Romance & Cigarettes (2007)

Dennis Potter? Never heard of him! Not the Hollywood versions(Steve Martin's 1,012th rubbish film, Robert Downey, still on *something* and Mel Gibson??!!) The BBC ones. Get boxed sets of Pennies from Heaven(Bob Hoskins) and The Singing Detective(Michael Gambon) to see how it was originally done. I don't understand how this could be delayed by two years or how we are expected to believe Susan Sarandon could take Kate Winslett, even given Ripley. Despite being something of a dog's breakfast there is something in this, perhaps it it the language, the lighting or the je ne sais qua of the Coen bros. that make it watchable.

With 'Romance & Cigarettes' actor director John Torturro. presents a unique musical. One that is dirty, sassy, sometimes awkward and funny. To get the minuses out of the way, the backup dancers randomly appearing was an odd sight. I liked that Torturro had the original songs playing and the actors singing along. Two songs that were particularly well visualized were the hotel room sequence with Winslet and Gandolfini and Sarandon's rendition of 'Pieces of My Heart'. If only the visualization of the latter had more Susan in it as it was an amazing acting moment for her and the cuts felt slightly intrusive.The casting too is a little strange especially those of Mary Louise Parker and Aida Torturro as Gandolfini's character's daughters. However, all the actors (except Mandy Moore) performed excellently. In terms of acting, 'Romance and Cigarettes' belongs to Sarandon and Gandolfini. Both are introduced as sassy characters and as they grow throughout the film, their vulnerability is revealed and a tenderness shines. Winslet is terrific as the over-the-top potty mouthed lingerie saleswoman, displaying oomph and dark humour. There's a hilarious 'catfight' scene with her and Susan.The light effect is terrific and the cinematography is stupendous. One particular sequence that particularly stood out is the scene where Nick goes to meet Tula by a lake and this is followed by a mesmerizingly shot underwater song. The writing is also clever in many places, especially the funny lines (who can forget Gandolfini's 'I almost love you' and Winslet's response to that?).The pacing is slightly uneven, the cuts felt a little too much at time and the comedy feels lacking in the final sequences. But overall, 'Romance & Cigarettes' is an amusing musical farce, one that had me smiling.

"Romance and Cigarettes" is an outrageous musical about the working class. It takes some getting used to, but it's well worth it, thanks to all of the talent in front of the camera and behind the scenes. It's risky, it's off the wall, it's bold, and at times, it's a riot. And you can't beat the soundtrack or the dancing policemen.James Gandolfini plays Nick Murder (who else), a cheating husband married to Susan Sarandon and involved with the nearly unrecognizable Kate Winslet, a red-headed slut. They have three daughters: Constance (Mary-Louise Parker), Rosebud (Aida Turturro, Gandolfini's sister in the Sopranos; Turturro is one year younger than Gandolfini and Mary-Louise Parker is three years younger), and Baby (Mandy Moore), who have their own romance problems. The cast also includes Steve Buscemi, Bobby Carnavale, Eddie Izzard, and Christopher Walken. The characters all break into song with no notice, and the music includes "Piece of My Heart," "This is a Man's World," "Delilah," "Trouble," and many others.The film chronicles the choice Nick Murder must make as he grapples with his life.Very quirky and not for everyone, but some really marvelous performances, great music, and both fun and poignant moments.

It's no coincidence that "Romance & Cigarettes" was executive produced by the Coen Brothers, who once in the brilliant "The Big Lebowski" created two musical sequences out of nothing to show the freedom making cinema meant for them. This film, written and directed by John Turturro, is the story of a husband that tries to get the love of his wife back, and I'm still not sure if it's mainly a musical; but I can assure you it's ruled by freedom.There's a great Spanish film, "El otro lado de la cama", that deals with a love quadrangle and in which the characters express their joys and sorrows in songs, and appear dancing and singing in the middle of the street. In this aspect, Turturro's film is exactly the same but I want to name a few things to emphasize the fact that "Romance & Cigarettes" was conceived with the beautiful idea of embracing the freedom that comes with film-making. First, the fact that Turturro, who has been married for more than twenty years and has two children, builds his story from the perspective of adult love. The main characters, Nick (James Gandolfini) and Kitty (Susan Sarandon), have been married for twenty years and as the film begins she discovers he's being unfaithful, and not precisely with a woman that could be compared to his wife, who angrily shouts: "I've been cooking for you for the last twenty years!".Nicky and Kitty's problems constitute the center of the movie (which gives place for Gandolfini to get out on the street and sing "A Man Without Love", as the whole city working men start joining him) that also deals with adolescent love in the relationship of one of Nick's daughters, Baby (Mandy Moore), and Fryburg (Bobby Cannavale); but this already starts bordering the ridiculous.The ridiculous is, of course, is an asset that shows Turturro's freedom. It's everywhere, if you pay attention. Take the scene in which we first meet the woman with whom Nick has the affair. Nick and some of his co-workers are dressed as firemen who try to put out the fire of a window, where a sexy woman can be seen dancing. She's Tula (Kate Winslet), and the music she dances with is Spanish Flamenco, but when we meet her then she has nothing to do with Spain; she's Irish (or maybe Scottish). Anyway, the thing is that the water coming from the pumps stops pumping and all these firemen end up dancing with Tula. It maybe hard for you to imagine it by reading it (and that's why you have to see the film), but it's fantastic.Another example of the film's careless and joyful existence is another one of Nicks daughters, Constance, played by Mary-Louise Parker. It's a wonderfully absurd performance by Parker, who is 44, and plays Constance as a rebellious teenager who reinvents herself everyday. Now we've got to wonder why Turturro might have given her the role: I'm almost sure that he did it because the actress is among the very few people who can really pull it off. Another annoying performance that is supposed to seem annoying and out of place is Nick's third daughter, Rosebud; a completely weird human being played by the director's cousin Aida Turturro. Just like it's no coincidence that the Coens produced the film, it's also logical that Turturro would find his casting options in the Coen universe: Steve Buscemi plays a minor role; James Gandolfini, a robust man and a serious character dramatic actor you would never imagine in a film of this type and whose best work is in a Coens film, achieves a perfection and a tenderness that we can sense was not difficult for him. Of course there are elements of the cast, like the enormous Parker, that come from somewhere else, which is Turturro's experience of some many years in the industry. What Kate Winslet makes of Tula, only she can make it; what Elaine Stritch does in two minutes can't be topped by anyone; Susan Sarandon is unique and Christopher Walken dancing is… well, you should already know about Walken. What I want to say is that Turturo has something to say, and it's not to be found in the songs that the film contains; or the script, which is a mixture of relationship knowledge (something greatly developed in "El Otro lado de la cama") and songs that turn into actual spoken words and vice-versa. In fact, it takes another bit of attention to notice the fact that the songs are partially sang by the actors (they sing over the originals) and sometimes some of them don't get the tempo right, that the choreographies are far from perfect (even though Tom Stern's cinematography gets the best out of every scene, acted and/or danced); but this doesn't make the film less brave or extravagant or fundamental in its message. I say too often that musicals need to fly on screen, because "Moulin Rouge!" soars and it set a bar. There's a plane in "Romance & Cigarettes" that is shown several times and it never seems to land: I think it's trying to make clear that the movie, even if we can't define it in the musical genre, flies…High.