Product: Elvira Madigan [VHS]
Rating: 5.0
unabashedly romantic ... an old fashioned valentine
This is the most //romantic// movie I've ever watched. The love scenes are tender and sensual without resorting to nudity. Elvira and Count Sixten Sparre's doomed affair (he's married with children) is captured in the lush colors and sounds (bees humming) of a Danish summer. Their acting is subtle, natural and restrained. And they're nice to look at too :) Elvira looks like an angel with her flowing yellow hair while Sixten's darker looks complement her.The dialogue is wonderfully poignant. In one scene, Sixten tells his army friend, "I can't fight any more. I live in the women's world now." The friend admonishes him: "She's distorted your vision." Sixten replies: "Isn't that what love is? To see the world through another's eyes?" In another scene, the friend asks Elvira: "Are you happy? Because I know one ... two ... three people who aren't." He's referring to Sixten's wife and children. Elvira, beautiful and defiant, says "I need him too." Love it!!!The foreshadowing is particularly effective.Elvira and Sixten's picnic begins with laughter and high spirits, but then Elvira accidentally overturns the wine decanter. They both look at one another helplessly, aware of the omen. This romance is tame compared to today's standards as it contains mild kissing and very little else, but the smoldering fire between the leads will not disappoint you. I'll never forget this film!!!