I just watched it again for probably the fourth time on my digital Encore, from 1:20 to 3:00 A.M.
Tilda Swinton is Orlando who lives variously as a man and a woman over four centuries, up to the present. The film was released in 1992.
It is gorgeously filmed and I’ve never seen a better period piece.(Pieces, I should say since it takes place in different times).
It only seems to be on in the early morning for some reason. Maybe it’s considered too “artsy”. It’s rated PG13 and only has one shot that can be considered soft porn. It’s a full frontal view of Swinton.
The costumes are amazingly elaborate.
And I love the closing song, over the credits. It’s called “Coming” by Jimmy Somerville(sp?) and it always mesmerizes me. I love the movie but a part of me is always saying “hurry up and get to the song!”
If you haven’t seen it, don’t miss an opportunity. And if you have…
Comments?
Dearest mods:
For some unknown reason, the thread I just posted which should read HAS ANYONE SEEN ORLANDO. THE MOVIE, THAT IS is posted as HAS ANYONE SEEN which will just confuse people. Could you please change it to the correct title?
Thank you…Hopefully
I thought “Orlando” was a little too, I don’t know, just “too” the first time I caught it. But I watched it again for the costumes, which are spectacular, and it kinda grew on me. I really like it now and recommend it often.
I think you’re right though. It’s a little too artsy for prime time.
Czarcasm… there are some questions I’m just afraid to hear answers to.
Czarcasm:
Did this involve you having relations with the avacado and then sneaking up behind your Rottweiller and thrusting… never mind, maybe Arden Ranger is right.
I saw Orlando when it came out, and really liked it, but I haven’t seen it again.
There was a bit of “stunt casting” that was both funny and appropriate: Quentin Crisp as Queen Elizabeth.
Then there’s the final line, which goes something like: “I have lived 400 years, as a man and as a woman. But because I’m in England, everyone pretends not to notice.”
Has anyone read the original story by Virginia Woolf? How is it different?
Yea, maybe it’s a little artsy, and may only appeal to those who enjoy foreign films, etc. I couldn’t give a rottweiler’s ass what the costumes looked like, but I loved this movie. It’s got great characters, superb acting, an interesting story, and some terrific humor. I love the scene with Alexander Pope. Nice wig, buddy.
Plenty worth watching even if you don’t care what anyone is wearing. Based on the Virginia Woolf novel, for those who might consider that an added incentive to watch it.
I loved the movie and have seen it many times. Each time I watch it I notice another detail. I think Tilda looked better as a man, better costumes, better makeup.
I always loved each time she looks into the camera and speaks. “the treachery of women” “I think I’m going to …burst(swoon?)”-- you know the scene with Billy Zane. Oooh, it makes my heart flutter.
I think it’s an especially cute touch where her movie child is portrayed by her IRL daughter.
As an aside, did anyone else think the video for Toni Brazton’s “Breathe Again” was a direct rip off of the scene where Orlando is running through the hedges(maybe it’s a labrynith)? I never heard Toni speak of the making of the video, but I hope she credits the movie.
“Orlando” is a glorious adaptation of the Virginia Woolf novel. Orlando, by the way, was modeled after Woolf’s lover, Vita Sackville-West. The costumes and the acting are, and I love Jimmy Somerville as the angel at the end. In addition to “Coming,” he also sings, “Eliza is the Fairest Queen” at the beginning of the movie.
Yes, and even though I really liked the film, found the book far more satisfying. The “change”, for instance, actually makes sense in the book- in the movie it came across as more of a mystery.
If you’ve seen the movie, you definitely should read the book.
