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I was reminded slightly of a current Australian release, 'Japanese story" which is also largely a two-hander, and has lots of time spent in remote locations. And it too has a fairly major plot twist along the way. But comparisons run out there. Rachael Blake is just as fine an actress as Toni Collette, but what she has to do here seems quite ludicrous. I get concerned when people begin to talk to whitegoods, for instance. You might find that at one point you think, where can this film go from here? And I don't think that question is resolved at all. The second half of the film in particular gets more and more bizarre and kooky, and even at the end I think many people would say "huh?'. Sam Neill was OK too, but I can't for the life of me think what possessed him to do this film. As a student film it would be acceptable, but not as a general release.

I borrowed this film on video knowing only that it might be good because of Sam Neill. The other actors were not well known, at least,to me. I liked this film very much because I watched the film unfold not knowing what's going to happen next. There were no obvious 'surprises,' which is why I think this film is clever. Rachael Blake was fantastic in this film. It is really her story. The film had the elements of a fine Hitchcock movie –- surprises are really unpredictable, not 'put-on unpredictable' as some films of the same genre tend to be. One might think because the jacket write-up talked about a woman going out with a stranger purposely knowing it to be a one-night stand that the film would be full of steamy sex scenes. Wrong. The one love scene with the 'ghost' Sam Neill actually was tender. This is the essence of the story – the strangeness of relationships. I don't understand why other reviewers 'didn't get it'. This is not a literal film that expects the audience to think that the story is based on reality. It is not. But it touches on human nature. Before some of you misunderstand me, I said 'literal' not 'literate,' which is an entirely different word. The film is very well edited, not slow, as far as I am concerned. 'Lost in Translation' and 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' are painfully slow films and it's only hype that made them known to the public. 'Cold Mountain' was unbearably slow. I didn't get to Renee Zelwegger's part – I gave up not even half-way through the film. 'Perfect Strangers' intrigued me and it deserves to be seen. It is not about looniness. It is about the narrowness of the line between sanity and insanity. Acting, editing, direction and photography were top-notch. Go see it. It will make you think. Some may think the ending is macabre, but if you view this film as an allegory, you will better appreciate the story. Just be sure you understand that the 2 main characters never really had a sexual relationship. It is all in the mind. C'mon, people, be literate, not literal and you'll enjoy this movie. The irony of this movie is that the 'villain' Sam Neill turns out to be of tender heart and the 'tough' Rachael Blake really a vulnerable woman.

Saw Perfect Strangers at the Vancouver Film Fest, September 30, 2003. Well made, and thouroughly engaging movie that suprises at many turns. The simple story of a working class woman who goes home from a bar with an interesting stranger becomes first a story of kidnapping but then moves to a more complex story of love, obsession, and fear.

As with many foreign films, Pefect Strangers is not afraid to mix fantasy with reality. And, it helps to have excellent direction, music, and above all acting by the two leads.

I recommend this film if you get a chance to see it, or eventually rent it.

I think Roger Ebert would have a tough time reviewing this movie. The story begins with our main character Melanie who is partying hard at the local pub when she accepts an obvious one night stand from The Man (Sam Neil)

Normally, one would expect a steamy sex scene to liven things up but the movie is rated PG 13 so instead Melanie passes out on the boat.

Waking up the following day from an intense hangover, Melanie discovers that The Man has taken her to a deserted island where he apparently lives and now we expect the obvious to happen.

The Man is a psycho who will hold her hostage on the island. She will try to escape numerous times but will fail. And in the end, he will probably get killed and she will get away.

Instead The Man gets hurt, and a weird series of events take place where Melanie is now going psychotic. Thats the biggest problem (well one of the biggest). In a film where one is being held prisoner, that is the person we are supposed to like and care about but eventually I felt sorry for Neils character who is supposed to be the bad guy. And the ending makes no sense at all.

Something like this would work better in a sequel to 'Dazed And Confused."

It starts like a conventional girl-goes-home-with-the-wrong-man-horror. After a while it is almost relation comedy and psycho drama and relation comedy again.

You miss the traditional agenda here. This is perhaps a form experiment, mixing genres. But the mix is not done in a clever way. You expect something to happen, a real climax, but it never comes and you are slowly getting uninterested.

This kind of genre mixing can be exciting, but the actors here are not capable of fulfilling the director's intentions. A failure and not a very good one.

Perfect Strangers is an unfortunate example of the third rate product government film finance initiatives can churn out. Essentially, it's a case of too few plot ideas stretched to 90 minutes by a poor screenwriter. As a result I really enjoyed 2 of the 5 reels of film, but almost fell asleep during the other three.

What started out as an interesting, plausible story quickly degenerated as the story rapidly grew more and more irrational. Ultimately, two thirds of the film was spent aimlessly tracking over stale ground. The major points of the plot are tenuously linked together through a thin and illogical thread.

Hands down, Perfect Strangers contains the worst acting of Sam Neil's erratic career (which is a shame as it also contains some of Rachel Blake's best).

I was bitterly disappointed in Perfect Strangers.

This movie has been hanging out in the New Release section of blockbuster stores since the day it arrived on DVD around a year ago. That's because people keep re-renting it (no, not me...I bought my own copy). My praise will not do this movie justice. I have not seen Sam Neill act more convincingly in a movie. He got that mysterious stranger role down perfectly. Rachel Blake was extraordinary. You just couldn't take your eyes off either one of them (regardless of the condition they were in). This is a beautiful movie, with stunning actors, breathtaking scenery, and haunting music. While watching the movie, you'll find yourself asking yourself "what would I do?". You'll also say to yourself "I must get that soundtrack!" I highly recommend it! @-->--> Kris

I liked this movie (or at least I think so... I'm not quite sure). It's very strange, but funny.

Maybe it's the best role in which I've seen Sam Neill, even though I believe he doesn't convince completely in that scene in which he gets rough and hit the girl.

In the other hand she does a good job (and during all the movie!!): I liked it, despite she's not very famous here in Spain. It's the first of her movies I have heard...

The best: The end (frightening!)

This film was by far the worst that I have ever seen. The plot was flat and confusing with unexplained twists that only seem to weaken the already nonsensical plot. Many of the points seemed unnecessary while other important parts were rushed or skipped altogether. Too much was thrown in too fast while many scenes seemed to have nothing to do with the previous one, leaving the audience in a state of confusion and unsure of what to think or expect. In all, I found it to be anti-climatic, confusing, poorly executed, and pathetically hilarious. I do not recommend this film, unless you would enjoy a complete disaster on screen.

I disagree with the previous comment. The movie possesses enough drama and suspense to keep the viewers interested until the very end. This is the story of two people who could have been happy together under different circumstances. It's also the story of what happens when people make the wrong choice. The movie asks the question what makes a certain choice the wrong one and points out that every choice could be both right and wrong. The music is well chosen, and the combination between Puccini's opera "Madam Butterfly" and a number of contemporary ballads enhances the atmosphere. The ending is unexpected and leaves the viewer surprised and delighted at the same time.

As far as discreet, not noteworthy and surplus to requirements films from 2003 go, Perfect Strangers isn't a bad one. While the film isn't brilliant, or even good really, it's a fair way to spend your time and if you've got ninety minutes free, there's a lot worse things you could be doing with it. Like sticking rusty screwdrivers in your eyes, for example. The film exists in familiar territory, and follows the over-used plot formula of 'man meets woman, takes her home and turns out to be a psycho', but it mixes in elements of other genres and some down right strange ideas, and the result is a somewhat original take on the idea. Of course, most of the originality that is implanted into the plot fails, but you've got to admire a film for at least trying to be original, even if it doesn't completely pull it off. The movie's best moments are when it's doing it's best to be absurd, and it even manages to take on a black comedy feel when the story gets going. Of course, much of it's plotting is illogical or over acted or both; but then again, you could say that's your fault for taking a chance on it.

Sam Neil is the headline star of the movie, and does what he usually does. I don't like Sam Neil, I find him boring and I haven't seen many films that feature a truly convincing performance from him. Quite how he managed to achieve something resembling fame from just plodding around the set of whatever movie he's working on is one of cinema's great mysteries...but as long as he stars in movies that make money, I guess we're just going to have to put up with it. I suppose at least this one didn't make much. Neil is out-performed, out-shined and outcast by Rachael Blake, however, who stars alongside him, and like him, doesn't give a very convincing performance. That just goes to show how easy it is to outshine Sam Neil. Perfect Strangers falls down principally on the whole because of it's plotting. While the film is never actually boring, it starts off slow and just as it's about to pick itself up, it falls down again and after it's done this three or four times, it gets very annoying. Don't be too harsh on that front though, it is only ninety minutes long. I don't really recommend this film, but if you've just rented it and now you're on here wondering what it's like; I can tell that it's o.k.

We have to start by saying the positive parts of the film, which are the very beautiful atmosphere of anxiety that surrounds the whole film and the semi-paranormal stuff that is introduced from half of the film onwards. Now let's talk about the most negative stuff ever, the plot, because the plot, not because it's bad but because it's very complex and the film can't handle its complexity well, resulting really too hasty and stupid in some points, this is because everything happens too fast and the film does not manage well to contextualize the various choices of the characters who on too many occasions seem forced and too irrational so as to distract the viewer's attention from the film to wonder if what he is seeing actually makes sense and is coherent or no.

I happened to turn on my TV and this movie was just beginning on Showcase. I like Sam Neill so I decided to get a cup of coffee and watch a few minutes. I ended up sitting through it all.

Sam Neill, as 'The Man' made a very charming, slightly twisted but totally delusional character who escorts a very pretty but slightly drunk Melanie, played by actress Rachael Blake, to 'his place' which is a skiff docked in the harbor. She has too much wine to drink and passes out on his boat. When she wakes, they're out to sea. They arrive at a remote uninhabited island where 'the man' has a shabby but chic cabin on a bluff. He fixes her a hot bath, prepares a delicious dinner for her.

It gets weird after this. He tells her he loves her, imagines she's someone else, she tries to escape, ends up stabbing him in the side. I thought that would be the end of the weirdness, but it was just the start. The movie held my interest, made me laugh at some of the things Melanie does with 'the man'. It ends on an upbeat note.

It's a love story really. We're led to believe it will be a story about kidnapping and being a hostage trying to escape but it's not at all. It's a very decent movie with a great performance by Rachael Blake. I'm surprised I haven't seen her in any movies before or since this one.

A previous previewer said that this was in his/her opinion "like a small student movie", like that would be something bad(?). Anyway, there is nothing amateurish or "student" in this movie. Maybe the guy was talking about the simplicity and small-scaleness of the film. Yes, it is that. But simplicity is/can be very brave and rare today. Many times filmmakers try to hide their lack of ideas under a chaos of different ideas and technical complexity.

This was not the greatest masterpiece of all time, but it was well worth watching. The script was very clever, and the directing and the "flow" of the movie was very well made. Sam Neill and the lead actress were very good castings for these roles. I think it's refreshing to see movies that don't try to be anything else than what they are. I rate this movie not compared to any other movies I've seen, but as an independent being and work.

I have to agree with some other reviewers, there are continuity errors which make the film even more unbelievable than it is, great NZ scenery and cinematography, and also it does resemble "Japanese Story" in many ways (not sure which came first, I think Perfect Strangers may have).

Having said that, I liked it a lot, Rachel Blake is great, Sam Neill is always engaging, but it is a bit too far fetched or too muddled a storyline, which (along with the continuity errors) makes it difficult to 'suspend disbelief'.

One of the aspects I most liked was the 'mainland' sequences with the girlfriends, it was a shame they were so brief, there was a lot to like in those scenes. Well worth seeing, and it does stay with you, possibly because it's a puzzle of a film, whether that is intentional or not is the question.

I rented this while I was staying in NZ and sat down prepared for a love story that turns into something like Fatal Attraction or something. Not at all. I appreciate the plot twists and enjoyed the extreme weirdness. Not horrible but not fantastic either ( in my opinion.

All in all I think the acting was pretty believable, but there are some plot holes (pretty gaping ones actually). However the story is pretty consistent with details from the beginning being carried over through the end.

I will look for movies with the lead actress and this director again in the future.

Enjoyable for those with twisted minds.

I really enjoyed this film, the plot had some interesting twists (although at times it was a little difficult to follow).

The title helps in understanding the film - "Perfect Strangers" tells us that only a stranger *can* be perfect.

This is the story of a woman who has been through several failed relationships, and is cynical about the likelihood of ever meeting someone she can trust and who will love her forever.

After being kidnapped by 'The Man', Melanie eventually realises that at last she has met the perfect man who will love her no matter what. She falls deeply in love with him, and does everything she can to stay with him on the island.

In the end he continues to be perfect only because he remains forever a stranger.