Review of The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989) by Allen G — 05 Mar 2013

"Cook Michael for me".

SAY WHAAAAATTTT?

This isn't easy to sit through, it's pretty brutal but it has it's own obscure brand of humour to lighten things up- not that there's actually any light present in this film.

Surprisingly simple plot- I was expecting something a bit more interesting if I'm honest, this could very easily have been a very boring affair if it weren't for the great performances, nice style, strange humour and the general weirdness that ensues.

Nyman delivers a great score here (what else would you expect from him?) and it really shows the film's emotional gravitas. It's slow to really get where it's going and poses the risk of becoming uninteresting but by the end the exact opposite turns out to be the case- it's actually pretty darn interesting! Certainly one of the best endings to a film I've seen in a long time, possibly one of the best ones ever.

There's too much beforehand though that isn't of the same standard- too much time spent hammering through points that are blatantly obvious from the get go- uncompromising yes but not necessarily always to it's benefit. I must say though that thinking back to certain scenes having now seen the completed work, I appreciate them more and so this looks to be a film that improves with further viewings.

All it needed was some cuts during the editing just to keep it engaging and less frustrating, when there's a climax like the one in this involved then you should be pushing the viewer to it nice and fast and this film had the power to do that but instead decided to drag it's heals a little and become repetitive. It's all worth it in the end but prepare to have your patience tested from time to time.

My favourite Mirren film and also my favourite Gambon film (Tim Roth has done better though I think) so certainly worth a watch.