Reptileenbu Did you people see the same film I saw?

Bergorks If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

Siflutter It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Brennan Camacho Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

davdecrane Beautifully shot – almost too beautifully given the mundane storyline – and unevenly acted, the film deserves kudos for an intelligent rendering of an adult problem: the post-traumatic stress of a returning WW2 vet, and the miseries it puts him and his wife through.The dramatic thrust of the film – erroneously labeled European by some viewers – is hampered, not by its slow unfolding, but by passive characters. John Savage is sometimes strong and sometimes not in his portrayal, but he's been stymied by a script that has him only desultorily going after various goals. Maria, a far better if still uneven performance by Nastassja Kinski (whose talent is strong; the inconsistency is clearly the director's fault), also only gradually commits to her husband. That's fine and real but with only minor characters (Vincent Spano, Keith Caradine) strongly after an objective, the movie is moribund at its center for much of its running time. (Robert Mitchum's character and performance are both dismal.) The film gathers some tension once Nastassja is mit Kind, and Savage's predicament reaches the breaking point. The resolution is somewhat satisfying though not entirely credible (Savage feels more like a life-long alcoholic at this point) and comes about through his chance meeting with Caradine's philanderer. More literary than filmic in its construction, the movie's best feature is Nastassja's performance. But because her life, like her husband's, feels more acted upon than really lived, the movie just lumbers.

Carl S Lau Set in the immediate post World War II in the small rural picturesque American town of Brownsville, Pennsylvania among Yugoslavian immigrants, `Maria's Lovers' follows a young soldier with the name of Ivan Bibec, played by John Savage, who has been discharged from the Army, into his home town. The film seems to unfold slowly upon first viewing, but that is misleading because it has been very tightly edited and one can only pick up some of the nuances of the film by watching it a second and/or a third time. Nastassja Kinski is Maria Bosic and is the central character in the film. The supporting cast is first rate with Anita Morris, Robert Mitchum and Keith Carradine. The film has a European feel to it because of the direction of Andrei Konchalovsky, meaning that it is sparse and compact, yet exquisitely framed. Early on, Ivan marries his sweetheart, Maria, and the rest of the film deals with love and infidelity and how it impacts the two main characters and their marriage.1984 found Nastassja Kinski in four film releases: `Unfaithfully Yours' a nice light comedy, `The Hotel New Hampshire' (a Nastassja disaster in which she initially appears in a bear costume and is so happy to escape it that she does one cartwheel at the end of the film), the Wim Wenders' legendary `Paris, Texas' in which she appears in the last part of the film, and then there was `Maria's Lovers' in which she was the featured and marquee performer. In `Maria's Lovers,' Nastassja has to carry the film in a very difficult role that would stretch any actress's abilities and skills. Of the forty plus Nastassja movies that I have seen, this is probably her best role and performance. Nastassja's Maria is textured and rich with innocence, shyness, passion, vulnerability, and character strength. If anything, Nastassja Kinski is chameleon like because she so easily blends into the film and yet her character is quite distinctive with depth, dealing with the irrationalities of love, intimacy, and infidelity. In a sense, `Maria's Lovers' is an end point for Nastassja because she was finally able to integrate everything into one performance. There is little question that Nastassja Kinski is foremost a dramatic actress of unparalleled skills that can be subtle or dynamic or anything in between when on the screen. Coupled with her singular striking beauty and expressive eyes, she is a package that very few actresses can ever hope to equal. Nastassja intuitively knows how to move on screen, have the proper inflections in her voice, use her face and eyes as an ever changing canvas, project intelligence and sensuality, and be charismatic with great screen presence. This was nothing less than a superb performance.

stevie_bebop I haven't seen this since it came out but I still talk about it when discussing the nature of love. It deals well with an issue I believe many people can relate to: the fine line between love and hate. The whole point [I believe] of the movie is to illustrate how John Savage's inability to make love to his wife is because he loves her too purely and only once that innocent worship has been tarnished can he consummate his marriage and love his wife completely.If you've ever wondered why your best sexual memories are of people you didn't love then this movie is for you.

ipswich-2 A World War II soldier (Savage) returns to marry his old lover (Kinski) but his inability to father a child leads to the destruction of their marriage. The couple goes through a series of tribulations before coming together again. Savage gives a so-so performance as the tormented husband who loses the will to commit to the sanctity of the marriage bond. Kinski gives her most versatile and inspired performance ever as the anguished wife. If anything, watch her. The director, Andrei Konchalovsky, is actually Russian. The movie is a pastiche of styles from American and European film-making. Strong powerful storytelling through the chronology of time tinged with the emotional pathos that is typical of most European films. In the end, the mix is a bit jagged and mismatched, but this doesn't stray from an otherwise strong and moving movie.