ridiculous rating

it is the rare 'crazy' movie that actually has something to say.

In other words,this film is a surreal ride.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

With each trip to the video store, I kept passing by "Besieged." Its cover always appealed to me, but not enough to rent it at the given time. Now, thanks to my newfound appreciation of David Thewlis, I have finally rented it.I must say, this strange "love story" was rather to my liking. I found both Mr. Thewlis and Ms. Newton to be very talented and able actors. The music score is fantastic with its blending of styles. So is the scenery. One thing, however, made me cringe (if only slightly). It was the very abrupt way of switching between some shots. It didn't go on throughout the entire movie (thankfully), but it was frequent enough to disorient me. In my opinion, the story/movie would've been just a tad better without that.All in all, a very good movie (minus the sometimes strange camera work), and I heartily recommend it.

"Besieged" plays out like a confused, misguided remake of Bernardo Bertolucci's much more assured "Last Tango in Paris." It is an ineffective combination of political and romantic drama, meandering back and forth between the two and never really concentrating on either. The film has an interesting setup, with the imprisonment of Shandurai's husband and the emotional instability of Kinsky, but the story gradually falls apart after that. There is no real emotional force driving the events in the film; the audience is kept at a distance by the cold, almost passionless tone, and there is never any satisfying realization of Shandurai's sadness or Kinsky's self-loathing.Having said that, there's still a fine performance by Thandie Newton in the lead, and the always interesting David Thewlis does a fairly competent job as the eccentric pianist. But Bertolucci's inability to balance out the two halves of the story constituted by these performances impede the characters from reaching their full potential, and robs us of what could have been a fascinating drama.

During the first twenty minutes or so of `Besieged,' directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, there is virtually no dialogue, at least nothing even remotely conversational; and yet the first half hour of the film is almost hypnotically riveting, and by that point you already know more about the two main characters than if they'd had pages worth of words to say. And it's all done with the subtle, controlled emoting of the actors, guided by a director with a keen eye for detail, who knows exactly what he wants, how to get it and how to present it. This emotionally involving film stars Thandie Newton as Shandurai, a young woman forced to leave South Africa for Rome after her husband, a school teacher, is arrested by the Military Police, then summarily held in prison-- and without a trial-- indefinitely (His crime is never precisely indicated, though it is implied during a classroom scene at the very beginning of the film). In Rome, Shandurai attends medical school, while supporting herself by working as a housekeeper for a man named Mr. Kinsky (David Thewlis), a reclusive pianist, apparently fairly well-to-do, who gives piano lessons to children in his home. Early on in the film it is evident that Mr. Kinsky looks upon Shandurai as something more than merely a housekeeper; he is obviously quite taken with her. The moral implications of the situation are readily apparent, of course, as is the position in which it will predictably place Shandurai at some point in the near future. There is little doubt as to the direction the story is taking; the question that remains, however, is how Shandurai will deal with her impending dilemma. The story becomes even more engaging as matters are pressed and circumstances develop which make Shandurai's conundrum even more of a moral miasma. Bertolucci draws his audience in by creating a situation so emotionally complex that at times it fairly resonates on the screen. And rather than allowing it to become simply a test of love and loyalty, he takes it much deeper-- so that the real impact of the film stems from the respective stances taken by Shandurai and Mr. Kinsky, as they strive to resolve their personal feelings while attempting to satisfactorily breach this seemingly insurmountable situation. Bertolucci draws a delicate line on which he balances the emotions, actions and reactions of his characters, which pays off handsomely in the end. The overall success of the film, however, is predicated upon on thing-- that being the performances of Newton and Thewlis; and both deliver, unequivocally. Newton's role is especially challenging, as she has to convey so much through her emotions alone. Her gestures, expressions and mannerisms are her words; and the slightest alteration of any of these-- the slightest arch of an eyebrow, a shifting of the eyes at a particular moment or a barely discernible movement of her lips-- speaks volumes. And for this to be effective, it had to come from a place deep within; mere surface theatrics or any hint of pretentiousness at any time would have dispelled the believability of the character at once-- and Newton not only prevails, but does so overwhelmingly. It's an extremely well realized portrayal of a woman in conflict, facing one of the greatest trials of her life. Thewlis, as well, gives a resoundingly sympathetic performance as Mr. Kinsky, that would have to be ranked among the best work he's ever done. As with Newton's role, he must convey so much physically, and he does-- turning in a very sensitive, well defined performance through which he employs just the right amount of reserve and restraint as befits the character he is creating. It's an affecting, honest portrayal that makes Mr. Kinsky very real and believable. The supporting cast includes Claudio Santamaria, John C. Ojwang, Massimo De Rossi, Cyril Nri, Paul Osul and Veronica Lazar. Artistically rendered and subtle in nuance, `Besieged' explores the parameters of love and measures the limits of the boundaries expressed by the heart. An insightful treatise on human nature, it removes one emotional layer after another, right up to the very end-- which is a moment of truth nothing less than sublime. And one that will keep this film in your memory long after the screen has gone dark. I rate this one 8/10.

A lot of reviews of BESIEGED said Bernardo Bertolucci was returning to LAST TANGO IN PARIS territory. That may very well be true, but there's one distinction about TANGO which Bertolucci should have remembered; in TANGO, it was a story between two fully realized characters(we may remember the movie for Brando, for better or worse, but Maria Schneider was every bit his equal), and so it resonates long afterwards. In this movie, on the other hand, we get every sense of Thandie Newton, through her acting(as this and previous works such as BELOVED prove, she's one of the most expressive actors out there), and through the gorgeous use of imagery and music, especially in the Africa scenes(if it wasn't for the fact that there's a film coming out next year with that name, this might be called I DREAMED OF AFRICA). Even though very little dialogue is used, we get a history and arc to her, so we care what happens to her.But a love story, which this purports to be, is best when it's two equals. What of David Thewlis here? Well, we get a sense of his piano playing, which changes the longer Newton stays around(the scene where he incorporates African type rhythms into his music is quite good). And certainly his actions speak for themselves(he's clearly trying to free her husband). But still, he remains closed off from us; not as an enigma, but as in not expressive. It doesn't help that Thewlis is probably more suited to a role where he has more dialogue(he can be expressive, as he showed in NAKED), and seems lost here. But we never really get a sense of him, so when the two finally come together, it doesn't move us the way it should.Still, the other half of the film, Newton's half, does work enough for me to recommend the film. And while I am a fan of good dialogue, it didn't bother me how little there was here.