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Directed by: Stephen Frears Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Audrey Tautou, Sergi López Dirty Pretty Things is a dark character study about immigrants trying to find a new life for themselves. The film follows Okwe, an illegal immigrant from Nigeria who works at the front desk of a London hotel. After Okwe notices strange things going on behind-the-scenes at the hotel, he begins to uncover the dirty dealings of the shady hotel manager. But this isn't a mystery. At its core, it's a drama. The real meat here is Okwe, his relationship with his Turkish friend Senay (Amelie's Audrey Tautou), the dark dealings of the hotel owner, and the life of these illegal immigrants. Interesting, original, and thoroughly engrossing: All-around solid film. 4/5 PROS: Good script. Great performances from the lead actors. CONS: Moves a little slow at times.
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May 5, 2004 16:09
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| # ? Apr 27, 2024 04:26 |
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I really liked it too, but it's funny just how mismarketed it is. It's not really a psychological thriller, although it's heavy on the atmospherics. From the Village Voice review: quote:Miramax's poster purrs the come-on "Some things are too dangerous to keep secret" as Tautou casts a smoldering gaze over her bare shoulder. In the actual film, she portrays a devout Muslim virgin. 4/5
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May 5, 2004 20:21
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Picked this film up cheap on VHS having missed it at the cinema. I thought it was outstanding. First new(ish) film I've seen in a while that gets all the basics right. Stephen Frears (director) has the good sense to just concentrate on telling the story - but it's not handed to you on a plate, you still have to use your brain - and it's a great story. Audrey Tautou is as edibly watchable as ever but the real stand-out performance is by Chiwetel Ejiofor playing opposite. The support all do extraordinarily well too. This film should be compulsory viewing for anyone with a Daily Mail subscription. Oh, and if you haven't seen it, resist the temptation to find out too much about it first - I suspect that this is one of those films that REALLY benefits from not knowing plot details in advance.
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May 8, 2004 22:19
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This is a solid film. At first I was slighly disappointed as it didn't center on Audrey Tautou, but the character of Okwe was so well written and portrayed that it needed to be his story. This movie shows the gritty life we don't always recognize. A good watch and the ending is excellent. 4.5/5
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May 9, 2004 05:24
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quote:Frontalot came out of the closet to say: It's a very good movie; I'm giving it an extra half point because on top of the other comments about the lead actors, Sergi Lopez is such a great, totally believable villain. 4.5 Binary Logic fucked around with this message at 04:13 on May 14, 2004 |
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May 14, 2004 04:05
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I love, love, love the final scene where he's on the phone and he's like "I'm coming home." How could you satisfy your audience any more then that? I was pretty surprised by this movie, someone told me to see it but from what I had heard before I was expecting a horror plot, which was pretty far off. Miramax dropped the ball on this film. It reminded me alot of "Night on earth" where a similar character is driving a cab, which is a very good thing.
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May 14, 2004 06:05
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quote:zer0spunk came out of the closet to say: eh... I thought it was a well acted scene, but I was left feeling like they could have addressed this entire emotional sub-plot before the last 10 minutes of the movie. Overall the movie dragged at times, the video box LIES, the movie poster LIES, and I just do not understand what the heart was doing in the toilet. If they were chopping up the body of a botched opporation and flushing it... they obviously figured out a correct "size" of the pieces since they'd HAVE to cut or crush bones and large meaty sections... nevermind... whatever... suspension of disbelief... Aside from that, the movie is pretty good. The actors and cinematography were very good. 3 1/2
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Jun 5, 2004 22:49
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Just watched this great one tonight. I had no idea what the marketing was about, and had no idea what the movie was going to be about : I saw it on a blind recommendation. Okwe was simply such a well written , well acted character, and I'm always a sucker for an altruistic hero. Benedict Wong was great as Okwe's friend as well. It didn't really strike me as a thriller or anything, but more a character and setting structure. Most poor really have no hope of getting a better living situation, and this unique tale is really uplifting. I can't get enough of this line: Because we are the ones you do not see. We drive your cars, clean your clothes, and suck your cocks. Also, it's a little ironic that Senay's dream is to come to New York City. Immigrants don't exactly have it much better in our country. She's going to show up and be a hotel maid again.
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Jul 5, 2004 05:30
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Excellent atmosphere and moody cinematography. The acting was decent but nothing to write home about. The story was also interesting, but not to the point where it really sucked me in. And the guy who played the Asian-British coroner always had my attention whenever he was onscreen. 4/5
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Jul 5, 2004 06:38
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Talk about mismarketed, I picked this up because I really like Tautou, and the box said "Psychological Thriller" on IMDB is has pretty good reviews, unfortunately when I sat down to see this with a group of friends that wanted to see "something scary" I should never have put this on. This is a good dramatic piece, illegal immigrants trying to survive in London. I must say that I found the ending not very surprising, and had expected it halfway through the movie. The best characters in this story are Okwe, the cliched African man who is just good to everyone, and the villian played by Sergei Lopez. Audrey Tautou's character on the other hand, I just thought her development was odd, uneven and badly explained in some areas. When you first meet her, she's a devout muslim virgin, who is shy, introverted, and very embarrassed she's allowed Okwe to stay on her couch. In a short span, her character changes almost all off these qualities, drastically. The movie is slow at times, cynically funny at others, thought provoking in a couple of areas. I think this movie is pretty good, but a little overrated and terribly mismarketed, you'd probably enjoy it more just knowing it's a plain jane drama. 3/5
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May 9, 2005 13:01
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| # ? Apr 27, 2024 04:26 |
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Saw this some time last year, caught the end of it the other night. Never stood out in my mind particularly well (I remember the first time, thinking I could barely understand what the characters were saying), but some of the acting is fantastic. Especially Sergi Lopez as a particularly slimy villain. Also, I never want to go to London. Never.
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Jun 4, 2005 17:35
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