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Howard Orr
14Jan12
Takes the filth and disease in Bowles's novel and makes a safe, picturesque film.
actingoutpolitics
26Jul11
“The Sheltering Sky” by Bernardo Bertolucci (based on Paul Bowles’ novel) depicts the spiritual voyage of a young and intelligent American couple in Northern Africa – with a hope to rejuvenate their love for each other. Life in a country of hunting for achievements and success made their ability for psychological intimacy as thin as a wallet without banknotes. During their trip they encounter various people – enigmatic, trivial, “dangerous” or frighteningly real, until their “pilgrimage” ends in a tragedy. The husband’s death transforms the wife/widow’s life from being a frivolous and vain intellectual into becoming a secularly spiritual person dedicated to lonely contemplation about life (according to the literary canon of Paul Bowles playing himself in the film). Port (John Malkovich) and Kit’s (Debra Winger) emotional togetherness (feelings for each other, intonations, pantomimes of mutuality, points of agreements and conflict) is elaborated by director and actors with the exactitude of a musical score we, viewers have to transform into the music of emotions. Actors’ psychological subtlety added to characters’ sophistication – creates an overwhelming spectacle of personal relations with its elegiac and dissonant moments. To see the film – the human emotions and reactions contained by the limitless African landscapes – is a unique and unforgettable viewing experience. Please, visit: www.actingoutpolitics.com to read an article about Bertolucci’s “The Sheltering Sky” – “Spirituality of Loss as a Step Towards Spirituality of Being” (with analysis of clip and shots from the film), and also essays about the films of Godard, Resnais, Bergman, Kurosawa, Bunuel, Bresson, Pasolini, Antonioni, Cavani, Alain Tanner, Fassbinder, Maurice Pialat, Herzog, Rossellini, Wim Wenders, Moshe Mizrahi and Ronald Neame. By Victor Enyutin
Nicole Elmer
19May11
This film is beautiful. I remember watching it as a 9 year-old and being completely enchanted back then by the cinematography. It truly left a mark on me.
Llawrence likes this
msmichel
31Mar11
Bertolucci's most under-rated film. A film of quiet beauty and majesty. A great adaptation of the Paul Bowles novel and exceptionally cast. Debra Winger has never been better; this is the film she should be known for. Perfect execution in Storaro's cinematography, art direction, costume and editing. Hadn't seen it in almost 20 years and just marvelled at its beauty today. Sakamoto's score perfect. A must.
Neil Bahadur likes this
earman
9Dec10
I adore this film. Debra Winger gives a heart wrenching performance. This is a sensual film with romance and exploration at its core. We need to be more than a tourist in our lives. Let's be travelers even if we get lost. The Sahara never looked so enticing and shrouded in mystery. Bertolucci provides a sumptuous canvas for this travelogue of soul searching and finding meaning in your life.
