Damage on DVD (1992)

Compelling erotic drama

Philip Concannon from London , 24/05/2004

'Damage' is the story of Stephen Fleming(Jeremy Irons) a member of parliament who seems to have it all, supportive wife, succesful son, great career prospects. However, when he meets Anna(Juliette Binoche) he willingly risks it all as they begin a passionate affair. Matters are further complicated by the fact that Anna is about to marry Fleming's son.

Louis Malle's drama is a blistering examination of a man giving in to lust. Malle doesn't explain the source of their attraction and simply follows their increasingly torrid and obsessive affair, which has devastating consequences. Irons and Binoche have meaty roles to get their teeth into here and respond with the kind of performances we've come to expect from these excellent actors. Miranda Richardson is also superb as Fleming's bewildered wife.

Malle avoids being too explicit and instead concentrates on the psychological and emotional impact of the relationship. The result is a powerful, daring, superbly acted drama.

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Ok for soft porn

A customer from London , 23/07/2007

Movie is a bit sick if you think that your father is giving your fiancee one.

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Avoid

PeelSlowly from Devon , 31/03/2005

When I saw this film the audience - those that hadn't walked out - were laughing out loud at the dramatic climax. I won't give the end away, but suffice to say it's as ludicrous as the sex scene, in which Jeremy Irons bangs Juliette Binoche's head on the floor. Not much of a turn-on, in my book.

Without a word of exaggeration, this is one of the worst films I've ever seen.

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Enthralling

HenriDavid from Somerset , 18/05/2006

A wonderful and intelligent film about sexual obsession. The way the tension builds up towards the inevitable trgedy is masterfully handled by Louis Malle, one of the greatest directors of all time.

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Customer Review

A customer from UK , 23/06/2008

This disc has no subtitles, rendering it inacessible for people with hearing impairments.

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Adultery shown for what it is: dirty and seedy

Julianna from Oxford , 08/09/2006

One of this film's best qualities is its way of showing the affair between Jeremy Irons' middle-aged politician and Juliette Binoche's young mistress as underhanded, seedy, nasty and completely unromantic. They meet in various places to have no-holds-barred sex [depicted pretty graphically, so be warned] - but they rarely speak to each other. This is not surprising, considering that Binoche is engaged to Irons' son. Completing this love square is Miranda Richardson as Irons' wife, the archetypal upper-class English woman who looks after the house while her husband goes off and has sex. The film makes it very clear that Irons simply needs to have sex with a younger, more virile woman, and that he can't control himself, even when she is about to marry his own son; so it makes some interesting points about the instinct of the body, and the morality of the mind, showing that Irons' natural instincts are allowed to win over his sense. Not a light-hearted film, but worth watching, especially for Richardson, who deservedly received an Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actress for her role.

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