Particle Swarm Movie Reviews

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Family movie reviews for "Particle Swarm" sorted by average review score:
The Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie - Criterion Collection
Released in DVD by Criterion Collection (12 February, 2002)
MPAA Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Director: Luis Buñuel
Starring: Fernando Rey and Delphine Seyrig
What can be more enjoyable then a meal among friends and family? In Luis Buñuel's surrealistic comedy The Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie it is this common ritual a sextet of upper-class friends repeatedly attempt, only to be obstructed by one obscure event after another. Masterfully balancing the dichotomy of class vs. debauchery Buñuel delivers a ripping critique of the upper class. It is clear from the beginning that the lives Buñuel’s Bourgeoisie are living are not what they seem. Eventually, their true colors begin to shine; not in actual actions but in haunting dreams. What is real and what lies in the subconscious becoming exceedingly blurry and in order to deliver his message, surrealism must take over. It is hard to pigeonhole Buñuel’s classic that won him the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film 1972: An absurd odyssey? A discreet satire? Not necessarily, but definitely charming. --Rob Bracco
Average review score:

Dinner is Served
Director Luis Bunuel is often described as a surrealist, but the word misapplied in reference to his later works; rather than present the viewer with an odd visual display, he prefers to first create a plausible reality and then progressively undercut it with an increasingly implausible series of events. Such is the case with the Academy Award-winning THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE, which begins with four friends who arrive at their hosts' home only to discover they have arrived on the wrong night--a plausible situation. But before the film has run its course, Bunuel unravels his tale of a meal that never quite happens in the most unexpected ways imaginable.

The film works on several levels, mocking social conventions, the church, and eventually spilling its action into a series of overlapping nightmares in which various attempts to dine are frustrated by everything from the corpse of a restaurant manager in a nearby room to military manouvers. On one memorable occasion, the friends are invited to dine and are seated around an elegant table--when a curtain suddenly rises behind them and reveals them to be seated on a stage before a hostile audience!

The cast (which features Fernando Rey, Delphine Seyrig, Paul Frankeur, Bulle Ogier, Stephane Audran and Jean-Pierre Cassel as the constantly frustrated diners) plays with considerable aplomb, performing the most irrational scenes with a magnificent realism. When combined with Bunuel's absurdist story, the result is a disquieting yet often very funny discourse on frustrated appetites both real and imagined, and with many layers of incidental meaning along the way.

The DVD package is very nice, with the film in near-pristine condition and a host of interesting and often amusing extras, and Bunuel fans will consider it more than worth the rather hefty price-tag attached. But a word of caution to the uninitiated: Bunuel is not for those who seek a tidy plot line with clear-cut meanings. If you are not already a fan, you should probably begin with his equally complex but somewhat more accessible and considerably more subtle BELLE DE JOUR before diving off into DISCREET CHARM.

--GFT (Amazon reviewer)--

Bunuel at his best
A scathing satire that's funny as well as satirical. Bunuel has a varied career, and it was wonderful to see him have sucess later in life with several of his last films. A great film by truly one of the world's great directors.

Warning: This film may irritate unintelligent viewers
I won't bother suggesting any interpretations of this film; it is just too rich in meaning. My favorite things about this film are the deliberate artificiality of the sets (even in the allegedly realistic scenes); notice, too, the pervasive use of fleshtones and neutrals juxtaposed with a shocking flash of red on a wine bottle, a vase of flowers, the shutters of a house, or a barn door; finally, anyone who tries to take this film too seriously must realize that it is essentially a string of gags (as Bunuel himself described his method) that relies on a sense of irony and subtlety.

There is hardly a single element of the film that is conventional; this is part of the work Bunuel is doing on the audience. If you're looking for another rehash of all the familiar movie cliches, you WILL be dissapointed. If, however, you're looking for something creative and fresh, you will enjoy the non-linear narrative, the use of sound effects to convey meaning, artful camera work, and Bunuel's refusal to tie up the ending in a nice little bow.

The Criterion DVD transfer of this film is PHENOMENAL. The sound has no background noise and the menu graphics are top-notch. The 'Speaking of Bunuel' documentary on the second disc is very well done and worth watching more than once. The liner notes are impressive: glossy and colorful, yeah! There is no dissapointment involved with this DVD--no details were overlooked; now when is Criterion going to take over the out-of-print 'Belle de Jour' DVD??

Fatal Charm
Released in DVD by Platinum Disc (30 July, 2002)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Average review score:
No reviews found.
HOW TO DANCE THROUGH TIME Volume VI - A 19th Century Ball: The Charm of Group Dances
Released in DVD by Dancetime Publications (21 October, 2003)
MPAA Rating: G (General Audience)
Director: Carol Teten
Average review score:
No reviews found.

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