IMDb user comments for
The Object of Beauty (1991)

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14 comments in total

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14 out of 15 people found the following comment useful :-
rare gem overlooked as much as statue, 18 December 2004

Author: mark worrell (nuntukamen@hotmail.com) from naples, florida

It is difficult for me to comprehend why there is only one viewer comment for this film, or why it is rated under a six. If an excellent film is about entertainment, intelligence, great acting and a terrific story with a treasury of clever humor that expounds the deeper meaning of a good relationship between a man and a woman over wealth and selfishly egotistical success, then this is a standout film that achieves a richness of artistic accomplishment that very few films do. No one truly sees the beauty of the bronze statue except the lowly and weathered housekeeper, a financially struggling mute, unable to express the profound feelings that are moving within her in words, but Rudi Davies sure gets it across with her expression and eyes. I had to drive 30 miles to the Cedar Lee Theater, Cleveland's only real art house, during it's original release, but after the film was over I realized it would have been worthwhile if I would have had to walk...some films are just that special

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8 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
Highly underrated movie; filled with irony., 7 December 2005

Author: StephenTaylor from Canada

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

One of the most underrated movies of all time. I am amazed at how many people can watch this film and not get the point. The Object of Beauty is an intelligent conversation about rich and poor, selfishness and giving, and basically how to be! How to behave as a human being. The language of the film is irony, specifically situational irony. It is ironic that Malkovic's character refers to himself as a pig being placed in a very sweaty position. Pig's don't sweat! It is ironic that the female deaf character claims that the inanimate sculpture spoke to her. It is ironic that while John's character is reporting the theft of the statue we learn that he has stolen an object of beauty from another man; MacDowell's character. Ironic even more that the insurance investigator is used to bring this info forward. You will enjoy this film much more if you pay attention to the irony of the value placed by different characters upon this Henry Moore sculpture. It is worth nothing to some, only money to others, an emotional commitment to another, and an object of aspiration to one other. All of these perspectives speak to each other, and it is a very interesting conversation.

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5 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
An Excellent Film, Not Given Enough Credit, 27 June 2006

Author: Bacardi1 from United States

This is by far one of my favorite little films, & just yesterday I bought it on DVD for a mere pittance ($6 & change)& settled in happily to enjoy it again. Only once in a blue moon does it turn up on artsy/independent film-type channels, so don't hold your breath looking for it on TV.

Everyone in this film is perfectly cast, & what makes it come together so beautifully is that each character in this piece exhibits faults & foibles, as we all do. It's so refreshing to watch something entertaining where the characters are portrayed as "real" - albeit flawed - people. In addition, the jazz musical score throughout the film fits the mood like a glove.

My favorite not-to-be-missed extremely funny scene? John Malkovich's "Jake", in a moment of depressed exasperation, talking aloud to himself composing his own obituary. I laugh every time I hear it - his delivery is perfect. Another favorite scene, very poignant, is when Mr. Malkovich's "Jake" phones his parents, after an apparently long absence, with the apparent intention of requesting monetary assistance. From the one-sided conversation you hear, you get an automatic insight into "Jake"'s upbringing, & perhaps why he's taken the path he has. Even though short, it's an extremely moving & insightful scene.

This movie is definitely worth renting if you can find it - but for the money, it's also worth adding to one's permanent DVD collection.

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9 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :-
Now That's (NOT) Entertainment!, 2 April 2007

Author: ccthemovieman-1 from Lockport, NY, United States

Call me a goody-goody, but I have a hard time liking a movie (or a story) in which dishonest people - right from the start - are made out to be the "good guys."

The main couple in this film - "Tina and Jake," played by Andie MacDowell and John Malkovich, respectively - are a couple of cheats, liars and bankrupt people when it comes to ethics. We are supposed to root for these people, and "laugh" along with them?

Later we have to hear them squabbling all the time when their con goes awry. No thanks.

What a sick message and a poor excuse for entertainment.

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3 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
many have missed the point-Possible spoilers, 6 August 2002
Author: cocreate

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I particularly have to disagree with a couple of reviews which see the deaf mute maid as unsympathetic, selfish and idiotic. She is the movie's emotional core, and the only character who has a true arc. Yes, she commits a selfish act, but she returns the statue when she realizes it was as wrong for her to take the statue from its owners as it was for her brother to take it from her. That is development of a kind the other characters don't have, and admittedly such a lack is a problem with this movie. Before one tosses aside her return of the statue as merely ethical on a childish level, consider what prompted her to take the statue in the first place: her first caress of the earless statue reveals a profound identification with it. In a world severely limited both by physical challenges and her economic situation, her opportunities to see herself as having any sort of beauty have obviously been rare to non-existent. Be certain that this statue is a full-strength totem object for her, rendered with the sensitivity of a master artist's hand. Out of a life so empty, the statue's return represents a genuine sacrifice of self. Then perhaps the "why anyone in this movie does what they do" problem becomes less vexing, at least with regard to one.

The movie's major mistake is ending with Jake and Tina, whom one suspects will never really change their habits or lifestyle even if they are talking about it, instead of giving us any idea what's to become of the maid, even (or perhaps especially) on an internal level.

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I love this movie, 15 April 2007

Author: gabivali22 from Romania

The Object of Beauty (1991) it has all that is needed for a movie to keep you interested I love it. Its funny, interesting and romantic kind of...and let's not forget who is playing : John Malkovich & Andie MacDowell I recommend it. Enjoy

synopsis:

American couple Jake and Tina are living in an expensive London hotel way beyond what they can afford. When they were asked to pay the bill, Jake wants to sell Tina's 20.000 pound Henry Moore sculpture, but she is not happy about that. The deaf-mute hotel maid admires the sculpture for its beauty rather than its value. When the sculpture goes missing, the couple start fighting over it... Written by Sami Al-Taher {staher2000@yahoo.com}

Charming comedy about how a couple's relationship waivers in tandem with the disposition of their statuette. With no fixed abode, Jake and Tina live in hotels across the world. With a large bill due, and money in short supply, their plan to "steal" their Henry Moore statue and claim against it is thwarted when someone else steals it first! They soon start distrusting each other's motives as they search for the statue, and keep trying to get its valuation boosted while avoiding the bill. With no sign of it, they start to drift apart, despite being in love, and don't reconcile until it reappears one day - having been stolen by a deaf-mute maid, who feels the statue "spoke" to her. Written by Cynan Rees {cynanrees@hotmail.com}

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1 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Object of Beauty a Must See for your own sense of Morality, 18 November 2006

Author: devo99 from Canada

I watched this for the first time on DVD last night and early this morning. I totally fell in love with Jenny and wanted to take her into my world and live happily ever after. I am sorry that more wasn't concluded with her at the end. Jake and Tina other wise should have been swept out to sea by a tsunami at the end. Jenny portrayed the commonalty & frailty of most of humanity(her brother being the subversive side of the rest of the commoners). Jake of course was the corporation and greed aspect of humanity with Tina being the human lemmings that follow the Jake side of life. I am sure though that if Tina had realized the true reason why Jenny took the statue she would have probably given it to her.(NOT!!) Tina's self-obsession during the encounter with Jenny just shows how shallow she really is. Glad I watched this movie and goes again to prove that the the Yanks still don't know how to make a good movie. Well not since D.W. Griffith that is. DEVO the guy who will never see ET.

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3 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
A Comedy with Style *Possible Spoilers, 10 June 2001

Author: Todd Honig from Hollywood,California

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

John Malkovich and Andie McDowell play a couple of jet-setters who hatch a plot to steal their own statue so they can collect the insurance and pay off their ever-rising hotel and credit card bills.The chemistry between the two of them reminds one of William Powell and Myrna Loy.If they had picked up the pace a bit,they would have had a real classic comedy here.This film is highly watchable,though.The score by Tom Bahler fits the film like a glove.Lolita Davidovich's (as a girlfriend of McDowell's)performance is a bit too low key,but it doesn't really hurt the film that much.All in all,a pleasant way to kill a couple hours.

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3 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
Wonderful concept - inadequate execution, 14 August 1999
Author: cleo-24 from USA

This movie disappointed me. It's billed as a 'low key comedy', but ends up being so low key, you wonder (with the exception of a couple of scenes) where the comedy is. Most of my disappointment, however, stems from the script - aside from the chambermaid and her brother, I simply did not care what happened to the characters. The juxtaposition of the two ways of life was excellent - but it's too obvious where the scriptwriter's sympathies lie.

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1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
Pointless and dull., 23 January 2007

Author: fedor8 (fedor8@yahoo.com) from Serbia

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

It was a real trial sitting through the entire duration of this tiresome film. It doesn't come even close to being successful as a comedy, and as a drama it is pointless and absurd. Additionally, the story could have been easily told in an hour; many events and characters are irrelevant and only prolong the suffering.

The film gets annoying as soon as the deaf-mute maid steals "the object of beauty"; we find out at the end that she stole it because it spoke to her - what a load of crap. In the meantime, she returns it, then re-steals it! (Why Malkovich simply didn't put it in a safe place as soon as he found it remains unexplained.) The flaws and inconsistencies in the characterization grow as the film "progresses", and the whole thing is a waste of time.

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