Amazon.co.uk Review
Some called it a snooze-fest, while others tearfully clutched their Kleenex. In any case, Clint Eastwood was an unusual and (as it turned out) perceptive choice to direct and costar in this lush adaptation of Robert James Waller's phenomenally bestselling novel. Meryl Streep costars as Francesca, the lonely Iowa farmer's wife who is instantly attracted to Robert (Eastwood), the photographer from National Geographic who is in the area to photograph the bridges along Iowa's rural roadways. The two fall in love while Francesca's husband and children are away at a county fair, but the story's passion and lasting appeal derive from their decision to part forever after just a few brief days of intimate connection. Superbly acted with an emphasis on quiet, graceful moments of tender revelation, the film builds to a crescendo of powerful and conflicting emotions. Like David Lean's Brief Encounter (to which it bears marked similarities), The Bridges of Madison County is destined to become one of the classic film love stories. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews:
Modern classic.......2008-03-04
This is one of my all time favourites, a modern classic. The acting by the two main leads is superb; understated but deeply moving. This is not your normal 'chick flick' indeed it surpasses any label due to the quality of the acting and direction, even the rural Iowa scenery has it's own part to play. It's a testimony to the actors invloved that the film stands up despite it's relatively small cast. I read the novel after seeing the film, and unusually the film adaptation came out top. The anguish that Francesca and Robert feel is sweetly balanced by their love story and I recommend anyone who appreciates a gently told tale with great acting to buy this.
agreable big surprise.......2007-12-08
Jus entering at the cinema, one hopes impatient that Clint Eastwood removes the high explosives and blows the bloody maudit bridges of Madison after knocking out the bad guys that have kidnapped Meryl Steeep and shot nor less 30 bullets each one of the bandits with his Magnum 44 and have destroyed the locality by complete. Instead of that, we have a film sentimental and human, but nonpretentious, and that reveals that Eastwood knows much of cinema tha I supossed.
Superb Love story.......2007-11-03
This is one of the best love story movie I ever seen. I really cried towards the end of the movie
What the Woman Wants.......2007-05-15
This is an understated romanctic film. This is probably down to the competent directing from Eastwood, and the exceptional acting ability of Streep, which she executes without much effort - at least it appears that way! Streep's character, Francesca, who is somewhat of a dreamer, was in search of an illusionary life, which was unobtainable, mainly because it only existed inside her head of fantasies. Indeed, the fantasy of the romance is only her interpretation of it via her journals. In reality, her romantic interlude would have turned sour because it would not live up to her expectations in everyday life, just as her idea of the American way of life didn't, being married to an ordinary farming lad.
As an Italian homemaker, Francesca is stereotyped from the start as the opera loving romantic, cooking breakfast for a largely unappreciative family in a mundane world, which she once viewed through rose tinted spectacles, whilst daydreaming back home in Italy.
The film's message is that romance can be deceptive, in that it misleads women into mundane lives that bear no reality to what they have been taught about it. But, women who crave romance, should demand it, and not be afraid to ask for it, or to admit to liking it for that matter. This is what Francesca should have done with her husband.
Bridges of Madison County, The Film.......2007-05-07
I've already rated the book and given it top marks, but now I have to do it for the film as well. It isn't often that you find a film that equals the quality of the book, but this one does.
I'm neither a Clint Eastwood nor a Meryl Streep fan, so I was extremely sceptical that this was going to do the book justice. How wrong I was. I am dead impressed at how closely Clint Eastwood, as the director, kept to the book. I was also impressed with his acting. I've heard it said of him that he's made a career of being expressionless, but in this movie, for the first time, he enchanted me with his animation. Definitely a side of him I've not seen before.
Meryl Streep was equally good. She played the housewife to perfection, and again, enchanted me and showed me a side of her I could truly like and look forward to watching, again and again.
Perhaps I shouldn't give this movie five stars. The actors who played Streep's grown children were absolutely appalling, though the rest of the supporting characters were believable and didn't get in the way of the story in the way that these two did. I've seldom in my life seen such bad acting, particularly in a film containing two such stellar actors as Eastwood and Streep. Who to blame? Eastwood for directing them poorly? Perhaps, but the rest of the film flowed beautifully. The actors, for being so appalling at their craft that they threatened to ruin the entire film? A bit of both, I think.
Thankfully, the primary characters more than made up for this, and I will hold to my 5-star rating because the movie was beautiful, moving, and tore at your heart just as hard as the book did. I've seen it 3 times on the telly now, and I cried all three times, just as I do every time I read the book. I will definitely be adding it to my library, and wouldn't discourage anyone else from doing the same.
Amazon.co.uk Review
Some called it a snooze-fest, while others tearfully clutched their Kleenex. In any case, Clint Eastwood was an unusual and (as it turned out) perceptive choice to direct and costar in this lush adaptation of Robert James Waller's phenomenally bestselling novel. Meryl Streep costars as Francesca, the lonely Iowa farmer's wife who is instantly attracted to Robert (Eastwood), the photographer from National Geographic who is in the area to photograph the bridges along Iowa's rural roadways. The two fall in love while Francesca's husband and children are away at a county fair, but the story's passion and lasting appeal derive from their decision to part forever after just a few brief days of intimate connection. Superbly acted with an emphasis on quiet, graceful moments of tender revelation, the film builds to a crescendo of powerful and conflicting emotions. Like David Lean's Brief Encounter (to which it bears marked similarities), The Bridges of Madison County is destined to become one of the classic film love stories. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews:
Modern classic.......2008-03-04
This is one of my all time favourites, a modern classic. The acting by the two main leads is superb; understated but deeply moving. This is not your normal 'chick flick' indeed it surpasses any label due to the quality of the acting and direction, even the rural Iowa scenery has it's own part to play. It's a testimony to the actors invloved that the film stands up despite it's relatively small cast. I read the novel after seeing the film, and unusually the film adaptation came out top. The anguish that Francesca and Robert feel is sweetly balanced by their love story and I recommend anyone who appreciates a gently told tale with great acting to buy this.
agreable big surprise.......2007-12-08
Jus entering at the cinema, one hopes impatient that Clint Eastwood removes the high explosives and blows the bloody maudit bridges of Madison after knocking out the bad guys that have kidnapped Meryl Steeep and shot nor less 30 bullets each one of the bandits with his Magnum 44 and have destroyed the locality by complete. Instead of that, we have a film sentimental and human, but nonpretentious, and that reveals that Eastwood knows much of cinema tha I supossed.
Superb Love story.......2007-11-03
This is one of the best love story movie I ever seen. I really cried towards the end of the movie
What the Woman Wants.......2007-05-15
This is an understated romanctic film. This is probably down to the competent directing from Eastwood, and the exceptional acting ability of Streep, which she executes without much effort - at least it appears that way! Streep's character, Francesca, who is somewhat of a dreamer, was in search of an illusionary life, which was unobtainable, mainly because it only existed inside her head of fantasies. Indeed, the fantasy of the romance is only her interpretation of it via her journals. In reality, her romantic interlude would have turned sour because it would not live up to her expectations in everyday life, just as her idea of the American way of life didn't, being married to an ordinary farming lad.
As an Italian homemaker, Francesca is stereotyped from the start as the opera loving romantic, cooking breakfast for a largely unappreciative family in a mundane world, which she once viewed through rose tinted spectacles, whilst daydreaming back home in Italy.
The film's message is that romance can be deceptive, in that it misleads women into mundane lives that bear no reality to what they have been taught about it. But, women who crave romance, should demand it, and not be afraid to ask for it, or to admit to liking it for that matter. This is what Francesca should have done with her husband.
Bridges of Madison County, The Film.......2007-05-07
I've already rated the book and given it top marks, but now I have to do it for the film as well. It isn't often that you find a film that equals the quality of the book, but this one does.
I'm neither a Clint Eastwood nor a Meryl Streep fan, so I was extremely sceptical that this was going to do the book justice. How wrong I was. I am dead impressed at how closely Clint Eastwood, as the director, kept to the book. I was also impressed with his acting. I've heard it said of him that he's made a career of being expressionless, but in this movie, for the first time, he enchanted me with his animation. Definitely a side of him I've not seen before.
Meryl Streep was equally good. She played the housewife to perfection, and again, enchanted me and showed me a side of her I could truly like and look forward to watching, again and again.
Perhaps I shouldn't give this movie five stars. The actors who played Streep's grown children were absolutely appalling, though the rest of the supporting characters were believable and didn't get in the way of the story in the way that these two did. I've seldom in my life seen such bad acting, particularly in a film containing two such stellar actors as Eastwood and Streep. Who to blame? Eastwood for directing them poorly? Perhaps, but the rest of the film flowed beautifully. The actors, for being so appalling at their craft that they threatened to ruin the entire film? A bit of both, I think.
Thankfully, the primary characters more than made up for this, and I will hold to my 5-star rating because the movie was beautiful, moving, and tore at your heart just as hard as the book did. I've seen it 3 times on the telly now, and I cried all three times, just as I do every time I read the book. I will definitely be adding it to my library, and wouldn't discourage anyone else from doing the same.
UK DVD:
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UK DVD List
UK DVD
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