'' Women'' is a 1999

comedy-drama film Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, illness, betrayal, grief, etc. ...

written and directed by

Peter Greenaway Peter Greenaway, (born 5 April 1942) is a British film director, screenwriter and artist. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Mannerist painting in particular. Common traits in his films a ...

and starring

John Standing Sir John Ronald Leon, 4th Baronet (born 16 August 1934), known professionally as John Standing, is an English actor. Early life Standing was born in London, the son of Kay Hammond (née Dorothy Katherine Standing), an actress, and Sir Ronal ...

, Matthew Delamere, and

Vivian Wu Vivian Wu ( Wu Junmei; ; born February 5, 1966) is a Chinese and American actress.Chen Nan ''China Daily'', 27 April 2007. Starring in a variety of North American and Chinese productions, her big break came in 1987, when she appeared in the biog ...

. An international co-production of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Germany, it was entered into the

1999 Cannes Film Festival The 52nd Cannes Film Festival took place from 12 to 23 May 1999. Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg served as jury president for the main competition. Kristin Scott Thomas was the host for the opening and closing ceremonies. Belgian filmmakers ...

Plot

After the death of his wife Amelia, wealthy businessman Philip Emmenthal and his son Storey open their own private

harem A harem is a domestic space that is reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A harem may house a man's wife or wives, their pre-pubescent male children, unmarried daughters, female domestic Domestic worker, servants, and other un ...

in their family residence in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

. They get the idea while watching

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He is known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and ...

's '' '' and after Storey is "given" a woman, Simato, to waive her

pachinko is a mechanical game originating in Japan that is used as an arcade game, and much more frequently for gambling. Pachinko fills a niche in Gambling in Japan, Japanese gambling comparable to that of the slot machine in the West as a form of l ...

debts. They sign one-year contracts with eight (and a half) women to this effect. The women each have a gimmick (one is a

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

, another a

kabuki is a classical form of Theatre of Japan, Japanese theatre, mixing dramatic performance with Japanese traditional dance, traditional dance. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily stylised performances, its glamorous, highly decorated costumes ...

performer, etc.). Philip soon becomes dominated by his favorite of the

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...

s, Palmira, who has no interest in Storey as a lover, despite what their contract might stipulate. Philip dies, the concubines' contracts expire, and Storey is left alone with Giulietta (the titular as an amputee) and of course the money and the houses.

Note

While the film deals with and graphically describes diverse sexual acts in conversation, the film does not feature any sex scenes as such, though it does contain several instances of male and female nudity.

Cast

Production

Toni Collette said Peter Greenaway chose her by accident for the role of Griselda. "I went in for another part and I had just had my head shaved and I had a

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was ...

hanging around my neck. Afterwards I thought, 'This is going to teach me to go to an audition looking like that'."

Reception

Box office

The film opened at the box office at #50 with $92,000 and grossed $424,123 domestically.

Critical response

'' Women'' received mixed reviews. In a rather positive review,

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

commented "Now how is this funny? Trying to imagine other kinds of comedies handling the material, I ran it through Monty Python, Steve Martin and Woody Allen before realizing it has its roots in Buster Keaton--whose favorite comic ploy was to overcome obstacles by applying pure logic and ignoring social conventions or taboos. Keaton would have tilted it more toward laughs, to be sure; Greenaway's humor always seems dour, and masks (not very well) a lot of hostility. But, yes, Keaton."

References

External links

* * * *
''8½ Women'' at petergreenaway.org.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:8 1 2 Women 1999 films 1999 comedy-drama films British comedy-drama films Dutch comedy-drama films Films set in Geneva German comedy-drama films 1990s English-language films English-language Dutch films English-language German films English-language Luxembourgian films 1990s Italian-language films 1990s Japanese-language films Latin-language films Films directed by Peter Greenaway Films shot in Luxembourg Films shot in Japan British independent films Lionsgate films United International Pictures films Dutch independent films German independent films Erotic drama films 1999 independent films Luxembourgian comedy-drama films Luxembourgian independent films 1999 multilingual films British multilingual films Japan in non-Japanese culture German multilingual films 1990s British films 1990s German films English-language comedy-drama films English-language independent films