In general, the movies of David Cronenberg haven't tended to appeal to me. M. Butterfly was better than some of his work I've come across but it still disappointed me. I will give credit though to Jeremy Irons, who put on a fabulous performance in the lead role of Rene Gallimard, a French diplomat in Beijing, China in the mid-1960's who becomes entranced by an "actress" named Song Liling, who he meets at the Beijing Opera. Song was also played quite brilliantly by John Lone (you have to watch the movie to understand that bit of casting) and the chemistry and sexual tension that Irons and Lone managed to create was excellent.
Having said that, the movie itself I did not find especially captivating. The first two-thirds of the movie or so are essentially a rather ho-hum quasi-espionage story, as Gallimard begins to reveal secrets about U.S. plans for Vietnam to Song, who in turn passes them on to the Chinese authorities. This led to what I thought was a pretty tame depiction of the Cultural Revolution. The last third of the movie then switches (rather abruptly, I thought) to France, where Gallimard is tried, and Song (now obviously a man) testifies at the trial. I was uncertain throughout what Song's real feelings for Gallimard were, although their encounter in the back of the prison vehicle seems to indicate that the feelings were sincere. It all led up to a very bizarre (appropriate for Cronenberg) ending, in which Gallimard performs the story for fellow prison inmates, dressed as a woman.
I found this a very difficult movie to rate, but a weak (in my opinion) story really drags a movie down, good performances notwithstanding. I'd say 4/10
Having said that, the movie itself I did not find especially captivating. The first two-thirds of the movie or so are essentially a rather ho-hum quasi-espionage story, as Gallimard begins to reveal secrets about U.S. plans for Vietnam to Song, who in turn passes them on to the Chinese authorities. This led to what I thought was a pretty tame depiction of the Cultural Revolution. The last third of the movie then switches (rather abruptly, I thought) to France, where Gallimard is tried, and Song (now obviously a man) testifies at the trial. I was uncertain throughout what Song's real feelings for Gallimard were, although their encounter in the back of the prison vehicle seems to indicate that the feelings were sincere. It all led up to a very bizarre (appropriate for Cronenberg) ending, in which Gallimard performs the story for fellow prison inmates, dressed as a woman.
I found this a very difficult movie to rate, but a weak (in my opinion) story really drags a movie down, good performances notwithstanding. I'd say 4/10