Breathless

I can't believe there's only ONE review for this movie! I just saw it and have so much fun from beginning to end that it's almost impossible to describe!

Within its genre this movie is a masterpiece, this movie is...PERFECT! Black humor from the word GO, relentless, suspenseful, hilarious... it has EVERYTHING!!! On top of that its script is so clever, SO CLEVER that you don't have an idea.

Everything came out as round and smooth as that crystal skull they found in Perú (or some place like that) and it's --they say-- several thousand years old, but with a surface so smooth that only could have been polished with a laser beam. This is exactly the impression I got from this film, sheer perfection!!!

Convoluted script, because it consists of several layers, layers the director peels away, one by one, like a superb magician and you look like a dumb child, the trick being performed in front of your naked eyes but you don't see the obvious tricks until towards the end when the whole puzzle starts getting its pieces in the right places and you close your open mouth saying: "Well... I'll be darn... so that was the way it happened"...

I tell you, incredible.

As incredible as the acting, because the idea is quite difficult to put through and make it believable --truly believable-- otherwise, with mediocre actors, this film would have crumbled from the very beginning, and these crew was superb (maybe with a small reservation for Val Kilmer, over the top in his overacting bit, fortunately in a cameo part) but the two women were fantastic.

Yet you get to know the characters little by little, small gestures, ticks, reactions to one another according to the dialog, situations, doubts, a myriad things, and yet, you are fooled from beginning to end, one step unfolding its real meaning until the next step unfolds a new, unexpected surprise, till the very last frame!!!

One of the best movies I've ever seen, and I hate movies with this kind of characters that speak with those accents and live in those places and listen to that kind of music!!!

Granted, it isn't "Pantaleón y las visitadoras" (2000), "Barry Lyndon" (1975), "Death in Venice" (1971), "L'ínnocente" (1976), "Tous les matins du monde" (1991), "Blade Runner" (1982), "Le scaphandre et le papillon" (2007), "Los otros" (2001), "Tom Jones" (1963) -- I just mentioned a few of the many movies I admire and will stay with me forever more, but again, considering the characters, their place under the sun, their music and their speaking accents... this movie is TOP DRAWER. (And I myself have the nerve to talk about accents in English...!!!).

The movie starts off pretty good, but descents fast too. Still it is nice to see Val Kilmer in a decent role (does not happen that often, but then again he is not the main actor here and he doesn't have a lot to do either, so that might help the fact), plus Gina Gershon can show some things she might have learned during "Bound". Ray Liotta is a side note and the whole thing is very predictable.

Funny enough (or not): While the movie tries to be clever, the coincidences and other things that just happen conveniently, really destroy the whole thing and make you wonder, what they were thinking. The basic idea was nice and the accents are interesting too (though some might say this is a bit of a one sided look at Texas), but the overall movie fails to impress. An extra point for trying though ...

The main problem with Jesse Baget's 'Breathless' is that it takes itself too seriously thinking that it's slicker, cleverer and funnier than it actually is. The weak script is perforated with holes. The dialogues try to be clever and funny but they hardly impress. A movie like this really needs to sustain its tension and element of suspense but every breath that 'Breathless' takes is predictable. Moreover, the pacing drags especially the dialogue ridden scenes that after a point sounds like mumbo jumbo. Of the performances, Gina Gershon does a fine job. Kelli Giddish performs adequately. Val Kilmer is funny in a brief role. Ray Liotta is far from his best. Production value looks quite good. All in all, 'Breathless' is lacks the life to sustain the viewer's attention. For a dark comedy, its just not that funny.

Refreshing, funny, entertaining, great performances by a great cast. Good story with a talented director as well. I truly enjoyed this movie from beginning to end. I did not realize what a talented actress Gina Gershon was until I watched this little gem-sleeper. I have a new appreciation for her skills. The rest of the cast was great as well, no matter how small there part..I think that was the beauty of it, these legendary seasoned actors with these small parts added so much to them. I truly made me laugh out loud...especially Val Kilmer's lines..he was great! The story kept me interested from the beginning to the end of the movie. Good fun, great acting, great direction and great cast with a unique, funny script.

Fun, intelligent, full of plot twist, comical, good performances, lots of blood, betrayals, thief who steals thief... Well...