The Unbearable Lightness of Being

 
Mainstream Movie

(USA, 1988)

Average rating
Build-up:4.3 
Kissing:1.7 
Love scenes:2.0 
Movie overall:4.0 

Explicitness:  2
 



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Reviewer
Ron		 Build-up  3 Kissing  1 Love scenes  1 Movie overall  2

A promiscous surgeon falls in love with a shy beautiful but lustfull woman in the Czech republic during the unrest in the late 60's.

Actresses:
Juliette Binoche & Lena Olin

I never thought a scene where the woman never really kiss of touch could be so exciting but this one is. It could be one of the best build up scenes I have seen but the actual love scene never happens.
The women take turns photographing each other nude and the sexual tension and arousal is very obvious. The tension is broken when Binoche starts laughing and they roll around on the floor getting closer and seeming about to kiss. Well, once again, as happens too often, a guy shows up to blow the scene, but wait! He leaves and we find our two lovely ladies sitting in the couch perhaps ready to pick up where they left off. Sadly though, Olin is upset by something the guy said and did and asks Binoche to leave. They kiss very briefly and that's it.

Could have been a real classic but it's still fun to watch.
Reviewer
Niclas		 Build-up  Kissing  Love scenes  Movie overall 

This scene ought to be required viewing for students in film schools. It is so perfect in every way..the setting, the build-up, the camera angles, the acting and the multiple ways you can interpret the scene. In my opinion, the scene is not so much about eroticism as it is about control and vulnerability, although it felt more erotic than pretty much any love scene I've ever watched.
In the beginning of the scene, it's Binoche's younger and less experienced character who appears to be the stronger one, and incidentally she also holds the camera. The roles are reversed once Olin begins to take pictures of Binoche. There's a phenomenal shot of Binoche's face expressing both fear and excitement when Olin has her pinned down on a sofa.
Reviewer
keithmcm		 Build-up  5 Kissing  2 Love scenes  3 Movie overall  5

These are two of the most beautiful women in movies. The scene has a great deal of erotic tension and considerable emotional punch. This is an outstanding film, and while tame compared to full out porn, it is a great mainstream film, use of lesbianism as a minor theme in an important film, by a great director.
Reviewer
E.Brown		 Build-up  5 Kissing  2 Love scenes  2 Movie overall  5

This scene is not explicit in terms of actual sex, but the the two actresses, as they photograph each other, perform, as Roger Ebert (a famous american film critic) wrote in his review, "a ballet of eroticism."
Overall, The Unbearable Lightness of Being is a great film. Daniel Day-Lewis, Lena Olin, and Juliette Binoche are all outstanding - especially Binoche, who has the ability to communicate so much without saying a word. The frank and mature approach to eroticism is rarely seen in today's cinema, and the film is at times harrowing and heartbreaking.