Le feu sacré

Most of Jane Campion's films make me uncomfortable. This one was no exception. But I liked it. And it has grown on me.

Having investigated eastern philosophy and western mysticism for years, I appreciate Jane Campion's competency in dealing with themes of a metaphysical nature. I was stunned by her use of metaphor in "The Piano," a constant returning to the place of origination, the synergy of yin and yang, the veil of illusion, and the mystery of expression ("the word").

Holy Smoke is more direct in its approach, but effective in exploring themes of power and love as both intimate and universal life forces. As usual, Campion approaches her subjects with an unflinching, but sympathetic, eye.

I am always nearly a fan of Campion's production values: I love the saturated, dark colors, the carefully contrived shots, the whimsical and sparing use of special effects and humor, and typically incredible casting.

While appealing on an aesthetic level, what appeals to me most about "Holy Smoke" is that it deals with some of my favorite themes: the illusory nature of "reality," the vulnerability, and power, of the human mind, and heart, and the sometimes shocking, sometimes humorous ways that we learn from the wisdom of the universe.

In "Holy Smoke," when I saw PJ Waters get off the plane to the sound of Neil Diamond singing "I am I said... I am I cried," I took notice, and became expectant of a punch line somewhere down the road.

This film could be called flawed, and is definitely not for everyone, but I come away from it feeling empowered, humbled, and amused--and appreciative of the sensitive, creative, adventurous spirits who made it.

PJ Waters is retained as an expert to de-program Ruth, but the Universe has other plans in mind... I love it.

Bizarre. Fascinating. Flawed. Out of control. Definitely not ordinary. I can use all those expressions to show what I feel about "Holy Smoke", but I think they are not enough to express all my mixed feelings about it. This is not an easy film to watch and more difficult than that to review, but I can say that its qualities overcome the majority of its flaws.

"Holy Smoke" is a story about two totally different people. Ruth is a young Australian woman who travels to India and there starts to take part in a cult, getting fascinated with it. Her family starts to get worried about that and contracts PJ Waters, the other face of the coin, to make Ruth forgets her new beliefs and return to a normal life. They will spent some very unusual days in a hut on the desert, where we don't know who is in charge of the situation. Jane Campion writes and directs this weird and tense story with a wonderful passion. She tries to escape from all the clichés and succeeds in. There are some other stories of Ruth's weird family: her gay brother, her nymphomaniac sister-in-law, her ingenuous mother. This is the humorous part of the film, where you'll see even a sheep serving as a table at Ruth's house. But, strangely, "Holy Smoke" didn't feel as a dramatic comedy. It's one of those pictures that you can't define the genre with sure.

All the qualities and flaws of "Holy Smoke" come from the directing and the writing. There are some slow moments, exaggerated situations, some out of places scenes which could have been easily deleted. These are the main reasons why I didn't enjoy very much Jane Campion's earlier works: the overrated "The Piano" and the tasteless "The Portrait of a Lady". But here the flaws sometimes can be forgotten because Campion explains the story better than in her other works and succeeds in captivating the audience with an interesting story, discussing subjects as sex and religion with the right tone.

The one who really shines here is Kate Winslet. Harvey Keitel is great as always, but Ms. Winslet gives us an Oscar caliber performance. She doesn't have problem in appearing naked, sing, dress Keitel with a red dress and say what she thinks. I'm sure that her performance won't disappear in smoke, at least for me.

"Holy Smoke" was very criticized and snubbed, but it deserves a second chance. I agree that it is flawed and obviously not for everyone. But watch it with patience, pay attention at the subliminal messages, have some fun and think a little. It is worth the price of the ticket.

This film is highly misunderstood. Reading some of the reviews I found it hard to believe they were related to the film I'd just seen. This is so much more than a battle of the sexes, it covers lots of ground: boundary in therapy, the legitimacy of mystical experience, the complexities of family dysfunction, the ingenuity of the human spirit when heart and individuality are threatened. I regret that many viewers and reviews seem to have seen the humorous aspect of the film as an indication that the film's themes are lacking in substance. This is a worthy film. I regret that it's not getting its due.

This movie is aptly titled, a major smoke and mirrors job with no real meaning and no real meat. Winslet's performance isn't bad, and Keitel is decent in a completely unconvincing characterization. Its difficult to believe a man who has allegedly deprogrammed 189 previous 'clients', then suddenly ends up in Australia without his girlfriend and drops his pants for anything female, including the girl he's being paid $10K to "help". This movie could have worked, but its slow and ponderous right up until the sexual congress convenes, and then it only becomes more preposterous. I'm not sure what sort of strange demons Jane Campion has in her closet, but they aren't doing a very good job of guiding her art. Just like "The Piano", this movie completely lost me and comes off as some sort of indecipherable post-feminist statement.

The supporting cast is awful, which might not be their fault, but the fact that they are all cast as wooden, emotionally immature, alcoholic Australians. If I were from down-under, I'd be offended by the stereotypical portrayals. The end of the movie goes from rediculous to nice and tidy with a pretty bow on top...very weak. Essentially, this movie is a vehicle to get Kate Winslet naked and Harvey Kietel in a dress, so its probably not going to do too badly at the box office. But, if you want to see anything deeper than a beautiful actress nude and a decent actor cross-dressing, avoid "Holy Smoke".

Holy Smoke is a great idea for a film, as Harvey Keitel is brought to Australia, to "deprogram" Kate Winslet, who has become a member of a cult in India... Good concept, bad film... The movie goes south once Keitel and Winslet hook up, there's no chemistry, but Winslet walks around naked and Keitel dons a dress for the last 20 minutes of the film... Too wierd for its own good, and never seems to make a point... Awful script, and two very good actors are made to look very stupid...