Rent A Bigger Splash (2015)

Disappointing - A Bigger Splash review by BE

What a silly film. Contains gratuitous sex and with very little storyline until near the end. Tilda Swinton as an unlikely pop star wearing unattractive clothes, two sizes too big for her. Apart from Ralph Feinnes, all characters bland and annoying. What a waste of time and money.

Weak - A Bigger Splash review by CP Customer

I went for this as a Fiennes fan, wonder why he did it? Perhaps they bought him with loads of dosh to try and give it some creditability. Ropey, can't find anything nice to say. Sunshine was good.

Desperately needing subtitles - A Bigger Splash review by JS

Slow, tedious and, excuses to Tilda Swinton's character's thoat condition, excess of mumbling and whispering.

An incredibly tense & sex-soaked pot-boiler with beautiful scenery & memorable performances - A Bigger Splash review by TB

Ralph Fiennes & Tilda Swinton are 2 absolute icons in their own right. Starring in some of the most impactful, challenging & provocative films ever made, their work is often unique & gripping. So when they signed on to star together in A Bigger Splash, I was immediately on board. Add in to the mix Matthias Schoenaerts (incredible in Bullhead, ironically the role which landed him this part) & Dakota Johnson (so much more than her role in the Fifty Shades films,) plus the fact this was made by Luca Guadagnino, you have pretty much the perfect set-up.

Marianne Lane is a legendary & iconic rockstar, who has had throat surgery & lost all ability to either sing or really speak. She was also rapidly approaching burn-out, so has gone totally off-radar & staying on a remote Italian island with her partner Paul. Their days of sunbathing naked, swimming pool sex & peaceful walks in the Italian countryside are then blown apart by the arrival of Harry Hawkes, Marianne's eccentric ex & producer, bringing along his newly-found daughter. Tensions then start to rise in this sun-drenched paradise.

Despite the mainly overwhelmingly negative reviews here, I had an absolute blast with this film. To be fair though, I can understand the annoyance of people towards Harry Hawkes (Fiennes.) For many viewers he will simply be too brash, annoying, over-the-top, irritating & every other metaphor like that you can think of. And often, these characters will also really annoy me too. But I not only totally bought into the world Harry exists in (record production surrounded by drink, drugs & every type of debauchery imaginable, which would affect almost anyone,) but also the brilliance & electricity of Ralph Fiennes and his performance. I would venture that nobody else could have played this role.

But that doesn't for a second mean that Tilda Swinton is sidelined. The woman is an absolute genius & titan of cinema, her talent unmatched. Here, she completely turns the standard burnt-out rockstar cliché on its head, mainly by insisting (and getting the script changed,) to make Marianne near-mute following throat surgery. This means Swinton acts almost primarily through her presence & motions, telling us everything with almost no dialogue.

Johnson & Schoenaerts also have great, meaty roles, he as the recovering alcoholic & painful introvert, she as the sexually vivacious young woman who wants to experience everything imaginable, irrelevant of the consequences.

Guadagnino creates an amazing & electric atmosphere, crackling with jealousy & sexual tension. In many ways, the first 10 minutes are a carbon copy of Sexy Beast (the perfect idyllic couple being blown apart by an unstoppable force,) although this is done much more slowly & deliberately here. We as the audience know that this mixing of characters, all of whom are extremely potent individuals, will be catastrophic & have far-reaching consequences. But the writing & actors keep you gripped.

The other elements of the film are brilliant as well. Every Guadagnino film looks & sounds amazing, with the beautiful island of Pantelleria becoming almost another character. The soundtrack, full of Rolling Stones tracks & opera, is also perfection.

As much as the brashness has clearly put some viewers off, I loved my time spent in this world & these amazing, idiosyncratic characters.