webcrind A price winning movie?? What is going on in the film industry? This a depressing story with no point to it. A miserable and unhappy Russian bride, that should have no worry in the world since she lives like a princess, is unhappy in her relationship with a music producer. When she mets his son, she is slowly falling for him. Now that alone would be very strange enough, but we don't really find out what's the fascination with the son Michael. He is educated in the English language beyond the norm, even we are a tad confused if he is just a teacher or a professor, but we have no evidence for either, since the guy is not capable of holding any intelligent dialogues, be it for the lack of available words or him being simply stupid. After torturing myself through the movie, I was totally let down by the ending, where the main character is back to square one. Researching the lead actress on IMDb I found the following: She has been called the Russian Julia Roberts because of her stunning beauty. Wow! It never occurred to me that Mrs. Roberts has any kind of beauty, except of course one likes crooked legs, no hips and lips pumped with botox, but this Russian actress is definitely much uglier, if that is possible. If these women are considered attractive by some, how would one describe Juliet Binoche, Jessica Biel or Rosamund Pike? OK, sorry, I am getting of topic, but I never understood why recent directors take on topics like that. John Cassavetes has dealt with similar topics in the past and has done a fantastic job. But if one is not on that intellectual level, why bother.

Ben7 Not the movie, but rather this review.Dorothy Kilgallin once famously wrote the shortest review on record of a Broadway play: "The House Beautiful" is the play lousy.I'm going to top her in brevity:"Fourty Shades of Blue" blew.My friends, it was an endless soap opera wherein well-dressed characters with a clean place to sleep and full bellies, along with servants to do the sh*t work and apparent good health, mope around and screw up their lives.Nobody appreciates what the others have done for them, nor their blessings from On High. They're bored, as was I attempting to stay awake watching them.In recent years, moviegoers have benefited from an obsession with pace by directors, resulting in many good scenes sacrificed on the altar of retaining viewer interest. Some appear on Deleted Scenes reels once the DVD comes out.This depressing tear-fest just ambles along self-indulgently, ending not far from where it began, and robbing the viewer of an hour and 47 minutes of his or her life in the process.If you get the DVD from your library (don't even think of wasting good money renting it), you'll be "treated" to a companion short by the same director, wherein an arrogant codger wheels and deals from his hotel bed in Russia, while apparently getting a little young artist 'tang on the side. I dunno. I watched the thing three times, but couldn't pay attention to it. The Beatle-coiffed sexagenarian was following a leggy pianist through the subway, and he might have scored. He looked happy enough the next day.

filmproduction101 The overall effect is spellbinding. For fans of 1970's movies like FIVE EASY PIECES and the works of Cassevetes 40 SHADES OF BLUE will be deeply satisfying. This is the kind of movie we get to see so rarely. Strong unusual characters. Real dilemmas. Honest emotions. The story packs a moving payoff. Dina Korzun gives an especially memorable subtle performance. We understand her inner-turmoil. Rip Torn is also excellent. Hey, when you're tired of watching dumb action movies it's good to have a choice to see a movie that explores the real world. This is the anti-Hollywood movie. It deserved to win the top prize in Sundance.

Jimmy Spark Film-making with such an eye for detail and nuance is rarely to be seen in America and I'm overjoyed that the Sundance committee stepped forward to recognize it. Forty Shades of Blue is a fascinated witness to heartbreak and refuses all melodrama, all sentimentality in favor of fully lived characters that are shocking in their naturalism---the Russian actress in particular is astonishing but what is even more astonishing is the subtlety with which the director observes her. It is the most careful portrait of loneliness I have ever seen.Unlike most directors who point us in every frame at their star or their theme, Sachs--like Robert Altman--often points out details and people of the setting (Memphis) so that we are quite sure we're not seeing actors at all, and the effect is not the closed-room feel you would expect of a love triangle, but a place and time fixed forever by the lens. Ira Sachs has coaxed great performances from his actors, his hometown and the musicians who perform like a Greek chorus throughout. It's quite a masterpiece.