Body of Evidence
|
List Price: Our Price: $7.24 You Save: $7.74 (52%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $5.37 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Canada
Movie Reviews of Body of Evidence
Movie Review: Not worth releasing on DVD
Summary: 2 Stars
When I saw it in the theatre several years back on opening night, the audience laughed because it was so bad. When I saw it later on cable, it seemed some-what better. ...Overall, it's bland and you've "seen it before". Madonna plays the role of a slut. ...Movie Review: Madonna can't act!!!!
Summary: 1 Stars
Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.
After the surprise success of 1992's controversial erotic thriller Basic Instinct, studios starting snatching up every similar script floating around in an attempt to cash in on that film's success. One of the most infamous attempts at ripping off Basic Instinct was the 1993 Madonna vehicle entitled Body of Evidence. Before the movie's initial theatrical release, there was a considerable buzz surrounding the movie's numerous explicit sex scenes between Madonna and a slumming Willem Dafoe. People were talking about how in-your-face these scenes were. There also were some rumors that some of the sex scenes weren't completely faked.
But the movie ran into huge problems with the MPAA and almost all of the sex got cut out of the R-rated theatrical version. Regardless, the movie was pretty awful regardless and died a quick death at the box office. It also really hurt Madonna's credibility at that time and was viewed as severely damaging to her overall career. When it was released on video, MGM released it in both its R-rated version as well as an unrated cut that restored all of the explicit sex that had to be removed from the R version. (The unrated cut is the version that I'm basing my review on BTW). It's also been rumored that the European cut is still even more explicit than even the unrated American cut but I haven't seen it to compare and sitting through this movie more than once might cause me irreperable brain damage.
The plot involves Rebecca Carlson (Madonna) who has been accused of murdering her much older lover by deliberately having kinky sex with him despite his severe heart condition. Frank Dulaney (Willem Dafoe) is a defense attorney who gets assigned to her case. He is married to Sharon (Julianne Moore) and has a son. Robert Garrett (Joe Mantegna) is the prosecutor. During the trial the highly flirtatious and kinky Rebecca begins to weave a spell over Frank and pretty soon he's having a torrid affair with her while the trial is still going on. He does a decent job keeping it from his wife for awhile , but naturally, she eventually finds out. There's also the deceased man's secretary Joanne (Anne Archer) who is convinced that Madonna killed him to get his riches but it turns out that Joanne may have been much closer to her employer than just working for him.
The plot chugs along to a thoroughly predictable climax and mainly serves as a canvas for some surprisingly explicit and energetic (though about as far from erotic as you can get) simulated sex scenes. I'll admit that some of these scenes went quite a bit farther than I was expecting them to go (the scene in the parking garage where they do it on the hood of a car for instance). I'm really not sure how the director thought much of the sex footage would get past the MPAA relatively intact when he had a scene of a nude-from-the-waste-down Madonna literally sitting on Willem Dafoe's face (in fairly graphic detail) on the hood of his car while he performs oral sex on her. There is also the infamous scene of Madonna pouring hot candle wax all over Willem that in another movie with a much more convincing (and better) actress and director, it could have been very kinky and erotic. Here it just plays out as silly and unintentionally funny.
The reason that this turkey is still worth checking out is that it is very clear that everyone involved wasn't taking this movie that seriously. A lot of the performances are extremely tongue in cheek. Not that it makes it any better mind you. But it's one of the most unintentionally funny movies that I've watched in quite some time. Madonna can't act to save her life, but a lot of her scenes had me laughing until I was in tears. Even though she displays an apparent willingness to let it all hang out, so to speak, she literally keeps just one expression on her face throughout practically the whole movie. Willem Dafoe fares a little better, as does the always lovely Julianne Moore (who also has a prettty explicit, but quick, sex scene with Willem Dafoe), but there's only so much you can do acting wise with characters and a plot as silly as this. The rest of the cast serves more or less as just filler and plays their characters just like the stereotypes that they are that normally populate erotic thrillers such as this.
The film does boast some considerably better cinmatography and direction than the material required. Director Uli Edel apparently has a good eye for detail and mood, but all of his efforts are wasted in the nonstop parade of stupidity.
I guess if you're a big fan of Madonna, the thought of seeing her nude and in some explicit sexual situations is reason enough to check this movie out. But I really haven't been able to stand her throughout most of her career and have always found her to be somewhat of a joke (singing or acting wise).
While this movie strives way too hard to be Basic Instinct 2, what it forgot is that the reason that Basic Instinct worked was that it actually had a good script in addition to a lead actress in Sharon Stone who was unbelievably hot as well as being a great actress. Madonna doesn't look bad nude, in fact she has a pretty happening body. She does an ample amount of full frontal nudity throughout the film so fans take not. But at this point in her career she had made her living at flaunting herself at any and every opputunity and I had just gotten to the point where she doesn't do a thing for me, nude or otherwise. I've been extremely desensitized to her routine.
This movie came close to being a career killer for all involved, but with the slew of similar erotic thrillers that were being dumped into thrillers around that point (Sliver, Jade) people just ended up forgetting about this movie. While I think that there's some entertainment value to be found in this movie (though it's all unintentional), a lot of people will find this movie thoroughly derivative and poorly made. But, I still recommend it to people since it is so silly and goofy. It's really good for a few laughs. (BTW if you are a fan of the now defunct show Mystery Science Theater 3000, this is an incredibly easy (and fun) movie to rip apart).
The recent DVD released by MGM has both the unrated and rated versions of the film on either side of the disc. Most curiousity seekers will probably just stick with the unrated version for the extra nudity/sex. The movie is present in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen but the only extra is the theatrical trailer and an awful 8 minute featurette on the making of this awful but unintentionally hilarious film.
Body of Evidence is unrated and contains explicit sexual content & nudity, graphic language and violence.
The edited R rated version contains strong sexual content, nudity, strong language and violence.
Movie Review: A Sham-Erotic Puppet-Show.
Summary: 1 Stars
Wow, they released this on DVD? Who'd have thought. Objectively speaking, "Body of Evidence" HAS to be among the top five worst movies ever made. The only sort of person who could ever tolerate sitting through it is the rabid Madonna fan. I mean, I've seen it and yeah, I'm a fan of sorts, I'll admit it - but I can only take so much. This flick is simply inexplicable as anything other than a bizarre mistake on the part of most everybody involved.*(*Then again, while Madonna as a rule is not a huge box-office draw, I'm sure anything with her name attached winds up selling big on video and DVD eventually, no matter how awful.)
Poor Madonna. It's not that we don't want her to do well. It's not that we can't see how hard she's trying - it's that we CAN. The girl never had an un-self-conscious moment in front of the camera in her life. By the way, that's exactly why she is so magnetic in her proper medium, music video - that instant rapport is what made her a star. "Evita" worked for her because it's basically a 2-hour highbrow music video. But "Body of Evidence," which is obviously Madonna's attempt at "Basic Instinct," just makes her look foolish. AGAIN. At that point she was already a veteran of looking foolish on the silver screen. And you know, good for her, she does what she wants, she takes risks, but her choices are so consistently, amazingly terrible that it's impossible to take her seriously as an actress.
Who wrote this script? I'm not hitting the back button to see if it says, I don't really care, but I mean, good night! - it's bad. She kills the rich old guy by having-relations-with-him to death. She's like a much leaner and supposedly much more savvy version of Anna-Nicole Smith. Deviant S&M behavior may have been involved, as well as cocaine - "Basic Instinct" motifs; except in this case the killer blond can't quite pull it off. The dialogue's a mess; e.g. at one point somebody actually has Madonna tell her lawyer "There's nothing wrong with admitting that you want me." Groan. Nor does the ending make any sense, but by then who really gives a damn. The kicker is that Madonna read the script and thought "This sounds like a real gem."
But we can't blame it all on the script or her choice of it either. If Madonna were a "real actress" - and it is more than evident that she is not - she would be able to breathe some sort of creative life into even such an abject piece of trash as this. Sharon Stone did it for the otherwise ridiculous "Basic Instinct;" Linda Fiorentino for the otherwise laughable "Last Seduction." "Body of Evidence" attempts to fit into this same neo-Noir spider-woman genre, but it fails quite miserably. Not only that, but you have to watch Willem DaFoe having sex.
SPOILER: She doesn't even get away with it in the end. The good guys burn the witch. What kind of Film Noir is that?
Movie Review: Madonna Once Again...Sucks
Summary: 1 Stars
...The plot was a cheap rip off of Basic Instinct. Sorry Madonna but you are NO Sharon Stone. The plot was plotless ( for lack of a better word ). Madonna is not at all sexy in films. She maybe able to smoke up a video screen from time to time but in movies she is as wooden as a plank. Wilem Devoe sucked as usual. His lifetime of boring roles somehow had Hollywood addicted to him in the late 80's. Thankfully those days are over. I don't believe hardcore Madonna fans would even want to see this mess. The director and writers should be shot. Madonna should be sued for her nonexistent acting ability and Wilem Devoe...well he's suffered enough wouldn't you say? I loved Madonna in 93 so I supported her. But I can't honestly recommend this crap to anyone. Times are hard so save your money on a film that won't make you laugh during the sex scenes.
Instead of turning the audience on and making them beg for more, Wilem and Madonna were the most disgusting non-chemistry having duo ever. All of the scenes looked like downgraded, old fashioned porno. If you weren't turned off by the acting you'd definitely get sick watching Madonna's pale, saggy, weakily thin body doing god knows what to a less than gorgeous Wilem Devoe.
This review may seem shallow, but for the life of me I'm trying to save you. Don't go near this movie! For the love of the world save yourself! Strap garlic around your neck, hold up a cross! Do anything to stop you from even coming close to this film. People have often referred to Madonna as a " little girl " acting out. Well someone needed to.
Man I can't wait until we're allowed to give ZERO stars.
Movie Review: RIDICULOUS POTBOILER....
Summary: 1 Stars
This is a really bad movie. It might've been upped to an OK movie had it not been for the biggest problem: Madonna. The woman just cannot act. This is basically a rip-off of "Basic Instinct" without the benefit of anything that movie had to offer. The supporting actors here are wasted--- particularly Anne Archer who just re-hashes her role in "Instinct". Pity, because she CAN act. One gets the feeling that Madonna relishes the opportunities to exploit herself in the trashiest ways possible. Here, she plays a woman who literally kills her elderly husband with sex as a weapon. When asked what she does for a living on the witness stand, she tells them and it cannot be repeated here. That's probably the most convincing line she utters in the whole film. The sex scenes are played up with lighting and ambience but Madonna doesn't even do THEM very well and William Dafoe is just plain unattractive. There's not a convincing shred of "Evidence" in this exploitation vehicle that even remotely resembles a good movie. And if you need more proof of Madonnas' lack of acting ability look at what happened to "Swept Away". As for "Body", getting naked does not mean you can act.