Monamour

I watched this with my girlfriend. We've never seen a Tinto Brass movie before and just stumbled over this one at the local video store. At the backside of the cover it says "erotic-thriller" by a "cultdirector". And as we like both (erotic and thriller), we decided to give it a try.

It wasn't anything like we expected. My girlfriend hated it because of the awful sex-scenes. There was no erotic, no thriller and no plot at all, just a poor actress committed to an old mans chauvinistic fantasies. Men don't talk in this movie, the only grab the poor actress's ass, pussy or tits, which is followed by sudden sexual intercourse. And women only talk about the size of penises and the need to have sex again. This movie fells like it has been written in 2 hours after watching a porn-movie.

I'm pretty sure this was our first and last Tinto Brass 'cultmovie'-experience.

If you've never seen a Tinto Brass movie, this is not a good place to start. Tinto is at his best when he's not taking himself seriously, and in Monamour he attempts some sort of depth that he just can't pull off. What's worse, the plot feels like a recycled version of one of his better films - 1992's Cosi fan Tutte - but with all the wrong choices made; Cosi fan Tutte was light-hearted and featured a strong female lead in Claudia Koll, who was in charge of her own fate the whole time; the lead in Monamour is a despicable and unlikable character who succumbs to the will of men around her. While the two characters end up having similar journeys, the viewer just can't forgive Monamour's Marta as he did Diana from Cosi fon tutte. And the fact that the movie takes itself so seriously makes the erotica disturbing and off-putting, unlike the playfulness in Cosi fon Tutte.

Monamour has good cinematography and some well-shot sex scenes which are both a given with Tinto, but the sex is more disturbing than it is enticing. While Cosi fon Tutte was almost feminist (sort of) and is lots of fun for a couple to watch together, Monamour feels more like a horny old man's fantasy, and it just doesn't work.

Tinto Brass is still probably best known in the English speaking world for "Caligula", however most people don't realize that he's had quite the career up through today making soft-core erotica, the type of which hasn't been made much since about the 1970s.

What sets Tinto apart is that he has a very specific list of things that obviously turn him on such as: unshaven underarms, mirrors, infidelity, and most famously, the female rear end. All of these tend to show up in all of his films, including "Monamour". So, it can sometimes feel like if you've seen one Tinto Brass film then you have seen them all. They differ however in quality of script, actors, and scenery. "Monamour" is paint by numbers Tinto Brass. Tinto fans will find all of the usual hallmarks in this film, however little more. I am a bigger fan of his earlier films that I feel have better plots, acting, and scenery while touching upon the exact same themes as this one.

As other reviewers have commented, it feels like later day Tinto films feature female characters who are less realistic than in his earlier films, and certainly no woman in real life would ever act like the lead character in "Monamour" who basically can't say no to any man (or woman) who wants to touch her. This is pure male fantasy, making this film a bad choice I think for couples, especially when compared to Tinto's earlier films. A single male however, provided that he enjoys the same things Tinto enjoys can enjoy this film just fine, especially as Anna Jimskaia is one of the more beautiful Tinto Brass leading ladies in my opinion, and you do see a lot of her!

Delivering on the strengths of beloved director Tinto Brass in seemingly his final feature film of his career. After watching his prior 1992's film, both films are somewhat similar in styles, tones and overall erotica of explicitness. However that film's leading woman was a lot more likeable as opposed to the lead in this film "Monamour" who simply comes across as manipulating her ways throughout with teases of each men for her desire. As with his style, there are constant random close up shots to woman's bottoms and privates', and brief explicit scenes. The plot flows as an art house soft core with minimal dialogue.

This is not Tinto Erotic Genius, this is a fragmented re edition of his last movies from "Così fan tutte" to "Fallo!" What I have noticed watching this last movie of Tinto carrier is that there is a re edition of same sex scene and stories that this time where TOTALLY fragmented and non sense. If I think about it I just see this young Ukraine actress with her bouncing ass and boobs, and that's it.

What I have to say is that I do not agree with the decision to use a WAY BAD actor in the role of the lover, especially when before him Occhipinti did. Occhipinti performance in The Key and Così fan tutte were genius and well done. INSTEAD this time actors are so bad!!! the acting is horrible, light are horrible, screenplay is stupid and horrible, photography not at all like I remember it in the past Tinto Movies and I would say the only thing to save are the paintings. that's it.

I didn't like this movie at all and I'm sorry to Tinto to which I usually give a from 6 to 8 score. This time is 3/10. He had to finish his carrier with Fallo!, this is a useless and nonsense film which I think He has done just for movie or forced by someone else who wants to make movie on him and his name.

Hopefully Tinto won't dare to make another movie.