Claudine's Return

This film has been repackaged as an erotic picture [retitled Kiss Of Fire] with a very racy cover that implies one will get more than a brief exposure to Miss Applegate's talents. Well forget it. This is an idiotic "drama" with no point, little plot, and amateurish camera work. Disney has added the tagline "An Erotic Journey Of Desire!" to a movie that is really just a crappy chick-flick!

The reason you have not heard of this film is that no one saw it, and that is the way it should be. Applegate is almost decent, but the accent seems variable, and she doesn't transition us through her mood swings, which probably is more the fault of the director, editor, and writers than hers. Somehow I did not get why she was as nutso as she was. Just a spoiled little rich girl all twisted by unhappy events? Persons of modest strength survive the traumas of life, why couldn't Claudine? It was a bit like destroying your life with drugs and alcohol because someone had a better senior prom dress. Wasn't that Valerie Perrine in the end as the stepmom? Where was her credit? Did she decline one when she saw how bad the film was? If so, she showed marvelous taste.

I'm sorry to say I rented this with a clear head. Under-developed story, little use of Applegate's ability as a fine actress, and no nudity ruined this film. I kept thinking to myself "If there was just the occasional breast, the movie would be fine." I was wrong, but what the hey?

The characters were sorely undeveloped. The story was never shown to the viewer. The "past" that Applegate is trying to conquer and escape is never shown.

And what kind of morons do the writers think we watchers are? The blonde kid in the car? The flash to the future? Come on.

Never rent this. Ever.

My dish: 1 out of ten, and that's my being gracious.

this was a fairly confused film, that seemed to suffer from a failure of a sense of 'place'--at times i felt i was in hipster berlin, in some basement bordello, at times on a wild georgia coast. their was something odd and peculiar about the location, sets, and sexuality of the main characters, that i could never really put my finger on. nevertheless, Christina applegate turns in a surprisingly subtle, smart, and wry performance, the cinematography is LOVELY in the outdoor settings, and there are comic, as well as a few almost mystically beautiful moments. along with some very clunky and dumb ones. one gets the feeling the film is very much a MISS, but that their must have been something interesting underlying the story that never quite made it to the surface. atmospheric, Christina is great, but ultimately, only an interestingly, occasionally downright muddled misfire...

This is a surprisingly great movie.

Christina Applegate's performance as well as that of Stephano are extremely well done and offer great depth. The characters are interesting and the many ancillary characters help to create a slightly bizarre atmosphere.

I thought the screenplay, direction, cinematography and sound were all top notch and added a lot to the overall feeling of the movie. The camera work, especially, was very creative and interesting.

This is not a feel good movie and it dances at the edge of the darkside of humanity. If you feel like an interesting, off-the-beaten-path, moody flick - this is a good choice.