Eros (2004)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Directors:

Michelangelo Antonioni
Steven Soderbergh

Writers:

Michelangelo Antonioni (book) (segment "The Dangerous Thread of Things")
Michelangelo Antonioni (story) (segment "The Dangerous Thread of Things")

Release Date:

3 December 2004 (Italy)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Three visionary directors. One erotic journey.

Plot:

Three short films -- one each from directors Michelangelo Antonioni, Steven Soderbergh and Wong Kar Wai -- address the themes of love and sex.

Plot Keywords:

Anthology | Sex | Dream | Pressure At Work | Tailor

Cast

Li Gong	...	Miss Hua (segment "The Hand")
Chen Chang	...	Zhang (segment "The Hand")
Feng Tien	...	Master Jin (segment "The Hand") (as Tin Fung)
Luk Auntie	...	Hua's Servant - Ying (segment "The Hand") (as Auntin Luk)
Jianjun Zhou	...	Hua's Lover - Zhao (segment "The Hand")
Wing Tong Sheung	...	Tailor (segment "The Hand")
Kim Tak Wong	...	Tailor (segment "The Hand")
Siu Man Ting	...	Tailor (segment "The Hand")
Lai Fu Yim	...	Tailor (segment "The Hand")
Cheng You Shin	...	Tailor (segment "The Hand")
Wing Kong Siu	...	Tailor (segment "The Hand")
Kar Fai Lee	...	Tailor (segment "The Hand")
Chi Keong Un	...	Hotel Concierge (segment "The Hand")
Robert Downey Jr.	...	Nick Penrose (segment "Equilibrium")
Alan Arkin	...	Dr. Pearl / Hal (segment "Equilibrium")

Also Known As:

Eros (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexual content including graphic nudity, and for language.

Runtime:

104 min | Argentina:108 min

Country:

USA | Italy | Hong Kong | France | Luxembourg | UK

Language:

English | Italian | Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Taiwan:R-18 | Brazil:16 | Belgium:KT | Canada:14A | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Italy:T | Argentina:16 | Hungary:16 | UK:15 | South Korea:18 | Hong Kong:III | Japan:R-15 | Singapore:R21 | USA:R

Company:

Roissy Films

Movie Connections:

Featured in Autumn of the Magician (2009)

Soundtrack:

The Second Afro-Cuban Jazz Suite

Good First 2/3 of the Movie

And a very bad last 1/3 by Michelangelo Antonioni. I saw this movie last night at the Elgin Theatre at the Toronto International Film Festival and people walked out after seeing the Wong Kar Wai and Steven Soderbergh segments. I find it hard to rate this movie as a whole so I'll rate each segment of the movie separately. First, there was Wong Kar Wai's short film, titled "The Hand", starring Gong Li and Chang Chen. I thoroughly enjoyed this part of the movie, because to me, this definitely portrays what true love is about. It is a very sad story, told with great camera work and the colors were amazing, thanks to Christopher Doyle, the cinematographer. The lighting, soundtrack, and mood were also very enjoyable and complimented each other wonderfully. I rated this part of the movie a 9/10. Then came Soderbergh's short film "Equilibrium". This was more of a comedy, which was very much welcomed since the first part of the film was so sad. Again, the cinematography here was great too, although the story's plot wasn't as easy to follow as Wong's story. The symbolisms were a bit too much, in my personal opinion, but it was still a great short film. I gave this part a 7/10. Then came Antonioni's short movie, which I don't even remember the name of. The plot was almost nonexistent and to me, it was more of an excuse for porn than anything else. Like my friend said, it was as if Antonioni came to America and asked someone what their impression of foreign film was, and made it into this film. I particularly disliked the excessive amount of nudity in this segment of the film, since to me, it posed no greater meaning or purpose. The dialogue also had some of the cheesiest one liners I've seen since Van Helsing. I rated this part a 4/10. Overall, I'd say this movie was a 7/10 mainly because Wong Kar Wai and Steven Soderbergh pulled the average up.