A Walk in the Clouds

Plot synopsis:
In 1945, after World War II, United States Army Sgt. Paul Sutton returns to San Francisco to reunite with his wife, Betty, whom he married, following a whirlwind courtship, the day before he departed for the Pacific. The war has left him with emotional scars, and he experiences flashbacks on a regular basis.
Paul's reunion with Betty is strained, especially after he discovers that, although he has written her "almost every day", she stopped reading them after the first few, and keeps the hundreds of unopened letters in a footlocker. He is determined to make a go of the marriage, however, and hopes to establish a new career for himself. She insists he continue to sell chocolates door-to-door, and he sets off to Sacramento. En route, he meets fellow train passenger Victoria Aragon, a graduate student whose Mexican-American family owns a vineyard in the Napa Valley. When he learns she is pregnant by her professor, Paul offers to introduce himself to her very traditionalist family as her husband.
Victoria's father, Alberto, is infuriated, not only that she married a man below her social standing, but without his permission as well. Paul's initial plan to quietly slip away and continue on his journey, leaving her family to believe he abandoned her, is derailed when her grandfather, Don Pedro, encourages him to stay and help with the harvest. During the harvest, Paul (an orphan) grows closer to the family and learns the joys that come with their tradition, roots, and way of life. He and Victoria try to ignore their growing attraction and feelings for each other, but with little success. However, his honor prompts him to attempt to salvage his marriage and return home, but when he does he discovers Betty is involved with another man. She has applied for an annulment, to which he happily agrees, and he returns to the Aragon estate to ask Victoria to marry him.
When Paul returns, an argument with an angry and drunk Alberto leads to a disastrous fire which destroys the vineyard. However, Paul remembers one plant that may still have its roots intact, races off to retrieve them, and bring them back to the family. The disaster (as well as Paul's bravery and dedication during it) has brought Alberto to realize his errors, so when Paul returns with the plant, Alberto accepts him, telling him that this is "his family" and "his roots". They set out to replant and rebuild with the help of their newest member.

Tags: romantic, murder, flashback

Review:
It is a beautifully acted ride: Keanu Reeves acting his guts out plus: international sensation Sanchez-Gijon, noted actress Aragon, veteran actress Elizondo, Giannini the legend and the irresistible Anthony Quinn, Beautifully directed: Alfonso Arau, Wonderful cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, the wonderful music of Maurice Jarre and the song by Cuban Guitar composer, pedagogue and legend Leo Brouwer.What is bad about smiling during a movie?
People who bad-mouth this film are too dense to realize you don't need action and bloodshed to have a good movie..
With a relatively simple story, set against beautiful scenery with cinematography to die for, we are swept into a world of the past, where honour meant something, where marriage vows, no matter how hastily taken were still to be respected, and where a single pregnant female was a family shame (not the norm as today unfortunately).
2002 reality perhaps but not 1940s reality, abortions were for bad, nasty girls in back streets, by unlicensed doctors not for nice girls who had made a mistake (okay so some things have changed for the better.)  I simply loved this film, while it gives a fairy tale view of the vinyards and the family running it, it is a feast for the eyes and the soul.
The entire cast are superb, particularly Anthony Quinn who relished his role as the family patriarch and seemed to simply enjoy being in this delightful tale and of course Keanu whose performance is so beautifully low key and understated he reminded me of those wonderful hollywood leading men of old, strong, silent, gorgeous, Cary Grant would have played this role back in the day, who would have thought to put Keanu in the same role?
Anthony Quinn was superb and Keanu Reeves could not have been more believable as a simple man with a good heart and high values.
This guy's come a long ways since Bill & Ted.I was floored by the cinematography, the story itself, and the way the family was portrayed, capturing the way so many of the wine-growing families of the day were in California--not to mention the traditions and mores that existed at the time.Anthony Quinn also turns in a stellar performance, as always, as the eccentric grandfather that really isn't quite as odd as he'd like everyone to believe he is, spots Reeves for what he really is early in the story, and pretty much drives him to face what should be his destiny--but lets him think that he's making up his own mind.
I am not sure he is a great actor but he is perfect for this part.Aitana Sanchez Gijon has a beautiful screen presence which has shocked me why the Hollywood hype machine has not tried to build her up like they did with Penelope Cruz.
Living in Florida near Tampa, many Cubans In Tampa trace their ancestry back to Spain and exhibit the same type of pride he showed in the movie.It was also Anthony Quinn's best role in years.However the star of the show was the music and the photography.
Aitana Sánchez-Gijón is flawless as the female lead, which is a good thing considering her leading man is the almost always flaw-FUL Keanu Reeves, who has amazingly held onto his leading man status despite having only his great looks and minimal talent (the modern-day Rock Hudson).
Amid all the good players and romantic tone, there's also some lovely scenery and good costuming.But seeing this film on HBO nearly ten years after viewing it on the big screen begs the following questions: Why has Penelope Cruz been foisted on the American moviegoer when we could have had Aitana Sánchez-Gijón all along?!
Why is Keanu Reeves a big star while the extremely sexy Gregory Martin (whom I still remember steaming up the small screen in the miniseries "Ellis Island") never appeared in a movie again?
Set in the Napa Valley shortly after the end of World War II, Keanu Reeves and Aitana Sanchez-Gijon play two people searching for their futures.
Reeves as an ex-GI in a pointless job with a wife he hardly knows and Sanchez-Gijon as a pregnant and abandoned woman afraid to face the shame she will bring to her family.
What follows is a lovingly realized story of family, love and understanding played out against the beauty of the northern California wine country.
The vineyard owned by Sanchez-Gijon's family is pure fantasy created by some wonderful visual effects but it provides the perfect setting for the film.
But, indeed, it is the stunning photography of the lovely vineyard and stately family home that takes this film into the upper echelons of visually-arresting movies.
This film is a magical fairytale of love, struggle, and romance, directed by the brilliant Mexican director Alfonso Arau ('Like Water for Chocolate').
Keanu Reeves has never been better at being a 'good guy', here tormented by his origins as an orphan, betrayed by a frivolous young wife, returning from War with a head full of hopes only to meet with the apparent collapse of all of his prospects.
This film is a poignant story of how the lost and lonely orphan Keanu Reeves finds true love and acceptance at last in the bosom of a family and in the arms of one of the most delectable gals imaginable.
The film is a wonderful achievement, the period costumes and sets are perfect, the buildings are authentic Spanish survivals from various places in the Napa Valley, apparently, the atmosphere is pure magic, the vicissitudes are harrowing, but love and devotion and goodness conquer all.
This is where Reeves character is from in the film...another reason to love it!!Seriously, see this movie.
The grape crushing scene alone combines the visual, dramatic and musical in an operatic way that reminds one of all the greatest scenes in Italian film history as well as the great I Love Lucy episode.
1940's morality will not allow him to consummate their love.His interactions with the family (owners of a vineyard in the Napa valley), only serve to strengthen his ties to them, and increase the frustration because he knows he must soon leave.The characters are believable and the story line is well written.
In fact, bonbons play a prominent role in the movie.The only reason I was able to watch to the end, is that I finally was able to gaze at Keanu Reeves' dreamy face in almost every scene.
In the end of World War 2, a young G.I. Paul Sutton (Keanu Reeves) beings work as a traveling salesman.
Paul loves the life of the woman's family and finds a new life in this newfound place.Directed by Alfonso Arau (Like Water for Chocolate, Picking Up the Pieces) made a wonderful, nicely made romantic drama with a refreshing sense of humour.
But any half-intelligent viewer of the film will already know by then that Keanu can't say these things because a) he's already in love with her and she with him, although all she has done is vomit on him, and b)the plot requires that he do this.Of course once there Reeves doesn't have the courage to be a heel and keeps getting sucked back into the family, even though everyone seems to know he's supposed to leave.
Now, this is true - farmers of citrus crops like oranges and I suppose vineyards do use smudge pots to warm the air if there is a chance their crop will freeze, but I have never seen said farmers don ridiculous diaphanous butterfly wings and run through their fields beating their arms to make certain the heat circulates.The cinematogrophy is nice, but after two hours I wanted Reeves to give up on this family and this girl and go back to selling chocolates and his sexy, dim wife played by Betty Sutton.
No this film follows the old fashioned way romance use to be like back in the 40's and 50's it is an a film with values that lie deep in the story and plot and if yo look deep enough you will see that there more to this film than meets the eye.Keanu Reeves turns in a very believable and very skilled performance as a lost G.I. trying to find his place in the world, he plays the honorable and very kind Paul with such decency and grace that you can not love his performance.A walk in the clouds is just what the title says.
You need to pretend that your Paul Sutton and that your helping this girl out of her troubles, if you do that, if you immerse yourself in the films grandeur and beauty then you are truly watching A Walk in the Clouds and you are truly seeing a movie that is wroth the time and the money to rent or even buy for your collection.All in all A Walk in the Clouds is a film that you just can't miss or ignore, it's perfect any day entertainment for anyone with a heart for romance..
This is an unusual story which explores morals, virtue, inner beauty, the value of family, clashing cultures, and romantic love.A WW2 soldier named Paul Sutton (Keanu Reeves), coming home to California, meets a woman named Victoria (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon) on a train (the foul comedic device of their meeting is the only moment that was out of place in the film).
My favorite line is when Victoria says to him, "Paul Sutton, you are the most honorable man I have ever known." Great movie.
Then, the young GI returns to the vineyard and to the woman he has fallen in love with.This is a film targeted to satisfy a romantic fan, who, judging by the many comments to this forum seem to have enjoyed it tremendously.
While the film is not breaking new ground, it is pleasant to look at, but predictable.Alfonso Arau working in Hollywood after his much better "Like Water for Chocolate" seems to be a natural in the way he makes his cast respond to his direction..
The rest is all downhill as sailor Keanu Reeves escorts a pregnant woman back to her Italian father's wine vineyard and tries to pose as her husband to avoid her the shame of bearing an illegitimate child.
Paul Sutton (Keanu Reeves) comes home to San Francisco after WWII to his wife Betty (Debra Messing) whom he married in one of those whirlwind wartime romances and whom he really does not know very well.
With relief, he leaves again and hurries back to the Aragón home to be swept up in the climactic sequences involving a vineyard fire, in which everything is destroyed but a single seed plant, and `hope.' (It is interesting to note that the original Italian film did not have a happy ending.)Keanu Reeves looks good in a uniform and has a nice jawline, sort of like a young Van Johnson or Dane Clark, but his performance lacks something, probably because he appears to be a graduate of the Jack Webb School of Voice Training.
Visually the film is a series of oil painting like shots...lovely and somewhat unrealistic at times, but beautiful.
I'm not a fan of this mushy stuff but I semi enjoyed most of it  if you're in an undemanding mood then it may be worth a shot.Reeves delivers a good (if cardboard) character and delivers his lines like you expect people in matinee films to do.
The story is rather special, though not entirely unpredictable, and is a rather nice backdrop to give Reeves the opportunity to play the engaging, gentlemanly, perfect but troubled veteran in this gentle drama.The scenery of the Aragon vineyard is beautiful, although I believe a lot of it is CGI, and the Aragon family are varied and demonstrate the rich tapestry of family life from the overbearing father Giancarlo Gianinni, the wise and strong mother Angelica Aragon and the irrepressible patriarch Anthony Quinn, who provides some lovely touching and funny moments.
The story may be a little weak at times and the casting could have been stronger (Anthony Quinn steals every scene he's in) but the overall film is rewarding.
The female, lead, Aitana, a name I am not familiar with was excellent, as was Anthony Quinn and Keanau Reeves.I would have preferred if the director had not used as much "soft focus" as he did, but the location filming was beautiful.
This is the plot, and i know that it sounds like a pretty average plot, but don't judge the movie by its plot.I know what most of you think about Keanus acting, and i could not agree more.
But boy, was i wrong!I have never seen Keanu as loose as in this movie, the story is nice and the girl is the most beautiful girl in the world!
Sure it contains a lot of romance flick cliches, but in the end that just dont matter.Sadly Anthony Quinn died last year, and if you want to see him in a under rated movie, this is it.
Keanu reeves and all the actors have played great also I like the subject of the movie very much,the film's name is also very compatible,the dialogues were very fluent and beautiful.Actually, everything in the movie is perfect but I gave it 7 points because it squeezes me a little too.
A Walk in the Clouds is a total chick flick.Keanu Reeves, a WWII veteran, meets Aitana Sanchez-Gijon on a train, but there's a bit of an obstacle preventing it from being love at first meeting.
Since this is a chick flick, and a very sappy romance-along the lines of In Love and War or Captain Corelli's Mandolin-of course, Keanu stays more than one day, at the insistence of the warm-hearted, benevolent grandpa Anthony Quinn.
There's romance, kisses in the rain, and grape stomping-an expected scene since it takes place in Napa-and before too long, Keanu and Aitana fall in love.
A Walk In The Clouds is a lovely and unabashedly romantic film with gorgeous cinematography and a strong cast.
Aitana Sanchez-Gijon plays Victoria with heart and sensitivity, and she and Keanu seem like a couple from the moment they meet.
He is also present in a hilarious scene where he gets Paul (and himself) very drunk and has him sing a traditional Mexican courting song outside Victoria's window.Alfonso Arau made the art-house hit, "Like Water for Chocolate," a film that I haven't seen, but is in my Netflix queue (and has been for some time).
Set in the 1940s, homebound soldier Paul (Keanu Reeves) decides to help a troubled stranger (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon) with a family difficulty.
If you ask me, the way that Paul (Keanu Reeves) offered to pose as Victoria's (Aitana Sánchez-Gijón) husband was very thoughtful.
I have seen better but this film is a nice watch if you're feeling romantic and want it to end with a smile on your face.
In comes Paul Sutton (Reeves) who agrees to pose as her husband for a couple of days in order to trick her father into believing she is happily married.A walk in the clouds clearly depicts the cultural differences between Latin and American families.
If it wasn't for good old Anthony Quinn, this would be a "Keanu" movie.
I highly recommend this feature for the acting and the story, especially watching Anthony Quinn as the grandfather of the vineyard family..
I wish I could like this movie better, I really tried to, I love a good old-fashioned four-hanky romance.
It's possible that this script could have been made into a movie that requires up to two hankies, the story could have worked, but the wrong people were hired.A young man (Keanu Reeves) comes back from WWII to the wife he barely knows, and when he finds she is interested in nothing but money he aimlessly gets on a bus, where he meets a damsel in distress.
Anthony Quinn, so well casted, portrays one of the most likable characters in film who not only makes Reeve's character welcome at the family vineyard but the viewer is invited in as well.
Keanu Reeves destroys every scene he is in, and I guess since he is the lead he also destroys the whole movie.
It just hurts to see such a good actor in the same scene as Keanu Reeves, it's like they are from two different dimensions.
"A Walk In the Clouds" is one of my favorite movies because of the romantic story of star-crossed lovers and the beautiful setting in the Napa Valley of California.
Although these delays complicate things for Paul, everything works out for the good in the end.In addition to liking the film for the romantic story, I found the Spanish-style house and the panoramic view of the vineyard incredibly beautiful.
"A Walk In The Clouds"-(1995) Starring Keanu Reeves, Aitana Sanchez-Gijon, Anthony Quinn, Angelica Aragon, Giancarlo Giannini, Debra Messing, & Freddy Rodriguez.
"A Truly Amazing Film!" "They Don't Make Movies Like This Anymore!" "This Film Takes You On An Adventure Into Another World!" "Don't Forget To Enjoy Some Wine With This Truly Heart Warming Romantic Love Story!" "An Excellent Film, Two Thumbs Way Up!" "Great Entertainment For The Whole Family!" "The Aragon Family welcomes you to Las Nubes Vineyards in celebration of their 10th Anniversary!" "So help with the annual vineyard harvest, crush the grapes, and enjoy the best film in ages!".
Unrealistic turn of events leading to a contrived, terrible love story.Paul (Keanu Reeves) has just gotten home from war, and all he wants to see is his wife.
I like movies about love igniting and burning up the screen with passion that touches the whole family is just wonderful.Keanu does a great job in trying to sing Spanish and playing someone who has had too much to drink..
The only reason why I even bothered with this movie was because Keanu Reeves plays the leading role.(I have admired this actor since my early teens and I wish everybody would get of his case about his acting skills, ever heard of the phrase TYPE CASTING??) But I must admit I fell in love with the characters and the whole story.