Intimidad peligrosa

The first love is the toughest. You'll never forget, sets the standards for all of the relations in the future. Some first love never finish, and they 're carried out throughout life like little secrets that we hide from everybody. That's what 'Loved' is about. I don't think our friend from Milan has ever had a direct experience in the matter.

Robin Wright plays the girl who finally seems in peace of mind apart from when it comes to her very first boyfriend. He's still around, victim of love, victim of himself.

This well thought court-house love drama is sometimes too etherious, like teen age love. You most relate to appreciate: I did, and I even tried to buy the film for an ancillary but the distributor would't return calls. I recommend it.

If "Titanic" is what moves you, then skip "Loved." If you prefer slow-paced, thoughtful drama without special effects, noise or guns, where you have to put a lot of pieces together yourself, this is your movie. I don't believe that a movie is to be seen, half-digested and compartmentalized after one viewing, certainly not if it has any of the elements of subtle poignancy that this movie has. And because they are so good, I want more from writer-director, Erin Dignam and the lead actors, William Hurt and Robin Wright. I like looking at William Hurt and at Robin Wright even when they say nothing, when they struggle to find the right words. They can take all the time in the world, they are so impressive in their thoughtful solitude. Speak of a mismatched pair: a tall, dowdy lawyer of scholarly mien and a beautiful waif of athletic prowess. In this movie there is a chance to see if opposites attract after all. William Hurt and Robin Wright deliver flawless acting. He is a California prosecutor taking on a battered woman case, and Wright is the more than willing victim, the reluctant witness that has to be subpoenaed to testify. Imagine a sunny, naive, diffident, young California woman moving to New York City to get away from a first teen-age entanglement that leaves her damaged physically and emotionally. That's Wright character, Hedda. A one-time Olympic swimming contender, she returns to California for the prosecution of her former abusive boy-friend, who is wont to repeat his aggressive behaviour with others. Hurt is recruited to prosecute this difficult case, to end, or at least, to put a dent in this man's damage. If there are flaws in the film, they lie in no information being given about Wright's life in New York, and what it is that has hurt the prosecutor's past life and career. He seems to have lost his way but we don't know why. There is only so much reading between the lines one can do though it could be me that doesn't read well. Wright's character may be too naive to be believable, but on the other hand, it is called the battered spouse "syndrome." In the loose ends and in the space between thelines lie the beauty of this movie. Something unsaid may be happening between the prosecutor (Hurt) and his witness (Wright). Two lovable, damaged people may or may not be inching, reaching out to each other. Two near-fully realized characters are presented to us to make of them what we will because the writer-director won't give the store away. I prefer it that way. "Loved" is a compelling theatre piece, perhaps in the vein of an "Oleanna." In "Loved" the dark courtoom scenes are set within those of a bright, sunshiny Santa Monica and Redondo Beach. You may feel like walking around Santa Monica after when the movie ends. I do. Adventure seekers, romance novel readers and fans of "Godfather 15; 16; 17," ad nauseum, need not apply.

I saw this film while voting for the Independent Spirit Awards and I must say it had many of my favorite performers. William Hurt, Amy Madigan, Sean Penn (whose company helped make the movie), Joanna Cassidy, Paul Dooley and Jennifer Rubin is like a dream cast to me. I couldn't wait for them to be put to good use. Sadly, they were given almost nothing interesting to do. It has a good setup, it is about the damage that happens in abusive relationships, specifically what people are willing to endure in order to feel loved. The project was not structured or developed very well, however. I think the script needed a few more drafts because the situations needed more urgency or more weight. Most good independent films take you on an emotional or spiritual journey and this film just did not do that.

This movie has the most ridiculous dialogue. It was like walking into the middle of a conversation about something you never heard of and people you don't know. And that never changed.

This film came to me accidentally, but maybe that's the only way something with this much emotional depth can. It's not slow and boring - it breathes. And it allows one to breathe. The pace is appropriate and won't leave one fidgeting like the endless underwater blue fairy scene in A.I., or Ed Harris's pounding of his ex-wife's chest for the hundredth time in The Abyss' ridiculous resuscitation scene. It has an enchanting rhythm, like the Accidental Tourist - it reminded me about William Hurt's under-appreciated (he rarely immediately pops to mind when thinking of our greatest actors), yet luminous interior talent . If you're a sensitive person who likes to be absorbed and also participate intellectually in a movie, check it out.