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Viva

Play trailer Poster for Viva R 2007 2h 0m Comedy Drama Musical Play Trailer Watchlist
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60% Tomatometer 48 Reviews 39% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Two couples experiment with sex and drugs in the 1970s.
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Viva

Viva

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Critics Consensus

Though it's lengthy and doesn't always walk the line between schlock and kitschy homage successfully, Viva's lovely visuals and knowing humor are undeniable.

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Critics Reviews

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J. R. Jones Chicago Reader The movie wears out its welcome long before it meanders to a close at 121 minutes. But as a kinky costume party it's watchable, if only for the smutty sex scenes and Biller's bold pop-art decor. Mar 30, 2016 Full Review Derek Malcolm London Evening Standard Reported parallels with the Marquis de Sade's Justine just don't wash. It's more like Russ Meyer, except the jugs on view aren't as big. Rated: 2/5 May 16, 2009 Full Review Simon Crook Empire Magazine The plywood acting's pretty funny, as is the coy sex; what amazes is the beautifully lurid, near-fetishistic set design. At two hours, it's an in-joke over-indulged, and it's so camp the camera's practically winking, but minor cultdom beckons. Rated: 4/5 May 15, 2009 Full Review David Lamble Bay Area Reporter Filmed in vibrant color with authentic period detail, a salute to old-fashioned exploitation films. Jun 16, 2020 Full Review Ard Vijn ScreenAnarchy The result is very praiseworthy and each shot in the movie can be framed as a poster. Jan 24, 2020 Full Review Avi Offer NYC Movie Guru Fans of 70s sexploitation films will feel as though they've stepped into a time warp as they observe the impressive production design. Mar 30, 2016 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Annie D I was ready to give up on it within 5 minutes but gave it another 15 to my regret. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 12/31/22 Full Review Audience Member Brilliant! I fell asleep almost twice, I wanted to gouge my eyeballs out ONLY once, and the acting was so amazing that I even ended up quitting the movie just 20 minutes in, stretching it across 4 days! Isn't it wonderful to be alive Rated 1 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member If the films of the 70s — well, let's say the excesses of Russ Meyer and the drug and biker movies that I love so much — prove to me that there's no way I would have survived the excesses of the decade. There's another truism — the movies of that era have people and imagery that look like no one and nothing else. Yet Anna Biller — who created this and The Love Witch — is the rare filmmaker that is able to recapture that past without merely creating a pastiche that has no heart and soul of its own. VIVA may take its look and feel from the classic exploitation cinema and vintage Playboy magazines of the early 70s, with the gaudiest apartments outside of a Sergio Martino movie and colors that practically bathe your eyes in a soft and lush bath of joy. Yet on the inside of this taffeta-wrapped box lies hints that 1972 wasn't always what was seen on drive-in screens. There aren't many films that are inspired by both the works of Hugh Hefner and Luis Buñuel — I would say that this is the only one — and for that, the world is a much worse place. Biller wrote, directed, edited, designed the costume and stars in this film, which is the most self-aware movie I've seen that features unself-aware characters, which is some kind of meta backflip trickery when you get right down to it. Barbi (Biller) starts the film happily married to the workaholic Rick, all while dealing with harassment at every turn, from her boss to her friends Mark and Sheila. Yet when her husband continually chooses work over her, she decides that she's a single woman. And with Sheila also now single, the two ladies decide to go into the oldest of all professions, like something out of a Barry Mahon film. Can a movie based on films and magazines that pretty much defined the male gaze break through and become a strong piece of feminist art? When it's as well made as this film, the answer is yes. That said, this is a film that definitely feels like it will work better for an audience who understands camp and has a beyond working knowledge of the material that inspired it. As I watched a scene where Barbi got ready for her man to come home, I was struck by one of the first women I ever dated that cared about make up. I felt horrible that she was spending so much time putting on a frustrating pair of false eyelashes and said, "You don't have to do that. I think you look just fine without them." And she replied, "Maybe I'm not wearing them for you." I'm glad that I learned that lesson. And glad that I watched this film. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Audience Member Satire? Homage? Recreation? VIVA does a remarkable job recreating the look and much of the style of 70s sexploitation movies. At an hour it might have been a fun little homage to the genre. Going on and on for two hours, it creates a rather dystopian story of free love. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/12/23 Full Review Audience Member This movie was a major disappointment. Anna Biller tries very hard to live in the world of the 70s. She succeeds tremendously at creating and crafting (literally, I mean most of the sets she made herself) every little detail that is 70s. She does a great job and should be commended for that alone. However, the stilted dialogue, the overlong running time and the tremendously crappy way it's captured makes me want to ACTUALLY pull out a REAL movie from the 70s. This was dull to it's core. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Audience Member The production design is unparalleled, but it's the two-hour film that feels longer, and one whose tangential scenes you can identify immediately. Worst of all, the feelings Biller wishes us to have for her characters are nonentities, particularly after her dismissal of a rape scene. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Viva

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Cast & Crew

The Saddest Music in the World 79% 79% The Saddest Music in the World Watchlist Duets 21% 49% Duets Watchlist Finding Amanda 40% 28% Finding Amanda Watchlist Matando cabos 53% 89% Matando cabos Watchlist Weirdsville 58% 60% Weirdsville Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Two couples experiment with sex and drugs in the 1970s.
Director
Anna Biller
Producer
Anna Biller, Jared Sanford
Screenwriter
Anna Biller
Rating
R (Some Drug Use|Sexual Content|Nudity)
Genre
Comedy, Drama, Musical
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
May 23, 2017
Runtime
2h 0m
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