The Blood Oranges

(1997) The Blood Oranges DRAMA

Adapted from the novel by John Hawkes co-written and directed by Phillip Haas has open marriage couple of Cyril(Charles Dance) narrating him and his wife, Fiona (Sheryl Lee) while settling down in the ruins of Illyria, soon succumbing to be friendly with a middle age couple of three kids stuck onto a stream wile riding on their van. The couple, is an one arm photographer name Hugh (Colin Lane) and his wife Catherine (Laila Robins). While his wife gives in to temptation Hugh on the other hand is reserve. And the movie flashbacks between past and present, which may lead to heartbreak for it is just a matter of when and what happened.

Viewers understand what Hugh's objective was as he is a photographer of natives, but it's like why did the husband chose to stay when he has the opportunity to leave some place else as Illyria is not the country that has natives.

I got this for my "Charles Dance" collection. Had seen "Angels and Insects", like many others, so that added to the appeal. Hope the book was better. The premise was fine - an attempt at a somewhat surreal tale of sexual intrigue. Aside from Dance, however, the performances were stilted and silly (especially Sheryl Lee, even if she was supposed to sound like she did - it was a distraction). The dialog certainly could have been written to better develop the characters. Pretty to look at, not enough erotica (and I don't mean soft porn, just erotic). But even Dance looked a bit silly with the "love lunch"...... I like it just enough to watch it again as part of my film library - and even to recommend it to friends who would see the value and look beyond the inane.

I thought this would be a sexy movie but it was not- it was just full of hot air and trite sentiments. I loved his other movie Angels and Insects but this movie was not up to that one at all. The acting was bad and the story was stupid. The only person who was somewhat believeable was Hugh's wife. A waste of time

''My fiction,'' he goes on to say, ''is generally an evocation of the nightmare or terroristic universe in which human sexuality is destroyed by law, by dictum, by human perversity, by contraption, and it is this destruction I have attempted to portray and confront in order to be true to human fear and . . . Ruthlessness, but also in part to evoke its opposite, the moment of freedom from that constriction, from that restraint, and from death.''

I have seen in various places negative comments about this film, but I found it engaging and well done. The characters are complex,interesting,human, and don't fit the usual stereotypes. The situation is not at all formulaic. I can see how some people may not get this film, or may be turned off or threatened by the subject matter, which has to do with people exploring alternative forms of intimate relationships, sometimes successfully, sometimes not. The acting is very good, especially Charles Dance - plus you get to see him sans clothing a few times, if you like that kind of thing, which I do. Sheryl Lee is kind of an odd actress, and it's kind of an odd character. The narrative, told from Cyril's point of view, goes back and forth in time, and the way it's structured creates a mystery that hints at tragedy. Cyril is a fascinating character, seemingly laid back, but you get a sense he's controlling everything under the surface. Wonderfully nuanced acting from Charles Dance. The film has tons of one my favorite things - moral ambiguity. Is it really Illyria, or is it Cyril's little kingdom - and does it matter? Now I want to read the book to dig further into the many layers of the story and characters.