Besieged
Besieged
R | 21 May 1999 (USA)
Besieged Trailers

While in exile in Italy, an African woman finds herself trying to get back home and free her imprisoned husband. But the only man that can help her do so is in love with her.

Reviews
GamerTab That was an excellent one.
TaryBiggBall It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.
Ogosmith Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.
Janae Milner Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.
nries Beautiful, for Bertolucci lovers certainly. Music, motion, actors, glowing spaces and colors are all sublime. This is a film about sacrifice, generosity, creativity, passion, and commitment, on the quiet backdrop of a very political story.
George Parker Take everything you ever knew about Hollywood and filmdom and flush it. Open you mind and your heart and, if you're lucky, "Besieged" will speak to you of love like no other. Make no mistake, this film is not about romance or sex or even closeness. It is about what love should be; pure, unsolicited, unencumbered giving. It is a sad testament to the shallowness of popular concepts of giving-to-get love that this film received lukewarm reviews, one star from Ebert, and a mere 6.5 by IMDB.com users. Sometimes the only way to love someone is to set them free.
bones-21 I fail to understand where all these 8, 9 & 10 votes come from... the film is more concerned with cinematography than telling a story. OK it was beautifully done, but there was nothing in the story that couldn't have been told in half the time - and then used the other half to fill us in on the background and the results (did he pay for it?, did she go back to him?).As it stands, the most memorable thing about the film is the introductory sequence featuring that wonderful music, from-the-bones singing and later on the wonderful facial contortions from John C. Ojwang.5/10
Cabrito Bertolucci's lush photography is mirrored by the velvety performances of the two co-stars. There's nothing fancy here. The lighting, camera angles, and other directorial touches support and do not supplant a simple story of two people whose generosity prompts them to take important actions independently. It is Thandie Newton's movie all the way (for that matter, so was "Flirting" almost ten years ago, and she is grown up now, yet with still that wistful, girlish smile). But David Thewlis is quirky enouhg to be believable. The fairy tale works. Bravo, Bernardo!