RaquelFelix This film was in limited release but I saw it in Dallas through USA Film Festival screening. I asked a friend to go - she's as open to difficult material as anyone and she was pretty repulsed, although didn't get up and leave. Not being a film buff per se, I was mesmerized by the visual drama. I'm hooked by Greenaway's gutsy artful literate approach to hooking the audience. After the film I had trouble sleeping for a few days and I'm not sure I could see it again, but don't regret it. It's hard to articulate without a working knowledge of film making and depth of knowledge of all the literary and historical references, but the film hits you on so many levels at once, it's an emotional and mental feast, borderline overdose. You can always get up and walk out if it's too much but fascination and experiential high overcome the trauma of what's happening on the screen. A fabulous beautiful, riveting, difficult film. Not for the squeamish.

artwk Is it possible that "Peter Greenaway" is really a pseudonym for two people? One of them directs entertaining, imaginative films that have remained in my memory, and that I have eagerly watched two or three times. I am thinking of examples such as "The Draughtsman's Contract", and "Prospero's Books". I have seen these movies in cinemas, and later on video, and enjoyed them immensely. The other person is a would-be shocker who fails to shock, and who clearly spends an enormous amount of time, energy and money on brightly-co loured, predictable and tiresome films such as "A Zed and Two Noughts", "The Cook, the Thief . . ." and "Drowning By Numbers". I have managed (only just) to watch these on video, where I was able to fast-forward through the most boring sections. "The Baby of Macon" was obviously the work of this second individual. Admittedly, he did achieve two remarkable things. First, he somehow persuaded competent, well-known actors to participate in this trash, and second, he presented a potentially appalling act, a mass rape, as long-winded, repetitive and tedious.To sum up: an utter waste of money, talent and film stock.

Ben-209 A film for the truly masochistic, this is the worst Peter Greenaway film I have seen. Very rich to look at, the film resembles a stage play into which the camera roams. This is a good device to turn what could be a flat stagey film into something far more involving. Greenaway's visual style cannot be denied. But it's still rubbish! Turgid, nasty, misanthropic rubbish. I sat through the opening sequence, which is so boring it is painful to watch, hoping that I wasn't wasting precious minutes of my life. However the 'shocking' turn of events is predictable and dealt with in a plodding manner, and isn't shocking at all. If you are shocked by this film, then you are clearly rather a dull person. If you are moved or entertained by it in any way, you are quite clearly mad. No offence, like. Peter Greenaway should have been a painter.

CineRam This film was shown at the Cannes film festival nearly a decade ago and apparently received more walkouts than any film in the festival's history--and "Wild at Heart" won the grand prize here?Unlike most films that use sex and violence to help sell them, Greenaway seems to have no interest in "selling". The story he tells--which takes the form of a play attended by royalty and commonfolk alike--is a Shakespearian fable regarding a young woman (Julia Ormond) who uses her disfigured mother's newborn as a messiah-like figure to gain wealth and comfort, much to the dismay of the church (repped by Ralph Fiennes).To say that the writer/director of this film is a sick person because of what happens in the story is shortsighted, at best. Yes, there are truly heinous atrocities committed by some of these characters--but the manner in which it is depicted does nothing to suggest glamour or vicarious thrills. David Lynch's Golden Palm winner, on the other hand, is full of all manner of freaks and malicious acts played mostly for laughs. Greenaway definitely got the soiled end of the stick on this one.It's a shame, too. This film recently played for just a few nights in one of Chicago's most prominent art theaters. It's never received anything remotely close to a nationwide theatrical or video release, and it's my favorite Greenaway film, second only to "The Cook, the Thief...". If one is interested in this sort of experience and has a fairly strong stomach, I'd recommend a theatrical screening in a minute.