Francois Girard's Silk is not merely painterly. It might as well be a painting, for all that it eschews storytelling, forcing the viewer to scan the lush imagery in search of clues to what, if anything, might be going on.
Overview
French silkworm trader Hervé is married to the beautiful Hélène. When an outbreak of disease ravages European silkworms, Hervé must travel to Japan to retrieve healthy eggs. After a long journey, Hervé finally arrives at a village where he can buy them. He becomes infatuated with a young concubine and goes to great lengths to see her again. But, when war breaks out in Japan, the concubine flees, forcing Hervé to return home to his wife.
Director and cast
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
Though elegantly staged, Silk is badly written and indifferently cast.
Sensual but profoundly silly, Silk is ultimately little more than softcore porn with arthouse trappings, a moony, dopily romantic Red Shoe Diaries variation for the NPR set.
Silk isn't just bad. It's utterly mad.
It's a perfect example of how awful direction and performances can ruin an adequate screenplay.
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