Henry & June

If you're drawn to this film as a Henry Miller fan and expecting the Paris of Tropic of Cancer, you'll be let down. This film is a character-driven drama and therefore it is not intended to reproduce Miller's vision. Instead, the film focuses on (then) newly revealed excerpts from Anais Nin's diary. Four characters: Miller, Anais, June (Miller's wife), and Hugo (Anais' husband) complete the love square within which fairly complex relationships play out.

The film is primarily concerned with Anais' sexual awakening through her relationship with Miller and his wife. And I have to say, de Medeiros exceeds all expectations in this role. Not only does she look remarkably like the young Anais, but she also seems to radiate the writer's deep erotic mystique. If nothing else, watch this film just for this performance-- besides, she's absolutely gorgeous. Thurman's performance is also quite good, her NYC accent believable and her dirty-girl role works well in contrast to Anais' bourgeois exterior. Ward as Miller took some getting used to, but Grant's character seemed wooden and artificial.

Literary and historical references are sparsely sprinkled throughout the film, and although Miller has a few monologues in which he attempts to express the point of his writing, Miller fans will find nothing more than a superficial synopsis. But again, this can't be counted against the film since its focus is Anais. As far as the eroticism of the new "Journals" goes, the film succeeds fairly well- but the images convey more than the dialog.

This brings me to my final point: the NC-17 rating. Historically, this film was the first with that rating-- the MPAA created the rating specifically for this film since they deemed it to risqué for an R. By today's standards, this film is an R. If you're looking for softcore, watch "Emmanuelle" or something.

7/10

Anaïs Nin is hailed by many critics as one of the finest examples of writers of female erotica. She was one of the first women to really explore the realm of erotic writing, and certainly the first prominent woman in modern Europe to write erotica. Henry and June is based upon her life in Paris around 1931, and her relationship with Henry and June Miller. This relationship strongly influenced her as both a woman and an author.

Phillip Kaufman (Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), Quills, Raiders of the Lost Ark) does a superb job of directing his own screenplay and presents a story that flows smoothly as it presents a picture of bohemian life in Paris that consumed the banker's wife.

I am not sure they could have found someone better than Fred Ward (Remo Williams) to play Henry Miller (Tropic of Cancer, Tropic of Capricorn, Black Spring). He just seemed to fit right in with the character.

Uma Thurman (Kill Bill, Pulp Fiction) was fantastic as his wife, June, the bi-sexual who fell in love with Nin. After realizing that she lost Nin to her husband, she left him. What was interesting was that Nin immediately left Miller to return to her husband. You really need a scorecard to figure out who is married to and sleeping with whom.

Nin was played by Portuguese actress Maria de Medeiros (Fabienne in Pulp Fiction). She was sensational as the woman who fell into the bohemian life and lifestyle.

There were brief appearances by Kevin Spacey as a lawyer who wanted to be a writer, and the person who introduced Nin to Miller.

The slice of life in Bohemian Paris in 1931 has to be seen to be believed. It was an exciting time and certainly an exciting place. To see a piece f some of the greatest writers in American erotica, even fictionalized, was also great.

Henry and June holds the distinction of being the first film to receive an NC-17 rating.

A lot was good here. One of the thing that was "bad" was almost certainly deliberate -- the contrast between the coarse, gross facial features of Fred Ward, in juxtaposition with the extremely delicate visage of Maria de Medeiros. One thing that could have been better: the "baldness" of Fred Ward. I don't know him, and don't know if he's bald, but this looked like a very bad make-up job. Surely they could do better in 1990. Or did Miller shave the top of his head and pretend to be bald? I don't know, but I doubt it. In spite of the title, the movie is really about Anais Nin. This was a fine performance by Miss de Medieros, and is worth watching for that alone. It won't appeal to the car chase-and-explosion crowd, but it's not for them anyway. I don't see what made the difference from an "R" rating.

A sexy movie with two very interesting faces - Maria de Medeiros and Uma Thurman - and one ugly and obnoxious one (Fred Ward, playing American writer "Henry Miller.")

I wish Thurman had a bigger role in this movie. The photo of her in this picture - the one Ward stares at periodically - is one of the most fascinating portraits I've ever seen. De Medeiros is shown naked quite a bit but it's her face, with those big eyes and the 1930s look, that's interesting. The nudity and lesbian sex scene gave this a NC-17 rating, the first movie ever to get that rating (from what I read.), and deservedly so. In Paris in the 1930s, where this story is set, they were "ahead" of their time (secuarly speaking) regarding decadence. This movie captures that atmosphere, although it's a bit TOO sleazy at times.

The film features some wonderful photography. One of the best cinematographers in the business, Phillipe Rousselot, filmed this. The worst part of the film was simply no likable characters and a bit too many dull spots. But.....the film really offers some visual treats.

So some people described this film as: "great cinema", "absorbing movie", "perfectly acted", "amazing story", "stunningly filmed", and so on. I must have been watching a different movie!!!

Maybe we like movies if we see ourselves reflected in them? I couldn't relate to these characters. Were they really like this? I've been curious about Anais Nin for years and if this her actual portrayal, well I'm very disappointed. Henry, June and Anais are all selfish people who actually need to feel pain to feel alive! What a weird lot! And Hugo, what a fool to love someone like Anais.

None of them seem to know the meaning of true love. Anais particularly. June got it right when she criticised her for using people as food for her writing.

There's nothing in this film that makes it endearing or memorable to me. I lost interest early on but watched to the end in the hope that the film would redeem itself. But if you want an experience of erotica, then maybe this is a good example. And June Miller became a social worker (end credits)... give me a break!