Dangerous Liaisons [1988] [DVD] [1989]

John Malkovich exudes charisma as Valmont and really does look like a french aristocrat from those times. It is unfortunate then that his seduction of Madame de Tourvelle (Michelle Pfeiffer) is conducted in the manner of a drill sargent, making his character as a lady killer a bit unbelievable. Michelle Pfeiffer and Glen Close give the best performances in the film. The torment of Madame de Tourville, played by Pfeiffer, struggling between her love for Valmont and everything she believes in, is acted with exquisite emotional honesty.

It is interesting that author Francois Choderlos de Laclos who wrote the original novel in 1782, being a man, had such a sympathetic insight into the inequalities and double standards the women of the time had to endure. The character of the Marquis de Merteuil being the anti-hero here as a supremely intelligent, capable woman in a society which offers her no outlet for her abilities, apart from destruction and manipulation. Although excellently acted, Glenn Close who plays her reminds me scarily of (a young) Margaret Thatcher!

It is probably the most definative adaptation of the original novel we are ever likely to get, with its message of the timeless constancy of candid, unsophisticated human nature, with its flaws, desires and vunerabilities. A film version with Lindsey Duncan and Alan Rickman as Merteuil and Valmont respectively (who were in the original Broadway version) would have been awesome. But sadly not meant to be. That aside, this version is pretty close to perfection.

Malkovich is a bit... uber-Malkovich, I suppose, but he's still brilliant and of course, phenomenally sexy. He does the steady derangement of Valmont (from having to juggle maintainance of his reputation and an unexpected real love), superbly. This is especially apparent from the "Beyond my control" scene until the end of the film. Close is also incredible - she should really have got some kind of award. The Marquise is a deep and intense character with a shady past that you see more of in the book, but never once did I think her overplayed. Close's scenes with Malkovich were, for me, steeped in frisson such as I've never before seen created between two actors. In this respect you half watch the film and half get seduced by it. Pfeiffer is excellent, but in some way her performance doesn't stand out for me as much as the others' do. She just plays her part very well. Keanu Reeves and Uma Thurman are good in their pawn roles. Men watching with ladies should derive pleasure from seeing the latter get a splendid pair out later on in the film (shame the Norfolk dude only tuned in for an hour).

Michelle Pfieffer and Uma Thurman are equally worthy of note as the pawns in a vicious game - even Keanu Reeves seems relaxed in his role as a penniless music teacher, as opposed to his stilted delivery in his later costume drama Dracula.

Whilst the support is good, the film undeniably beongs to Malkovitch and Close portraying two characters so assured of their own immortality, disaster strikes them both unawares. Note: the very final scene of the film in which the Marquise de Meurteuil removes her make-up after her fall from grace is one of the most poignant and horrifying: her inner ugliness is all of a sudden laid bare for all to see. Watch this with a bottle of wine and a box of Black Magic.