Lace

My wife has been been talking for the last 10 years about this TV-show and finally we got a chance to see it. To my surprise it turned out far less a chick-flick then I assumed (Thornbirds was a memory-lane disaster for the both of us). The story has nice twists, is nicely built and could stand any comparison to modern dramas. Sure, 1984 filming standards and some (few) bad acting parts make you want to laugh out loud but otherwise the show is most entertaining and easily watchable even on 21k-standards. On the other hand, the innocence in the way the show was filmed make it more attractive. A modern version would most likely destroy some of that particular touch. Lace is not built on intelligent dialogs however tells a story of failed promises and friendships in a way that makes you want to watch until the end.

Aunt Hortense(in French dialect): "But the child is killed, it's dead, you know?" Lili (indefinable Euro dialect): "They'll wish I was. Their little school girl pact sent me to hell. I'll show them what I learned there..."

And so begins the saga that captivated millions of viewers in 1984. For this story of the poor little rich girl/porno queen/movie goddess had more charm, more style, and more suspense than anything ever seen before, or possibly since.. "Lace" also featured the most intoxicating and sweeping romantic situations, which stretched across no less than 5 countries, involving Arab Princes, French Champagne Barons, Shipping tycoons, and one vengeful Porno star turned legitimate actress. And this epic all begins with her, Lily, played by the outrageously exotic and sexy Phoebe Cates. Abandoned as a child, by a seemingly unfeeling mother, the young Elizebeth is cast into the cruel world and lands in a Hungarian work camp at the age of six, where she is mistreated and violated by soldiers, for 10 grueling years. Escaping at the age of 15, she flees to Paris, where she begins her descent into depravity, including back alley abortions, street prostitution, and finally ending up in pornographic cinema, all at the age of 16. Meanwhile her mother, who incidentally, could be any one of three amazingly successful and beautiful women, goes about her life believing that her child had been killed. Not true, as these three ladies are about to find out. And this is the most captivating element of this clever film: The viewer has no idea which one of these three is the mother of this vengeful wildcat, and we must wait until the end of this 4 hour epic to find out the truth. And as we find out at the same time as Lily, we really feel involved with these characters. Told effectively in flashbacks, we get to know each one of these fascinating women intimately. We are with them at their Swiss boarding school, where the scandal begins, and we follow them all on their separate paths of broken relationships, staggering romances, and jet setting around the world. Pagan, the sarcastic, raven haired English girl, who falls hard for Abdullah, the Prince of Sydon. And Maxine, the doll like French beauty, and her Champagne baron. And Judy, who is realizing her dream of seeing her New York fashion magazine, "Lace" become reality. And all the while, the life of the less fortunate Lily is also presented, in contrast to these womens seemingly easy and privileged lives. Lily's experiences have made her into a very hard and angry young woman, who fatefully decides to use her star power to bring each of these women to their knees. And there you have it. To say more might ruin the experience of "Lace." Now as cinema, "Lace" might not be considered a masterpiece compared the great classics. But as a piece of Escapism, this film absolutely cannot be rivaled. Women will most likely find themselves transfixed by the endless parade of haut couture fashions, clothes that are so classic and elegant that they would be right in style today. And the men will undoubtedly be drawn in by the collection of these strong and beautiful women. And the scenery is something to behold as well, from the Swiss Alps, to Ascot, to the wind blown deserts of the Middle East, to the glittering skyscrapers of Manhatten, not to mention the interiors of the most beautiful homes, hotel rooms, and castles, as well as exotic cars that are constantly on display. The budget for this production must have been staggering, for it makes Dynasty look absolutely anemic by comparison!

Compliment the goings on with a sweeping romantic score, and you have the ultimate trash novel come to blazing life on the screen. For the full impact of this one, it should be watched without commercial interruptions, so that the fantasy is not interrupted. I have a DVD box set, which includes the vastly inferior, and insulting "Lace II," and even when watched today, this has aged well. In the 80's perhaps this didn't really surprise people, as this level of decadence was presented often in this time, on television shows like Dynasty, and "Falcon Crest," but in present day, this unabashed show of opulence could almost be considered as politically incorrect, as the greed and status hunting lifestyles of the 80's is frowned upon today. But luckily, that specific time is immortalized in "Lace," an undeniable symbol of the 1980's.

Very good soap drama TV-MINI SERIES that is very glamoruos,intriguing and is about the mystery of who is the mother of a young sex icon movie star.It is four hours long without commercials so do not watch this one in one sitting unless you have a lot of spare time.It's really meant to be watched in installments.Only for big fans of tv mini-series type soap dramas,it has a very good all around production for a tv show and could have been a masterpiece if it had better acting.The lead actors did their best but they really show their limitations here.Still,the acting was on par with the tv soap standards and Phoebe Cates truly fit her character.Most fans of the genre will consider this a cult classic.Fans of the lead actors will also want to check this out.......

This mini-series was great,I hope that one day I will be able to buy it on video or on d.v.d. All the acting was fantastic. If you have read the book you will still enjoy this, and then go on to read and watch lace2 the sequel.

Phoebe Cates (wife of Kevin Kline) was a perfect choice to play Lili as she is both beautiful and very very talented. You will be wondering who is Lili's mother and when you find out you will then be wanting to find out who is Lili's father is. The other actresses in the show portraying the potential mothers of Lili played their parts fantastically.

Go ahead hire this one and enjoy.

If you like British soaps, I would recommend this one. I found it quite amusing. Any parts of the story which I found "silly" are all to the better, in my opinion, for a story that is not supposed to be serious art or a true-slice-of-life. After the character of Lili enters the story ...(perhaps I should say that I didn't see the first ten minutes of this and I presume Lili was not at the beginning) I began to get the feeling that I was watching a South American soap opera. Don't let that comment put you off; I didn't expect to like it but I did! The actors did a good job with their material. The music was poor as in most British television shows. Phoebe Cates' outrageous accent only added to the charm; I found myself looking forward to hearing it. I would give it a 8 out of 10... for the category of soap opera.