The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989)
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover is a 1989 British-French romantic crime drama written and directed by Peter Greenaway, starring Richard Bohringer, Michael Gambon, Helen Mirren, and Alan Howard in the titular roles. The film’s graphic scatological, violent, and nude scenes, as well as its lavish cinematography and formalism were noted at the time of its release.
IMDB user review :
Color changes everything!
5 May 1999 | by Maurice_Rodney (California Central Coast)
The “inside story” of this film is color. Most professional reviewers, with nation-wide media exposure, missed this underlying story element entirely, as did I, until half way through my first viewing. Once I realized the colors of the costumes changed, as the characters passed from room to room, I had to go back and see it again. That’s how I got hooked.
During the next viewing, I took note of the creativity and effort that went into the design and construction of the costumes, several times, as each one had to be rendered in several colors. The next time through, I noticed how the color of each room related to the activity that normally took place there, even in the outdoor sequences. With the subsequent viewing, I concentrated on the soundtrack.
From that point on, my awareness of all these elements, served to enhance my appreciation of each character and his or hercontribution to the story line. That’s when the much talked about “gross-out” aspects of the film seemed to diminish in their ability to shock. In fact, by that point, they seemed to fit much more naturally, although the “NC-17″ rating is absolutely appropriate.
This is a sumptuous feast for the eyes and ears of intelligent “adult” viewers. Not to be missed.
