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By
ETHAN CUHULINN
If nothing else, with
"Bitter Moon" you'll get to see a very young Hugh
Grant.
In director Roman Polanski's 1994 sexy drama Grant
plays a seemingly happily married man who lusts
after a sultry Emmanuelle Seigner (Polanski's
real-life wife, if you're wondering). He plays a
mild-mannered Englishman (appropriately named
Nigel) on a cruise with his wife (played by a
rather mousy Kristin Scott Thomas) to celebrate
their fifth wedding anniversary. Enter Seigner and
Grant is in lust, if not in love. As if the
situation was not already fraught with
complications, Peter Coyote also shows up as
Seigner's invalid husband and strives to "help" Grant appreciate what he's getting into -- or
maybe he's making the whole thing up, or maybe
Seigner is part of a larger deception, or...well,
does it matter really? Personally, I'm a sucker
for any story of sexual obsession set on a cruise
ship wandering the wine-dark Mediterranean. However, on the
minus side, you do get to see several bizarre
sights. One that may scar you for life is Coyote
in a pig mask and a G-string. Don't say you
weren't warned.
Shot by frequent Polanski collaborator Tonino
Delli Colli, the image is lovely and has been
transferred competently in 1.85:1 widescreen. The
Dolby Digital 2.0 is adequate, but the only extras
are four trailers -- for "Bitter Moon," "Death and
the Maiden," "Invincible," and "Sleeping Dictionary." |
