (Adèle); Nicholas Hawtrey (Major-domo); Paulo Abel Do Nascimento (Castrato); François Lalande (Curé); François Montagut (Belleroche); Harry Jones (Armand); Christian Erickson (Bailiff); Catherine Cauwet (Opera singer)

Description:

Set in France around 1760-1770. The Marquise de Merteuil needs a favour from her ex-lover, Vicomte de Valmont. One Marquise de Merteuil's ex-lover, Gercourt, is planning on marrying a young, virtuos, woman called Cecile de Volanges. The Marquise would like Valmont to seduce Cecile before her wedding day. Meanwhile Valmont has a conquest of his own in mind, Madame de Tourvel, a beautiful, married, and God fearing woman. The Marquise doesn't think that Valmont can do it, she tells him that if he can provide written proof of a sexual encounter with Madame de Tourvel, that she will offer him a reward, one last night with her. But Valmont will find himself falling in love with Mrs. de Tourvel, embrasing the deadly jealousy of the marquise de Merteuil. (bennettc)

Set in Rococco France, a scheming widow and her ex-lover make a bet regarding the corruption of a recently married woman. The ex-lover, Valmont, bets that he can seduce her, even though she is an honorable woman. If he wins, he can have his lover to do as he will. (Ed Sutton)

A sumptuously mounted and photographed celebration of artful wickedness, betrayal, and sexual intrigue among depraved 18th-century French aristocrats, Dangerous Liaisons (based on Christopher Hampton's Les Liaisons Dangereuses) is seductively decadent fun. The villainous heroes are the Marquise De Merteuil (Glenn Close) and the Vicomte De Valmont (John Malkovich), who have cultivated their mutual cynicism into a highly developed and exquisitely mannered form of (in-)human expression. Former lovers, they now fancy themselves rather like demigods whose mutual desires have evolved beyond the crudeness of sex or emotion. They ritualistically act out their twisted affections by engaging in elaborate conspiracies to destroy the lives of their less calculating acquaintances, daring each other to ever-more-dastardly acts of manipulation and betrayal. Why? Just because they can; it's their perverted way of getting get their kicks in a dead-end, pre-Revolutionary culture. Among their voluptuous and virtuous prey are fair-haired angels played by Michelle Pfeiffer and Uma Thurman, who have never looked more ripe for ravishing. When the Vicomte finds himself beset by bewilderingly genuine emotions for one of his victims, the Marquise considers it the ultimate betrayal and plots her heartless revenge. Dangerous Liaisons is a high-mannered revel for the actors, who also include Swoosie Kurtz, Mildred Natwick, and Keanu Reeves. (Jim Emerson, Amazon.com)

Language:

English

TT:

119 min / 120 min (DVD, VHS)

J.S. Bach's Music:

Concerto for 4 harpsichords, strings & continuo in A minor BWV 1065

Concerto for 4 harpsichords, strings & continuo in A minor BWV 1065

Allegro from Concerto for 4 harpsichords, strings & continuo in A minor BWV 1065

Format:

Film: Color (Eastmancolor)
DVD: (Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Full Screen, Widescreen, NTSC, Region 1) | (Anamorphic, NTSC, Region 2) | (NTSC, Region 2) | (PAL, Region 2)
VHS: (Closed-captioned, Color, Original recording reissued, Widescreen, NTSC) | (PAL) | (Closed-captioned, Color, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC) | (Closed-captioned, Color, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC) | (Color, Dolby, Widescreen, NTSC) | (PAL, German)
Soundtrack: CD

Company:

Film: Lorimar Film Entertainment, NFH Productions, Warner Bros. Pictures
DVD: Warner Home Video
VHS: Warner Home Video
Soundtrack: Indent Series

Comments:

Watch selections:

Buy movie at:

DVD: Amazon.com | Amazon.com [Region 2] | Amazon.com [Region 2) | Amazon.com [PAL, Region 2]
VHS: Amazon.com | Amazon.com [PAL] | Amazon.com | Amazon.com | Amazon.com | Amazon.com [PAL, German]
Soundtrack: Amazon.com [CD]

Source/Links: IMDB
Contributor: Aryeh Oron (November 2007)