Woman on Top
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Movie Reviews of Woman on Top
Movie Review: A pleasure to watch. Totally entertaining.
Summary: 4 Stars
This is beautiful and sensual movie filled with Brazilian culture and folklore that is a feast to your senses. You can almost feel the burn of the chili pepper and smell the fragrance of the aromatic coffee that makes the San Francisco men follow Isabella in the streets. The movie is colorful and mystical and a large part of its charm is due to the amazing Penelope Cruz (an actress I learned to admire not only for her beauty but also for her acting talent after watching her in the Spanish movie "Sin Noticias de Dios") who totally controls the screen. Isabella (Penelope Cruz) has had the motion sickness since she was a little girl. She feels bad in every kind of motion, unless she controls the movement - this is also true regarding sex; she has to lead. Isabella is a cook in her husband's restaurant. She does well and cooks delicious foods, but somehow feels neglected - as she is left back in the kitchen. Tonino (Murilo Benicio), her husband, feels he is not a man enough being "led" by his wife. And so, one night Isabella catches him in the hands of another woman, and runs away to San Francisco to try and build a new life for herself. She hopes to try and relive her dreams of fame which she threw away when she married Tonino. Isabella heads to San Francisco to live with her old friend Monica, a transvestite.
In San Francisco Isabella gains fame by having her own cooking show. She is also courted by Cliff (Mark Feuerstein), the producer of the show, who is attracted to the Brazilian magic. Meanwhile back in Bahaia Tonino is facing a lot of trouble. Having cursed Yimanza, the goddess of the sea, in a burst of anger, bad luck knocks on his door. All the fisherman are upset at him as the fish do not come to their nets. Customers stay away from his restaurant and he cannot live without Isabella. So, Tonino heads to San Francisco to try and get Isabella back.
The movie is a combination of reality and myth. The gods, so the movie begins, have given Isabella incredible beauty. The gods, and especially Yimanza, the goddess of the sea, control the love and faith of our heroes and respond to their gifts and wishes. Human beings are controlled by faith and there are those who belong to each other. On the other hand, this is also a movie that has something to say about feminine strength and its power, in spite of gods and men. Isabella has to struggle but she is able to get her own way. Between the lines the movie also has a lot of criticisem about the American and the American televeision culture and maybe its lack of warmth vs. the Brazilian culture. There are a lot of cooking scenes where Isabella explains to her viewers how to cook this or that sauce while intertwining this with her life philosophy (always share the dish with someone you love). The men watching her show sit groaning against the screen and I must admit - she is a delicious sight.
Penelope Cruz is able to portray sensuality and innocence at the same time. She is the one who makes this movie what it is. The other actors are a little pale next to her, except the incredible Monica (Harold Perrineau Jr.) who sometimes manages to steal the show. All in all, this is a fun, entertaining movie.
Movie Review: Beautiful, Brasilian-flavoured romantic comedy
Summary: 4 Stars
Self-described "straight" men (who make up a startling number of movie critics) love to disparage a movie like this by calling it a "chick flick." "No car chases, no explosions, no video-game special effects, no grisly deaths, so could it REALLY speak to me?" In fact, "Woman on Top" is a "woman's picture" on many levels: directed by a woman (Fina Torres), written by a woman (Vera Blasi), and starring gorgeous Penelope Cruz, who takes close-ups like a '40s screen goddess. One might wonder, would it not have been more appropriate to cast a Brasilian in the role of Isabella? Any objections about casting Ms. Cruz as a Brasileira are soon overcome as you watch her performance. This is a sensitively-written, beautifully-photographed, perfectly-scored, and exquisitely-acted film about one woman's search for her locus of control and comfort. Isabella Oliveira (Cruz) searches for her centre of control geographically (Bahia, Brasil and San Francisco, USA) as well as emotionally (exerting control over her destiny, achieving success in her career, choosing her best romantic prospect). The soul-searching the character undergoes is completely believable, thanks in no small part to Cruz' natural, understated performance. Director Torres also gets wonderful performances from Murilo Benicio (who plays the impossibly handsome Toninho), Harold Perrineau Jr (as the outrageous Monica), and Mark Feuerstein (as smarmy but completely adorable television producer Cliff). Benicio finds the right combination of physical presence and wounded Latin pride to make us cheer for his character, but we end up also caring for each of the main characters. It's another variation of the classic fish-out-of-water shtick, or perhaps more like siri-out-of-moqueca (in keeping with the Bahian theme). Bahia is portrayed as exotic and sensual, but San Francisco is also exciting and full of opportunities. The notion of the "exotic" is toyed with here, as the Big Hollywood Phonies want to make the Isabella personage less "ethnic," which is the galvanizing moment for the character's identity on many levels. She changes, as she must, but remains fundamentally "herself," just more in control of her life. Upon her arrival in America, Isabella is asked by San Francisco's one cabdriver (or so it seems), "What planet are you from?" Isabella's reply: "Brasil." This film is rich in irreverent humour, gorgeous music, believable dialogue, and cute little touches (the Asian 411 operator, the Caribbean cabbie, the caprices of Iemanjah, etc). The ending feels so right, so natural, it makes the entire experience of viewing this film all the more rewarding. I would highly recommend this film to lovers of warm-hearted romantic comedies, or even just good "chick flicks." An absorbing and worthwhile film.Movie Review: A Creative and Intelligent Romp
Summary: 4 Stars
Isabella, the lead character, played by Penelope Cruz, instructs her cooking students, "I will show you what inspires me in the hope you will find your own inspiration. Okay?
I think that to cook well, you must bring all your feelings and experience to the act of creation.
Let's start with my passion . . ."
This is a fun romp. The movie at times has a feeling of a light 1950s or 60s romantic comedy, intentionally overstated and overbroad. The actors consistently overact as if they were beamed forward in time from some bygone era.
A primary comic device in this film is that Isabella has severe motion sickness; and therefore, she cannot ride in a car, dance, or make love unless she is driving or leading. When she arrives in San Francisco, after leaving after watching her husband make love to another woman, she cannot take a taxi, but instead bribes the taxi driver so she can drive the taxi herself through San Franciscos steep and curvy streets.
Isabella is a chef who has been underappreciated. As the plot develops, Isabella ritually burns her old husband's photo and throws away all her connections to him. She gets her mojo back, and suddenly & ridiculously, hundreds of men start to pursue her. Once she gets on her own, she becomes a wildly successful cooking show host.
The husband finds Isabella and tries to reunite with her. He changes many of his domineering ways.
She says,"Why couldn't you have been like this before?"
"I don't know. But I'm like this now."
"Now is too late."
"Kiss me, then tell me that."
They kiss, but don't reunite. The question of whether they can reunite drives us forward in the story. And maybe even more key to the plot's resolution are the questions of: "Can their chemistry become remarkably creative again? Can their combinations cook again?" "Do their chemistries arouse the worlds around them again?"
The movie is about the importance of each individual determining their own path instead of deferring too much to the wants of any one culture, one lover, or one familiar. How the plot resolves is not really very important, except that Isabella chooses her own paths and becomes creative in activities and patterns better suited to her wants and the wants of her communities.
The movie is like Isabella's cooking advice at the end of each cooking instruction:
"And the last and most important ingredient is to share it with someone you love."
Movie Review: A Tasty Dish, but more of just a side dish
Summary: 4 Stars
WOMAN ON TOP is one of those films that was made, publicized and viewed as pastiche and because of its honesty as a simple romantic comedy, it rates higher than many of the over the top and overproduced competitors. The film is colorful, filled with wonderful Bossa Nova music, and has enough eye candy to almost make you forget the main dishes!
Isabella Oliveira (Penélope Cruz) lives in Bahia, Brazil totally in love with Toninho Oliveira (Murilo Benício) where the two have a restaurant featuring Isabella's passionate cooking and Toninho's macho front man role. Isabella has a problem: motion sickness - she cannot fly, ride in a car, or assume the bottom position during sex or she becomes violently ill (it seems that the sea goddess compensated her problem by making her an inimitable chef). All is well until Toninho has a brief affair that drives the crushed Isabella to move to San Francisco alone despite her love for Toninho. There she moves in with her old friend Monica from Bahia (Harold Perrineau as a superbly enacted crossed dressed drag queen) and begins her unsuccessful search for a job. In order to overcome her longing for Toninho and regain her culinary skills she makes a pact with the sea goddess, forsaking ever loving Toninho again. Eventually Isabella lands a TV show on Passionate Cooking when desperate producer Cliff (Mark Feuerstein) gets a whiff of her talent. She is an immediate success. Meanwhile Toninho, unable to endure life in Bahia without Isabella, flies to San Francisco and begins a series of Bossa Nova serenades to win her back. Cliff places Toninho on Isabella's show as background music and the ratings soar. But it is the ultimately the conflict resolution between Isabella and Toninho that brings the story to its expected end.
The story may be light and the script may be pedestrian, but the direction and camera work suffuse this film with Latin American magical realism and that keeps it lighthearted and fun. Cruz is terrific, Perrineau is the true star of the show displaying a sophisticated and sensitive acting skill that is very special, and Murilo Benício is not only a hunk and eye candy but also a fine singer and a warm actor who deserves a lot of attention. Story three, stars four. Have fun with this one! Grady Harp, March 06
Movie Review: Sexy, Emotional, and Spicy Penelope at the Top of Her Game.
Summary: 4 Stars
I have hesitated on seeing this movie, because I haven't really been impressed by Penelope's work, even though I have seen her previously in All About My Mother, Open Your Eyes, and Vanilla Sky. Finally, this movie made me take her more seriously as a good actress with more than just beauty, and that she's no longer trying to increase her fame by dating high-profile actors. She's actually very pleasing and enjoyable to watch in this romantic comedy about love, cheating, cooking, new life/career and reconcilation.
Isabella(Penelope Cruz) is married to Toninho(Murilo Benicio), a musician/restaurant owner in a small town in Northern Brazil. She's the best chef and her cooking attracts a ton of business for the restaurant, and even job offers from America. One problem occurs when her "on top" sexual position made her dissatisfied husband to cheat on her, she decides to take off and headed for San Francesico for a new life.
She reunited with her long time friend Monica(Harold Perrinear,Jr.), a fierce and funny drag queen and just got out of jail. She had to use some kind of black magic ritual in order to eliminate all her love for her ex-husband so that she could move on. She took a job as a cooking teacher, and one day she encountered a TV show producer named Cliff(Mark Feuodtein) who was looking for a host for a new cooking show, and she got the job. Her style, sophiscation, and sex appeal instantly turned the show into a sensation. Just when she thought she could give love a try again when Cliff pursued her, her ex arrived at the scene and accidently became involved as background performer in the show. Now she's confused about her position in life.....
Harold Perrineau, Jr. did a great job as Monica, and he also did narration for this film. He is quite a comic relief. At first, I thought his role could have been played Rupaul, but then a less famous actor is probably more appropiate.
This is a good date movie or chick flick even, and I think it's so far the best Penelope Cruz film to be seen by non-Spanish audiences.