Le baiser du serpent

I found this movie to be very strange, and indeed it is! The first time I watched this movie I thought to myself "What the heck is going on here!" I completely missed the point of the movie the first time I saw it. Fortunately, I was already acquainted with some of Ewan M.'s work, and thought that surely Mr. Mcgregor would have more sense than to make a pointless movie. Thankfully I was right. I would advise anyone who doesn't understand this movie, or who has only seen it once, to watch it again. There is a deeper meaning. All of the actors and actresses were fabulous in this movie! Although the movie could have served just as well as a short feature, I'm glad that it is longer so that I can enjoy the chemistry between the cast members longer.

Like most period pieces, The Serpent's Kiss is long and seemingly drawn out to the average modern day movie goer. However, when it comes to the very core and heart of a movie, (its story and the actors that portray it,) everything is well thought out and enjoyable to watch. Just make sure you are not particularly tired and are up to watching the movie intently. Very surprising, and what makes the movie enjoyable-I might add, is that at the very beginning you find yourself caught in a intriguing plot which slowly unfolds to the unveiling of each character's real motives. Although there are no twist or turns, that would make it suspenseful the movie's full captivator lies in its puzzle piece of a story. Each scene has a plethora of knowledge and insight that proves at times to be quite the delightful opposite of what each character says. Yet, make no mistake, I definitely recommend this movie to anyone with patience and an infatuation for well written, fully understandable stories with moral meaning. If none of this is important to you, however, I would still recommended it. If only on the basis that Ewan McGregor's acting is something to watch intently and eagerly. Catching every detailed moment of his portrayal will leave an impression on even the more action driven movie goer.

This story is about a young, Dutch landscaper, Meneer Chrome (Ewan McGregor), who plans to create an extravagant garden for Thomas Smithers and his wife (Pete Postlethwaite and Greta Scacchi). His real plan or the real motive of this garden is to bankrupt Smithers so the not-so nice Fitzmaurice (Richard E. Grant) can seduce Smithers's wife. But Chrome begins having second thoughts about completing the plan after he becomes fascinated by Smithers's daughter Thea (Carmen Chaplin). I think people who have criticized this movie are far too harsh. I found it to have an excellent story with a talented cast. The performance that I felt most touched by was Carmen Chaplin's. Her struggle to find disorder in a world that wants to have order is an interesting element to the story. What I didn't like was the movie's pacing. I felt the message the movie was conveying that you can not control nature. I think this theme would have been better expressed in a short story or a short movie, not a feature length film. A part from that, I can sit through the hour and fifty minutes and feel glad that I saw this movie.

Well, to say the least I "thoroughly enjoyed" this movie. Having only watched it on TV I may not have seen it in it's entirety but what I did see I liked. Ewan McGregor just can't be bad in anything I suppose, or at least I haven't seen a movie yet where he didn't steal the show with his dazzling ability to become his character. The movie itself had quite a beautiful look to it and the odd loveliness of the daughter in the movie really gave you a funny sense all throughout it. It's not your ordinary tale, but the writing was wonderful and the acting superb. If you like odd love stories with a twist, this is the perfect example. And it doesn't hurt if you like Ewan McGregor, he absolutely shines.

I found both script and acting to be painfully bad for the first half hour or so, but things seemed to take a turn for the better after Meneer Chrome lost his wig (no, seriously). Scacchi was as glorious as ever; McGregor was as enjoyable as ever; and the other three principles each held down their corner of the story. The biggest weakness was the garden itself - it seems like the filmmakers were even less able to afford Chrome's vision than Smithers was, with a result that was more suited to a stage production than a movie. I'm not convinced that this movie was a good use of two hours of my time, but I also find that I can't get some of the imagery out of my head - generally recommended if you have patience with period pieces and like movies that ask more questions than they answer.