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Year One
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
8 1/2 Women
EMAILPRINTLions Gate Films, Inc.

Generally unfavorable reviews
Based on 25 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 4 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie >
Movie Info
Genre(s): Comedy
Written by: Peter Greenaway
Directed by: Peter Greenaway
Release Date:
Theatrical: May 26, 2000
DVD: October 10, 2000
Running Time: 120 minutes, Color
Origin: Luxembourg / Netherlands / UK / Germany
Summary
RATING: R for strong sexual content including dialogue and pervasive nudity.
Starring John Standing, Matthew Delamere, and Vivian Wu
Two wealthy businessmen, a father and son, decide to set up their own brothel. . .an erotic fantasy (including father-son incest).
Also On Metacritic
FILM: Rembrandt's J'accuse The Pillow Book
Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt
This visually intricate fantasia combines his (Greenaway's) extraordinary cinematic imagination with a story and characters less compelling than those in his best works.
Read Full Review >Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy
Never dull visually, but it's certainly monomaniacal and heartless thematically.
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
One possible approach to 8 1/2 Women, I think, is to view it as a slowed-down, mannered, tongue-in-cheek silent comedy, skewed by Greenaway's anger and desire to manipulate.
Read Full Review >San Francisco Chronicle Bob Graham
A surreal comedy about sex that comes as close to charming as Greenaway ever gets.
Read Full Review >Dallas Observer Gregory Weinkauf
It may be his (Greenaway's) breeziest and kindest-hearted effort to date.
Read Full Review >Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington
Seethes with cruel lust and brainy fancy.
Miami Herald Marta Barber
With its convoluted pretentiousness, heavy use of metaphors and obscure references to art, fails to maintain interest.
Boston Globe Jay Carr
The problem with 8 1/2 Women isn't that what you see is what you get; it's that what you see is all you get.
LA Weekly F. X. Feeney
As powerfully as the film lingers in the mind, one can't help wishing he were led just a bit more by his heart.
Read Full Review >Salon.com Andrew O'Hehir
Some viewers may find this movie sexist or misogynist simply based on its premise, but it's a mistake to take Greenaway's symbolic narratives too literally.
Read Full Review >Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas
A nod to Fellini--and that "half" turns out to be a typically dark Greenaway twist. Yet this film, one of Greenaway's most amusing and accessible, actually arrives at moments of tenderness, even love, fleeting though they may be.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman
Keeps teasing you with intimations of the libidinous animal within.
Read Full Review >TV Guide Maitland McDonagh
Though his film is breathtakingly art-directed, Greenaway wallows in epater le bourgeois nastiness -- his inner naughty child could use a good paddling.
Read Full Review >The New York Times Stephen Holden
Its message is quite simple and all too familiar: when it comes to sex, all men are little boys.
Read Full Review >Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten
(Greenaway) is often described as a director whose movies "are not for everyone." The obvious retort is that neither are the Three Stooges, but at least everyone understands them.
Read Full Review >Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach
Greenaway's film is about making people's jaws drop.
Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea
8 1/2 Women is a collage-y, self-reflexive sort of film that is designed to shock but more often just annoys.
Washington Post Desson Thomson
Intentionally defies categorization and explication.
Read Full Review >Chicago Reader Lisa Alspector
Writer-director Peter Greenaway never uses narrative lightly...references to the act of filmmaking exhaust their impact pretty quickly.
Read Full Review >Film.com Henry Cabot Beck
This anti-narrative screwball comedy, a sort of police-drama re-enactment of Fellini's themes in "8 1/2," keeps most of the jokes off-screen.
Read Full Review >Mr. Showbiz Michael Atkinson
Greenaway has hit a brick wall, and it's no fun to watch.
Read Full Review >New York Post Jonathan Foreman
More prettily photographed pretentious rubbish from the ridiculous Peter Greenaway.
Village Voice Dennis Lim
The deeply ridiculous 8 1/2 Women could have been made only by a cranky dotard.
Read Full Review >TNT RoughCut Andy Klein
Inert, unfunny, and not even interesting as a dirty movie, 8 1/2 Women could well rank as one of the worst films of the year.
What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 8.5 (out of 10) based on 4 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Crasstranger F. gave it a10:
A great film.
Darren T. gave it a 7:
Not his best, but a very cerebral view at love and lust, and quite the homage to Fellini.
Tulse L. gave it a 10:
The best film ever made. A masterpiece.
