Don Juan DeMarco

I loved this film. It made me think if I'm dreaming enough? Or am I just living life by its face value? Don Juan DeMarco, is about dreams, about fantasies, and about love. It raises the important question, how much of imagination is enough to spice up your life, and not turn you into a delusional freak. Everybody knows and accepts the fact that one can not have everything one desires, one can become everything one wants to be. so what do you do? Give up, and live the dull and routine life you have, or have 2 different worlds, one for yourself and one for everybody around you. But while doing that how do you make sure you don't end up severing your link with the real world and end up in a mental asylum. Its this tight rope that Don Juan DeMarco, played brilliantly by Johny Depp has to walk on. His real life leaves lot to be desired for. Rejected by his one and only true love, he drifts away in his fantasy world, where he is the greatest lover of all. By doing that, though he is able to transform himself into a real charmer, he distances himself from the real world, and his real identity. So he ends up in a clinic for delusional patients under the care of weary and dreary pshychatrist Dr Jack, played by charming Marlyn Brando. And this is the beginning of the delightful exchange of ideas and vision between the 2 completely different personas. In the process both of them tend to gain, and make their lives a little better. Don Juan gets back his identity, so that he doesn't have to live in the mental hospital, while Jack gets his grove back :-) Coming back to the technical aspects of the film, I don't think there's anything lacking there. Good screenplay, solid acting and soothing original score. The script comes up with jewels every now and then, which makes you rexamine your own beliefs in life, and love. A highly enjoyable film.

Unless you understand these 4 secrets, you will miss what the film is all about:

1. The film is NOT about Don Juan !

2. The film tells us how to rekindle love in our lives, even if we are old and gray-haired. This is so very important!!

3. If we do not have a good dose of fantasy, of rich imagination, of beautiful dreams in our lives, then we will become 'burned out' by the harsh boredom of reality-as-we-perceive it. We are also challenged by the question "What really is real?"

4. If we have too much fantasy and not enough reality, then we cannot cope with the rest of the world. Also, society will not be able to cope with us and we will be isolated, perhaps in a mental institution or at least in our own twisted world.

Oh - did I say that this film is not about Don Juan? Well, in a sense, I lied. It is and it is not. See the film and think about it.

Superbly well acted by Johnny Depp, Marlon Brando, and Fay Dunaway (what an incredible beauty even at her age!). An amazing script and a very original story. Unless you understand the meanings above, or if you have a cold heart, you'll probably rate it a 5 or 6.

I give it a 9 out of 10!!

Psychologist Dr Jack Mickler (Marlon Brando) is called upon to negotiate a man down from the top of a tall building - a man claiming to be the great Latin lover Don Juan de Marco (Johnny Depp). Although Mickler is about to retire, he agrees to take Mr de Marco on, and delve into his mind and past. What he didn't count on was that Don Juan is starting to make him feel like HE'S missing something...

The lives of Brando and Dunaway interact with their roles in the film - as oldies in need of rejuvenation by the young sex god. They were both sex symbols in their youth - Brando, till about the age of 60, was a real life Don Juan - he really HAS probably slept with over a thousand women. So if you know this it brings an interesting layer to the movie.

It is a great journey which calls up all the great noble romances of the past in a tongue in cheek manner, with a love of stories, of fantasy, of women.

I wouldn't hesitate to call it the most romantic movie ever made. If there was one flick you had to put on to set the right mood between you and a girl, this would be it.

Looking at Johnny Depp might also help her in that regard.

Its also a great fun family movie - which is a delicate balance to strike.

4/5

Disclaimer: there are about two sex scenes, which, though very discreetly and beautifully shot, featuring no vital organs, may be inappropriate for littlies, if you wish to shield them thus.

This is simply another great film by Johnny Depp. In the film, he plays a delusional man who believes that he is Don Juan. When I first watched the film I was actually waiting for another film to begin. However, I'm glad that I watched it. It has just the right balance of comedy and drama to make it a very unique film. As the movie progresses, Don Juan is telling his life story to his psychiatric doctor. As Don Juan commences, his doctor is also affected in many ways. The movie is directed very well, the ending is well done as well. I definitely recommend this movie to those who are fans of Depp's other works or just for anyone who hasn't seen a good film in a while.

Wholly different the usual fare Hollyood dished up in the nineties, DON JUAN DEMARCO is charming and disarming. The screenplay seems lovingly crafted around the two stars, Marlon Brando and Johnny Depp. They share scenes of relating, discovery and moving, personal respect. Mr. Brando shows easily, why he is still one of America's leading thespians. Faye Dunaway as his wife, is marvellous beyond words. The interplay between these three characters is a spirit lifting tour de force, that will leave you holding hands long after the screen has gone dark.