The Dreamers - Bertolucci, 2003

I have mixed feelings about Bertolucci. I sometimes feel like he resorts to cheap sensationalism to artificially spice up his films. On the other hand, he is often fascinating and certainly has a brilliant eye for composition. I wasn't a big fan of Last Tango (4 rating), and thought Last Emperor (6), Little Buddha (5) and Stealing Beauty (5).

I basically feel the same way about The Dreamers. The story, such as it is, basically revolves around an incestuous menage a trois between an American student in Paris and two strange siblings. They are all film buffs and the background is the student riots of the late 1960's. The film references and the riots provide some interesting diversions, and the three main characters are basically interesting. It's all enough to warrent a 6 rating, but as in most of Bertolucci's films, you can't help feeling that it couldn't have been a bit better with just a little more story. He's just great visually but just average with plot lines.