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The Air I Breathe
The Air I Breathe Image
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Metascore
37 out of 100

Generally unfavorable - based on 9 Critics What's this?

User Score
6.4 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 26 Ratings

Your Score
10 out of 10
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  • Starring: Andy Garcia, Brendan Fraser, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Bacon, Sarah Michelle Gellar
  • Summary: Inspired by a Chinese proverb that breaks life down into four key emotions – Happiness, Sorrow, Pleasure, and Love – The Air I Breathe is told in four short fables, each built around a character who embodies one of these key emotions. In Happiness, a timid banker who impulsively bets every cent he has, and then some, on a supposedly “sure thing.” In “Sorrow,” a rising pop star whose contract falls under the control of a ruthless crime boss, and his corrupt nephew. In “Pleasure,” a man who can see into the future of everyone he meets, but is totally blind when it comes to his own; and in “Love,” a doctor who pines for a woman he can never possess, only to find that he suddenly holds her life in his hands. Though each of the characters believes that his or her life is governed by hazard and chance, their unbridled emotions, impulsive choices, and reckless moves all prove one universal truth: character is destiny, and each of us makes our own fate. (THINKfilm)… Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 9
  3. Negative: 5 out of 9
  1. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Ken Fox
    63
    Lee deserves a lot of credit for attempt the same kind of complex story structure Quentin Tarantino made look so easy in "Pulp Fiction": Like Tarantino's interlocking stories, Lee's four segments occur achronologically and come full circle in a neat twist at the very end.
  2. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Jack Mathews
    50
    The source for Jieho Lee's The Air I Breathe is an ancient Chinese proverb about the four cornerstones of emotion - love, pleasure, happiness and sorrow. But Lee and co-writer Bob DeRosa went 0-4 with their convoluted screenplay, making me thankful they didn't try to adapt the Seven Deadly Sins.
  3. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Kyle Smith
    38
    Situations get increasingly ridiculous, and none of the characters ever seems like anything but a screenwriter's sketch.

See all 9 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 7
  3. Negative: 1 out of 7
  1. grandpajoe6191
    8
    "The Air I Breathe" perfectly intersects the stories despite the major flaws. Sarah Michelle Gellar never looked and acted better before throughout the movie. Overall a great movie and could have been better if it had a little bit of more budget added on.… Expand
    • 2 of 2 users said yes
  2. ChadS.
    5
    A screenwriter's convolution, or is it possible that Love(Kevin Bacon) is so in love with Gina(Julie Delpy), the doctor just can't help approach the security guards with too much piss, too much vigor? He needs Sorrow's blood. Love learns that the pop star(played by Sarah Michelle Gellar) has the same rare blood type as Gina during Sorrow's interview with a rock journalist. No. We're not in Japan. But anyway, rather than approach Sorrow in a calm, orderly fashion(just like any medical professional would), the doctor bum-rushes the pop star like a fanatic. Needless to say, the doctor's attempt to acquire the blood, fails. And you know what? Love actually gets a second chance. That's when "The Air I Breathe" reaches for its revolver and shoots the region inside our brains that controls our suspension of disbelief.… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  3. MBlues
    2
    Ludicrous, ridiculous, beyond silly. What in the world are these great actors thinking?? The writer/director must come from serious $$$.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes

See all 7 User Reviews

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