MovieChat Forums > Swept Away (2002) Discussion > is everybody missing the point? (or do i...

is everybody missing the point? (or do i need to get checked in?)

posted 22 years ago by alwayslookonthebrightsideoflife
15 replies | jump to latest

******************************************************************
be warned, If you haven't seen it there are spoliers here :
******************************************************************

By most of the audience's immediate reaction at the end of this movie,
I can understand why some people hate it, it does not make you feel good.

Some of my friends that I watched with Hated it. They hated it even more when
it was suggested that :
this was an intelligent & bold movie, a movie that, hands over control to the
viewer, & that how you look at it tells you something about yourself !

Think about how happy Amber was before being Swept away :
- was she enjoying her holiday ?
- did that give you any indication of how happy she was with her life ?

After leaving the island :
- she was in shock,
- she got tricked by her husband,
- & most importantly, she didn't "know" she was being tested !

Guido said on the phone that he'd been trying to contact her.
She was a very strong & assertive woman, but in shock. So much so that
she was babbling to him, asking what she should do, that she would do anything.
(if you think that this was a result of her being opressed on the island,
then you are free to think that - it's a whole topic on its own :-)

There is so much to talk about re: this movie! & maybe this is exactly what
the movie is about, for you to talk about! Nobody is right or wrong,
its just your point of view....

If it really was love, is it not possible that she would :
- eventually get over her shock ?
- figure out that there must have been something fishy(s) going on ?
- attempt to track down her love....?

the message is clear to me :

Is Love everything to you...?

This movie isn't over when the credits role, you now need to take a look at yourself,
think about it, choose for yourself....
why not look on the bright side of life?
imagine them strolling hand-in-hand down 5th Ave, (or wherever they said).

A movie that tells you something about yourself,by leaving the ending to you.....
refreshing.....

All that without even getting into whether or not it was Love (did u think so ?),
whether or not it was abuse etc etc....

with the ending the way it was, most people will take it at face value.
I see that as a reflection of societys poor judgement & blinkered outlook on life.
Sure, if u wanna think that she goes back home, thinks it through & still plumps
for her cosy life without him, thats a perfectly fine viewpoint too,
(but the like of we are made of a different ilk)
& whose to say her lifestyle won't be cosy with Mr. Esposito ?

- the choice is left with you the viewer, but at least realise you have the choice!

They must've known that this sort of ending would turn people off, it would lead to
commercial suicide etc...
esp. seeing as, you get the feeling that it will have a happy ending throughout the movie.

Its a very funny romantic comedy
- until it sticks the knife in at the end, & then after thinking & talking about it,
the knife turned into a tickling stick cuz it made us laugh !

After all the film makers are not gonna come out & spoon-feed you the ending when
they're leaving the ending up to you! you're supposed to figure it out yourself!

I'm glad I didn't watch the original first. I'm also glad they didn't sell-out
with a cheesy 'pretty woman ending'
- even though thats what I think happens later in their lives....
be it next week/month/year etc...

I haven't seen the original, but a friend has told me that the Madonna
charecter does NOT get tricked into leaving at the end, & that she actually
makes a clear cut choice to leave.... If that is the case then the ending of
the original is very different to the new one
- simply because Guy Ritchie's story hasn't ended yet !

Does anyone know whether or not she gets tricked in the original ?

sure, you can say that if she really loved him she wouldn't even have left,
but look at society & look at what happens in real-life, sometimes it takes time...
& thats good enough for me !

This wasn't a cheesy story, so why have a cheesy ending ?

Is Love the most important thing to you ?

regards,

alwayslookonthebrightsideoflife !

fyi :
Even though I have been a visitor to imdb for several yrs
the bad reviews for this movie in the media made me register,
& run the risk of "yes - you need to get checked in..."
;-)

ohh yeah & I don't work for the studio, have anything to do with the movie etc..etc..

[–] cootiebaby8 22 years ago

Boy, Are you ever confused ! Ah well, do you think you missed the point??!! Remember---GUT----Not Brain. Sincerely, En-joy

[–] alwayslookonthebrightsideoflife 22 years ago

******************************************************************
be warned, If you haven't seen it there are spoliers here :
******************************************************************

>Boy, Are you ever confused ! Ah well, do you think you missed the point??!!
>Remember---GUT----Not Brain. Sincerely, En-joy

i think what you said is the very point of the movie, at the end it asks the
viewer, straight up, bold & in yer face :

do u (react to/take) things at face value... (gut)
or do you think things through... (brain)

& as far as GUT---Not Brain, is that one of the 10 commandments of movie-going ?
i.e "though shalt judge everything based upon your gut reaction ?"

anyway, why did my gut feel like unloading its payload at the end ?
- well this movie is very funny,
- the dialogue is cracking most of the time,
- & most importantly you do get close to the characters....

& that is why it hurts more when we got the knife at the end (in the gut!)
only for it to turn into a tickle stick, once we used our loaf (brain !)

I can also go on about the why this movie is not popular & how that reflects
on society, but I already covered that in my original post.

here are some questions for you, cootiebaby8 :

....1)do you think most people take things (in life) at face value or not ?
....2)in the helicopter, do you think Madonna :
.........a) knew that the note she was handing over was for Peepee ?
.........b) even knew there was a note there under the bill ?

regards & remember...

alwayslookonthebrightsideoflife !

ohh yeah, yeah -> & I'm still not convinced I need to be checked in yet .....;-)

[–] 22 years ago

[deleted]

[–] alwayslookonthebrightsideoflife 22 years ago

so, would you please comment on :
....at the end in the helicopter, do you think Madonna :
.........a) knew that the note she handed over was for Peepee ?
.........b) even knew if there was a note under the money ?

Also, If I take your advice & don't watch the original :
with regards to the original, could u please answer the same questions ?
or
if the original didn't end in quite the same way, give a description
explaining whether or not the Madge character gets tricked into leaving ?

Imho, the movie does leave a mark. I'm sorry I have to disagree with you.
For most people it wasn't a "feel-good" one.

If as you say, it was meant to be 'just' your typical average comedy,
how do u explain the decision to stick with the gut-wrencher ending ?

finally, off-topic (but really on, if you look deeply at this movie ;-)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Will everybody on imdb be polite & courteous without getting offensive,
& encourage free-flow of ideas & healthy debate....

:-(

alwayslookonthebrightsideoflife

[–] gardner-3 22 years ago

I agree with the above reviewer. I think people are having an unjustifiable
aversion to this movie because it is too smart for America. I know Swept Away 2002 will become a cult classic. And hopefully given time people will be able to watch it for what it is: an amazing drama that will break your heart. Sinserely Gardner

[–] alwayslookonthebrightsideoflife 22 years ago

>I agree with the above reviewer
why thank you :-D I'm glad you agree !

>I think people are having an unjustifiable aversion to this movie because it
>is too smart for America.

whooaaa - I have to say, that thats a bit of a sweeping statement,
just because somebody doesn't get it, doesn't make them not smart !

I think that a lot of people doen't get this movie !

here let me explain myself by way of a funny story :

my bird (girlfriend) had worn polyester kniickers all her life,
but when I bought her a pair of silk-ones for her birthday
-she absolutely hated them!!
-her reason ? because it felt like she wasn't wearing anything....!!

I guess it comes down to what you expect when you go to watch a movie...
I love to be challenged, suprised & taken on a ride!

>I know Swept Away 2002 will become a cult classic. And hopefully given time
>people will be able to watch it for what it is

you know what? the silk knickers became a cult classic after a while too !

regards & remember,

alwayslookonthebrightsideoflife !

[–] TerminalMadness 22 years ago

Too smart for America? Ha! This movie is a heaping pile of dog turd. Madonna is a terrible actress, The guy who plays Giuseppe is horrible, and Guy Ritchie is a terrible director. I think people's love for Madonna is clouding their judgement because this movie is really really bad. This is not philosophical nor is it a commentary on anything. It's a ridiculously bad movie. It got nothing but bad reviews from critics, it was a flop in the box-office and it won the Razzie for worst movie of the year. Get over yourself!

Check out my movie reviews:
http://thebalcony.b0x.com

"I'm not lazy, I just don't care."

[–] mafiosoMT 22 years ago

****************************************************************************
Think about how happy Amber was before being Swept away :
- was she enjoying her holiday ?
- did that give you any indication of how happy she was with her life ?

After leaving the island :
- she was in shock,
- she got tricked by her husband,
- & most importantly, she didn't "know" she was being tested !
****************************************************************************

Obviously she wasn't enjoying the holiday but that does not give us an indication if she was happy or not with her life. Later in the movie we get the impression that she was never as happy as when she was with Beppe.

Re. "After leaving the island ... " yes she was in shock, yes she got tricked by her husband but she DID know that she was being tested by Beppe (because he told her before leaving the island). At least that's what I've understood.

Now, wheather or not she knew about the note under the tip (when she was in the helicopter) i guess that is open to interpretations. My guess is that she loved Beppe but understood that love is not everything and that she couldn't live without all the luxuries she was used to.

so we have a working class man who enjoyed being the master of a rich woman, but after some time got sick of being the master and eventually fell in love with her.
on the other hand the rich woman did everything there was to do to survive on a deserted island, but eventually got back to her way of life as soon as she got off the island.
Conclusion: rich people can never adapt to the way of life of lower class people

Comments are appreciated

[–] artguylarry 22 years ago

Good LORD alwayslook is long winded. OK, so if the ending is going to be left for us to make for ourselves, then why not make the story up for ourselves as well? Sure, life is like that and not everyone has a happy ending, but movies are intended for entertainment. If a film is going to make us love the characters we are supposed to love, and hate the ones we are supposed to hate, then we are supposed to see the ones we like ---eventually anyway-- turn out with a happy ending. Granted, maybe she got the ending she deserved, simply because of the kind of person she had always been, but then maybe they shouldn't have made her likeable in the end. At least the viewer would have been a little more satisfied with the way things turned out, instead of feeling so shafted. One thing's for sure though. It certainly wasn't predictable.

[–] 22 years ago

[deleted]

[–] TheDeaderman 22 years ago

Boy, i really didnt think about the movie till i saw this post. C'mon now, are you just f u c k i n g tired of movies that go the same predictable ways? Hell, i wanted them two to get together but thats reality. The whole point about the movie is: what is love? is it lust? maybe "amber" just liked him as a friend enough and felt comfortable. just remember, if you dont like this movie, go watch some crappy cliched movie where two overrated actors fall in love in the end...and wonder if the love is pure..

[–] MoonsofJupiter 22 years ago

His name wasn't Guido, it was Guiseppe.

[–] philbass 22 years ago

Two questions:
1)Was Madonna born blowing (as an actress), or did she have to take lessons?
2)Why do Hollywood idiots keep giving her work?

[–] TerminalMadness 22 years ago

1) I think Madonna is so vain she actually thinks she can act. She probaly thinks she's so good she doesnt even have an acting coach.
2) She has a lot of connections.

Check out my movie reviews:
http://thebalcony.b0x.com

"I'm not lazy, I just don't care."

[–] PJSTOCK94 21 years ago

I agree with you. I caught the movie in the middle tonight where Esposito was slapping her around. At first I was asking myself what the hell was i watching. But as the movie progressed it became an unbelievable film, and the ending just killed me, and i am a 21 year old guy! I felt so bad for Esposito cuz I think a lot of everyday men share his pain. Take this perspective.

The people who truly understand this movie are the ones who have shared the pain of one of these two characters. Whether its Esposito falling madly in love with her but being rejected, or Amber loving a person but not willing to change for love. I think much of us all into one of those two categories, me myself being the first. I really dont understand why the movie received so much backlash.

And to the person who made a comment about the Razzie's. A lot of good movies have been on that razzie board before. Case in point. Rocky IV, the one with Ivan Drago was no Oscar nominee but did that REALLY deserve a Razzie nomination for worst movie of the year? PLEASE!!