Domino

I didn't quite know what to expect of Ivana's Massetti's, Domino, and was pleasantly surprised how engaged I was by the end of the first scene. Famed model, Brigitte Nielsen plays a glamorous director named Domino who's on a quest of self discovery to see if she can truly fall in love. Meanwhile, she's become the object of a stalker who's had his eye on her for some time. When Domino becomes obsessed with his identity, she quickly turns the tables on her pursuer.

Even today there's an eroticism found in this late '80s film not seen in American pictures. While the sex and glamour don't necessarily drive the movie, it's integral to the plot and a high selling point. There are some interesting conversations made about the viewpoint of sex versus love making, particularly through the eyes of a woman. Throughout the movie there are images and sounds that evoke elements of Argento, Lynch, or even Cronenberg films. While a plethora of characters come and go, Nielsen's Domino remains the contestant, occasionally appearing unintentionally wooden, but showing the sincere emotions of a woman cutting herself off from the rest of the world.

This is a unique film I had wanted to see for years. There's a depth not found in many of Briggite Nielsen's movies. I'm hard pressed to name another film exactly like it. But it is entertaining and thought provoking.

I worked at a theater that showed this film back in 1989. At the beginning of the day, the film was in a 400 seating capacity theater. By the end of the day, it was moved to a 100 seater. One customer came out of the theater and I asked him how he liked the film. He said, "A sad excuse for a porno movie." Of course, it sparked my curiosity and went to see it 2 days later (The film stayed at our theater for only 2 weeks). To this day, I cannot figure out what the film was about! The acting was INCREDIBLY BAD!!! I came out of the theater more confused than when I went in. A total waste of time and not even worth watching if someone gave you a free copy of the video.

This movie is rather dear to me mostly because of its atmosphere, I love how much of it is somewhat solitary nighttime at a fairly slow pace that isn't fashionable these days. The jazz music also adds to the mood, as well as her apartment which has that feeling of being part museum, part department store display (I mean that as a compliment). It's a plus that Ms. Nielsen did this while carrying a more matronly figure that did a nice job of smoothing out her curves, which I find infinitely more attractive than a slim figure with conspicuously fake bazongas. The style is fairly polarizing, some might think it too "arty" or even "pretentious", but to me almost every scene is beautiful, and you see a lot of sexuality from a woman's point of view. It gets overdone in places but overall I find it very enjoyable. It leaves a lot to the imagination plot-wise, in a way that few movies do. It's dream-like.

Unfortunately all I have is a US copy of the release on VHS - the DVD I have is the Italian release, which has fairly poor dubbing that kind of loses the mood (although it does contain a lot of extra footage). I wish this would get released on DVD!

All of the other reviews posted here notwithstanding, I found this movie to be uniquely charming.

This is soft-core erotica from a woman's viewpoint, with a lens on the feminine mystique. Guys, if you (like me) have ever gotten all worked up with that "get laid or bust" feeling; found someone to get your rocks off with; but then felt like "Is that all there is?" … this film is about what was missing sexually. It depicts arousal as much more than an eager boner. Time slows down. A river of warm, liquid feelings is flowing by. It looks like an art deco moon; it sounds like Billie Holliday's slow, unhurried voice, womanly and girlish at the same time; and it feels like a woman's hot, naked body writhing in a stretchy white lace body stocking. This is not a 30-second ad for Pepsi or Viagra; this is the journey of a warm-blooded soul experiencing urban life.

Yes, the plot may seem disjointed and meandering, like the way we dream.

One of the intriguing images in the movie is a jet-black male mannequin, in a fedora or a white bow tie, which Domino adopts as a partner. It makes me wonder: Is this what women really want in a man: someone who will just be there when they come home, waiting for them, ready to listen, with no drama or needs of their own and nowhere to go?

There's no hurry here — Wait until you get bored with the whiz-bang titty-poppers (which I also love dearly), and then give yourself an evening with this film. Watch it with your partner if you have one; compare impressions; and don't have anything planned after that.

The title kind of says it all. I have no idea what this movie is supposed to be about in any way, shape, or form. It's deliberately stylized and makes little to no sense. However, it does have Brigitte Nielsen at her most striking prime, taking her clothes off a lot for little or no reason. The woman has serious charisma and her acting inexperience is not a problem here because the movie doesn't make sense anyway! The European version is much better with far more nudity that's cut out of the American release. If you like how Ms. Nielsen looks it's worth watching. Just put music on or something so you aren't tempted to actually pay attention to what's going on in the movie.

Matt