Dangerous Liaisons

There is a certain balance of rawness and elegance to this film I never imagined would come out especially of such a predictable premise. An aging socialite makes a bet with her ex-lover, a sleazy scoundrel playboy, to seduce a meek widow, for what reason? A simple bet. But what occurs is a series of expected but intricately interwoven events. And that's really how I would describe this film, an intricately woven series of events, arcs and occurrences that come together to make a very intriguing and tight game of life especially to the two characters. The man is a womanizing scoundrel by every definition of the word and this film goes out it's way to brilliantly makes you detest him, the Socialite is no different, a decided sociopath in her actions but much like Light Yagami from Death Note there is a certain kind of fascination that comes with the evil. And at the center is the "proper" an awkward but truly empathetic and virtuous woman caught in the middle of a cruel game that threatens to destroy her. The extras though one-note are all memorable to the point of being poetic, the cinematography is gorgeous, the sets are beautiful and the costumes vibrant.All in all a very intriguing film with a tight ending that is very much worth your time, this is Oscar-Worthy standard.

I loved the love story within the movie and all the skullduggery added an ironic twist to the movie. Fenyu is a very good actor and a beautiful one at that.Well worth the time to watch it.

Being a huge fan of international cinema as well as a film student myself, I watched this film on dvd and was so impressed with it that I ordered the blu-ray right away. Celicia Cheung has always played a silly, sometimes vulnerable character in many of her films. This is her breakout performance into the big time like actresses Gong Li, Ziyi Zhang, Maggie Cheung, Carina Lau, Michelle Yeoh, Lee Sinje and Karena Lam. Yes, she was good in "Running on Karma" co-starring Andy Lau but her performance in "Dangerous Liaisons" was incredible, razor sharp and poignant. She is among my favorite actresses after this performance. If you enjoy films like "In The Mood For Love", "Days of Being Wild", "Farewell My Concubine", "2046", "The Banquet", "The Emperor and the Assassin", "Curse of the Golden Flower", "Temptress Moon", "Shanghai Triad" and "Raise The Red Lantern" then you will also enjoy "Dangerous Liaisons". HIGHTLY RECOMMENDED!!!

This film is a must for all Dangerous Liaisons enthusiasts. I am always curious as to how many times, and from how many scenarios, this film can be remade. This Chinese version works except that there is a distinct emphasis placed on Fan's (Viscount Du Valmont) relationship with Fenyu (Mme Du Tourvelle) rather than his relationship with Ms. Mo (Marquise Du Matois). I think this is a weakness in this version because in the original film most of the cat n mouse play takes place between those two characters. Jang Dong Gun takes an interesting departure from his usual character type by portraying a womanizer. However, even in this type of role he still manages to come of as sensitive and somewhat sentimental. It must be those beautiful eyes!

As a Dangerous Liaisons fan who has read the book and watched Cruel Intentions and the previous version of Dangerous Liaisons (1988)several times I had high hopes for this version. I am not a die hard purist who can't handle variation in adaptations either. However, the characters were very one dimensional. They lacked the level of development and personality that is key in this story. While the story touched on all the main components of the classic written version it didn't develop any of the background of the individual characters in a way that let you get very invested in the "why" of what was going on. The two main characters Xie Yifan (Vicomte de Valmon) and Mo Jieyu (Marquise de Merteuil) don't have the lively camaraderie in decadence and debauchery that the characters should have in common. There isn't anything that "wicked" about them. I didn't feel that invested at all in any of the relationships until the final 15 minuets of the movie. The seduction of Du Fenyu similarly seems fairly flat. You wonder where her resistance is coming from in the first place. Then you wonder why it is being broken down with a few cheap interactions.The actors don't do a terrible job with the scenes they were given and some of the scenes are nice to look at. Over all I would never watch this again and I am glad I rented, not bought it.

This movie had me stuck to my sofa from start to finish. I did not even pause to go get snacks or use the restroom. The plot kept me so on the front seat of my sofa that I just did not want to get up until the movie was over.Y’all should check this out!

This movie was incredible. I was initially doubtful about how this movie would be overall but I loved it. I can honestly say it is one of my favorite movies. I liked it better than Cruel Intentions, which surprised me. The clothing and scenery are absolutely breath taking. I admittedly cried a few times watching this movie. Xie Yifan comes in as a charming seducer, and you become torn with wanting him to not succeed with the seduction of Du Fenyu and wanting him to succeed so that they can fall in love and live happily ever after. Miss Mo is so completely devious in her scheming, it's actually a little difficult to understand her character, but you can't help but keep watching just to find out what's going to happen next!

This was not worth renting, very boring, could not make it through the movie. Grab a good book instead and call it a day,

Good movie with Zhang Ziyi

This is the third to my knowledge take of the novel Dangerous Liaisons the original being in 1988 with Glen Close and John Malkovich and Michelle Pfeiffer, and the Korean Untold Scandal (2003) starring Lee Mi-Sook and Bae Yong-Joon. This version takes place in China with Korean superstar Jang Dong-chun as the male lead Xie a notorious rake, Ceclia Cheung as the predatory widowed socialite Mo Jieyu and Zhang Ziyi as the target Du Fenyu. The setting is 1930's Shanghai which provides a sumptuous setting for this decadent tale. Comes with a number of bonus features