Anthony's Film Review



The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)


Forget the plot, because what really propels the film is sizzling chemistry...

Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo are very attractive actors. Naturally they are the perfect choices to play the lead roles in this remake of the 1968 film of the same name. I had not seen the original Thomas Crown Affair with Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway before this remake. Therefore, please keep in mind that my review of this film involves no knowledge of the original. You decide whether that's good because there's no bias or bad because I cannot compare the two.

Thomas Crown works at a luxurious art museum and is best described as a thrill-seeker. This is the kind of man who would steal a painting from his own museum just for the fun of it. He doesn't do it for money, because he's already a wealthy man. He doesn't do it with the aid of guns, because he's not concerned about failing. He likes the excitement of stealing what is nearby while everyone is too distracted to witness it. That's really the only motive behind it all.

The plot is standard, yet I pretend it isn't there because the film is really about something else. If you want to know, the rest of the plot involves an effort to catch this thief. The other main character besides Thomas Crown is Catherine Banning. She's the investigator who is most fascinated by this man. She does her job effectively so that she could track him down by getting into his home. But her fascination for him becomes an attraction. She finds that he is just as seductive as she is, and the two discover that they're really two of a kind.

Obviously, the element of the film that is central here is the romance. The love scenes show some real chemistry between the two. The scene where the two are both nude and letting out their wild side is my favorite scene, because it shows uninhibited, heated passion between two lovers. These are two people who are very close together. Towards the end, I wanted these two to leave behind any accusations of forbidden romance, escape to an island, and live happily ever after.

Just this one thing alone is enough for me to like the film more than I expected. I enjoyed seeing Pierce Brosnan in a role other than James Bond. Rene Russo was excellent alongside Brosnan. Even though the romance was why I mainly liked the movie, the rest of it was good, too. Even without seeing the original Thomas Crown Affair beforehand, I can say that this version is quite sizzling.

Anthony's Rating:


For more information about The Thomas Crown Affair, visit the Internet Movie Database.


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