ridiculous rating

Perfect cast and a good story

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

This is an OK movie. Ever since Gladiator I loved Jaquion Phoenix's acting, he truly is a pleasure to watch. A real actor and the opposite of those like Keanu Reeves. That said, I wish he had a stronger character in this movie. I don't see Phoenix's character as realistic though. This seems like a role-reversal film that asks 'What if the guy acts like the chick in the relationship?' He does what women do; he wants what he can't have and spurns the hot girl (Sandra) that actually wants him for the troubled but 'out-of-reach' (Michelle) girl he can't have. I've been with a lot of women, when I was younger (and better looking). His behavior would turn 99% of women off, they all want some sort of challenge, so of course she is going to go for the married guy, that is how women behave. Maybe a desperate (ugly/fat) girl would be OK with his behavior , but not a hottie like Paltrow's character. The quickest way to turn a girl off like Michelle would be to get clingy and cringey like he does. It was hard to enjoy after that, because it seemed more like a fantasy, 'what if?' than a look at a real relationship. I've never acted like that, no boy or man I know or have seen acts like this. He literally takes a woman's emotional role. He's pretty pathetic and in reality, Paltrow's character would continue to manipulate him; keeping him interested enough to be the 'Penis under glass to break in an emergency' and in the 'friend zone.' I wish it was more realistic, because with his behavior she wouldn't have to put out, she would keep him at arm's reach, since he was already at her beck and call. It seemed very predictable that she would not show up to go with him to SF and stay with the married guy. At least that part was realistic. I didn't like the ending either, I felt he was being untrue to Sandra by settling for her when she being such a hottie, deserves someone that actually wants her. I love the 'Blue Velvet' shout out, 'Hey, neighbor' - that in itself made this worth watching.

"Two Lovers" is a movie which has to do with a man who his parents arrange a gathering at their house with another couple who have a beautiful daughter. They want to get to know each other and after that whatever happen is between them. On the other side this man meets and fell in love with another beautiful woman and now he is in a different situation in which he has to decide with who woman he wants to be.I liked this movie because it shows us many things about the personalities of people and how they react when something happen ether is good or bad. I also liked this movie because of the interpretation of Joaquin Phoenix who plays as Leonard Kraditor a man who are in a dilemma, another good interpretation made by Gwyneth Paltrow who plays as Michelle Rausch a woman who Leonard Kraditor is in love. Finally I have to say that this movie's storyline and whole plot is really unpredictable and that is something that I liked very much this movie, strongly recommended.

I wanted to add another review here because I feel those praising the film don't do it justice. Two Lovers is a beautiful film. It's also a strange film that defies description. It is very different from Gray's earlier films, sharing with them only a tone of drab realism. It is painfully awkward at times, flitting between a pervading melancholy and a doomed hopefulness. But it is also touching, fragile and utterly captivating.I have just re-watched Two Lovers after seeing The Master and being reminded how wonderful Joaquin Phoenix is. I think it is fair to say he is the outstanding actor of his generation. He has that strange awkward power and charisma that the younger De Niro had in his greatest performances, you can barely watch but can't take your eyes off him. He and Gray have a truly rare chemistry and in Two Lovers both are at the very top of their game.Gwyneth Paltrow is superb as well. Her character could easily have been overplayed but she gets it just right, balancing the pain of emotional manipulation with an impossible combination of resilience and resignation.In many ways the plot of the film is far fetched but there is something about it that feels profoundly true. It's hard to say exactly what that is but that's what makes it so perfectly beautiful.

It was hard to know how to rate this film -- the performances and cinematography are quite good and some elements of the script are poignant. I am not surprised to learn here that it is loosely based on a short story more than 120 years old! Somehow, the script has updated the action to the present day, where it makes no sense.Why? Because nobody in the US agrees to arranged marriages. The main character, Leonard, is 36: He would have grown up on American movies, TV shows, etc. all making it clear that in western culture, people marry for love. His parents are Israeli immigrants of Russian origin. NONE of those cultures have had arranged marriages in the past 150 years!The other problem is that Leonard seems not merely "troubled" but mentally retarded or perhaps, developmentally delayed, in some way. He doesn't behave like a normal adult, and certainly not one who grew up in the cultural milieu of New York City and it's environs. He's naive, weird, sheltered. He has no concept of living on his own. There is no sense of rebellion or desire for him to have his own career or apartment. He appears to have attended college, but utterly lacks the sophistication of someone who has done so. Sure, there are sheltered, weird, introspective people like this in the world. But chances are, they are not "marriage material" for anyone. More likely, they end up living homeless under a bridge, or in some halfway house, or spend a good chunk of their lives in a residential treatment center.The backstory that Leonard has the gene for Tay suggests the scriptwriters did not bother even slightly researching this. Many Jews have the gene for Tay Sachs (and it is not solely unique to the Jewish community). Because of this, most Jews are tested for it before having children. But the PRESENCE of Tay Sachs genes does not normally result in loving couples breaking up! HELLO! this is the 21st century. People who are found to have this anomaly either do not have children, adopt, or use artificial insemination. Leonard is hardly a member of a royal lineage that requires his specific genes. Furthermore, as a carrier, he would have at least a small risk of this in any relationship and any partner he choose would require genetic testing. EPIC FAIL here.What does make sense here is the story of a man torn between two potential female partners -- one beautiful and sexy, but unacceptable to his family. The other plain -- sweet and kindhearted -- but utterly undesirable, more of a sister-type. Of course, his family wants him to marry this second girl, whose father also just so happens to own a compatible dry- cleaning firm. But it doesn't work in this film, because Leonard has no reason to want to be with Sandra (Vinessa Shaw): doesn't desire her, doesn't really want to work in dry-cleaning, doesn't even really want to please his parents. (Shaw is fine here, in a thankless role.)The sad part is that Leonard only proposes to Shaw when his flighty, screwy semi-girlfriend Michelle (Gwyneth Paltrow) totally gives him the heave-ho and destroys his dreams. In other words, it's on the rebound. It's already clear by then that Leonard wants to go to California with a blonde shiksa. So his marriage to Sandra is a cruel fake, that will likely make both of them miserable. It's not a stretch to imagine that Michelle will come crawling back into his life when her unfaithful boyfriend dumps her again, and that Leonard will cheat on Sandra to be with his true love Michelle. So you end the film pitying Sandra for her easy acceptance of the engagement ring, that Leonard has heartlessly transferred from the woman he really desires to the one he has settled for.Again, this story would make a great deal more sense if set in the late 19th or early 20th century, where we could believe in such naivety. Instead, the ending left me feeling depressed and that the storyline was creepy. Why should the lovely Sandra (who is quite attractive, just not Gwyenth-attractive...what women would want to have to compete with THAT blonde, skinny perfection?) have to settle for a mentally ill, reclusive, slovenly man who DOESN'T EVEN LOVE HER?Like I said, a strange little movie that I can't imagine who the audience would be, or who the filmmakers THOUGHT would like this.Joaquin Phoenix is a fine actor -- his work in "Walk The Line" was exemplary -- but he's sleepwalking here, foreshadowing his decision to give up acting for hip hop (or was that an act?). He's much too attractive, anyways, for a guy who lives in his parent's home in middle age, or who has trouble meeting girls -- it's odd casting for a "Marty"-type part (Marty was played by uber-homely Ernest Borgnine). Because of this, we don't sense how inappropriate his flirtation with the unstable Michelle is, because a Joaquin/Gwyneth pairing -- two hottie superstars -- is not unbelievable at all.Because of THAT, I think many viewers are probably rooting for Leonard to choose the dishonest, unstable MIchelle and move to California, no matter how unlikely or tragic that kind of action seems to be. That puts an odd spin on the entire movie.My own impression is that NEITHER woman belonged with the insular, suicidal, mentally ill Leonard -- that a "happier" ending would have had him getting proper therapy, a good shrink and moving out on his own, perhaps to find a meaningful life, rather than just doing what his clingy parents want him to do. It is strange in 2008, to see a film that argues for arranged marriage, pleasing your suffocating parents, giving up your dreams and "settling" for a plain girl you don't love.