Frida

I saw this over the Christmas holidays last year and thought it was a very entertaining movie.
Well constructed film from Julie Tabor's direction to Salma Hayek and Alfred Molina's Frida and Diego portrayal. An all around well casted movie.
It has a great soundtrack, I haven't seen Evita so can't draw the comparision.
What stood out most for me was the superb cinematography; with the use of color and light. The use of Kahlo's work in the movie is quite memorable.
Then there is the time frame of her life and the historical characters that she knew, what a life she led!

Hi Flatted 5th,

I know what you mean about the cinematography, even from the clips I can see that it's going to be very visually rich and beautiful.

Can't remember what else I've seen him in, but Alfred Molina is very good. Don't know much about Khalo herself but now I want to read some biographies.

I have the soundtrack (I'm very big on movie soundtracks). The music is excellent!

L

I missed it. My wife -a long time admirer of Frida- saw it twice and loved it.
It had mixed reviews in Mexico, but mostly because it committed the sin of being spoken in English and putting little stress on Frida's Communist stance.
Some -like my wife- think Frida was less taken by political passion than by the passion of love and life, so they consider the film a good rendering of the famous painter's life.

Hi fbaezer,

Funny you should mention how it was received in Mexico. One of my best friends is from Mexico, and seeing the film made her so homesick that I felt sorry for her!

L

90 minutes til I see Frida...YAY!

So, Lorna, what did you think?

very good...if a little unexpected. I was waiting for her first man to come back! But I guess since it's a biopic, if he didn't come back, they couldn't write it in! And when she said 'I have a scar, and Diego said show me, and she did and he said, you're beautiful...I was like YAY, right answer...and then I was gone...

as for the earlier comparison to Evita, not so much, guess I was wrong...

What did you think, mac11?

Lorna

I loved it more than anyone I've discussed it with! I was so impressed with Salma Hayek - I had no idea that she could handle such a difficult role. I've been a fan of Alfred Molina's for years, so it was fun to see him in a lead role instead of the supporting roles he usually plays.

The representations of Kahlo's art were very clever - more than clever. They were incredibly imaginative.

I agree on all counts mac11--I have a new respect for Hayek and I thought their onscreen chemistry worked.

Aparently everything was done the way Hayek wanted it to be, and she was the driving force behind it.

My favorite art sequence was the move to New York.

Thought the film was amazing, and the soundtrack was brilliant!

Lorna

Yes, yes, a lovely soundtrack!

Glad you enjoyed Frida, Lorna. I'm waiting for the dvd/video to come out. Although to view this movie on the small screen doesn't do it justice, it will be a nice addition to my video collection.

Exactly what I thought, definitly one for the personal collection!

I watched it last night on DVD and enjoyed it (though not as much as "Talk To Her" which I'd seen the night before and which has wiped away all other memories!).

Taymor's visual choices and graphics were terrific, as were the performances of Hayek and Molina. Roger Rees was a nice surprise. The way Taymor showed the trolley accident was excellent. What disappointed me was the cultural point of view. It was definitely gringo rather than Mexican. The politics were glamorized and not gritty enough The bisexuality was given just the right weight -- Taymor shows her intelligence there. If you rent the two-DVD version, be prepared to fast forward through most the interviews on the second disk. Couple of interesting ones with the singers. Otherwise, not up to par. Watching those interviews, I wished Taymor had been allowed to talk all alone on screen about her film...

I agree Tartarin, a definate Hollywood movie. Hayak was the person who put everything together for the movie and was one of the producers. Bigger budget and better distribution won out.
Bill Moyers had a great interview with Julie Taymor awhile back on his pbs show. Interesting person with alot to say.

Yup -- the Moyers interview was on the DVD -- the only halfway decent one with Taymor.