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The Belly of an Architect

Play trailer Poster for The Belly of an Architect R 1987 1h 58m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
85% Tomatometer 13 Reviews 80% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
Stourley Kracklite (Brian Dennehy), a driven, detail-obsessed architect, travels from America to Rome with his much younger wife, Louisa (Chloe Webb), to oversee an architectural homage to a personal hero, 18th-century master builder Etienne-Louis Boullée. En route by train, Stourley and Louisa conceive a much-wanted child -- but Stourley's obsession with his wife's expanding belly, her perceived infidelity, and his own recurrent bouts of abdominal pain reach epic and dangerous proportions.

Critics Reviews

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Tom Meek Cambridge Day [Brian] Dennehy is outstanding as a man out of his element, and the cinematic rendering of Rome's classic structures is a visual feast. Rated: 3/4 Apr 20, 2020 Full Review Ángel Luis Inurria El Pais (Spain) Presumptuous, cold, and distant. [Full Review in Spanish] Apr 3, 2020 Full Review Cole Smithey ColeSmithey.com Rated: 4/5 Nov 30, 2007 Full Review Rob Gonsalves Rob's Movie Vault Dennehy achieves Brando-esque emotional power. Rated: B+ Apr 9, 2007 Full Review Randy Shulman Metro Weekly (Washington, DC) Rated: 3/5 Jun 30, 2005 Full Review Nick Davis Nick's Flick Picks There's a good deal here to relish, even if the piece as a whole eventually descends into the same hermetic serialism of motifs that has consumed most of Greenaway's pictures. Rated: B Aug 28, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Grant C Visual delight. A great film about ambition and what it means to sacrifice your life for your art. Absolute must watch simply for the way it's filmed, the shots of Rome, and for Dennehy's outstanding performance. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/06/25 Full Review Donald D Just let this film envelop you it is a wonder of cinema. It’s a watch. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/07/24 Full Review Audience Member Absolute masterpiece from Peter Greenaway. A visual feast of style, music and visuals. Not to mention the plot which is very unique and original. The performance of Brian Dennehy is spot on perfect and brings a heightens up the sense of tragedy that permeates the film. Its Peter Greenaway at its best! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/25/23 Full Review Audience Member One of the greatest, the most beautiful and underrated films of all time. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Audience Member The thing about this is that, despite good performances, as far as I can see, it's a lot of nothing. Sure, it's more of a character study than linear story, but, even taking this into consideration, it still doesn't deliver anything that I think is really worth watching. There are some good ideas here, but that's all they are - ideas that never come to fruition. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/18/23 Full Review Audience Member I'd recommend this movie to the architects... Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/12/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Belly of an Architect

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Cast & Crew

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Peter Greenaway

Director

Brian Dennehy

Stourley Kracklite

Chloe Webb

Louisa Kracklite

Lambert Wilson

Caspasian Speckler

Sergio Fantoni

Io Speckler

Stephania Cassini

Flavia Speckler

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The Belly of an Architect

The Belly of an Architect (1987) The Belly of an Architect (1987) The Belly of an Architect (1987) The Belly of an Architect (1987) The Belly of an Architect (1987) The Belly of an Architect (1987) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Stourley Kracklite (Brian Dennehy), a driven, detail-obsessed architect, travels from America to Rome with his much younger wife, Louisa (Chloe Webb), to oversee an architectural homage to a personal hero, 18th-century master builder Etienne-Louis Boullée. En route by train, Stourley and Louisa conceive a much-wanted child -- but Stourley's obsession with his wife's expanding belly, her perceived infidelity, and his own recurrent bouts of abdominal pain reach epic and dangerous proportions.
Director
Peter Greenaway
Rating
R
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 23, 2020
Box Office (Gross USA)
$6.3K
Runtime
1h 58m
Sound Mix
Surround