Besieged

R

Released May 21, 1999

1h 34m

Drama

List

76%

49 Reviews

Tomatometer

80%

2,500+ Ratings

Audience Score

Mild-mannered composer Jason Kinsky (David Thewlis) hires Shandurai (Thandie Newton), a medical student and recent immigrant from Africa, to work as a part-time maid in his home. As the repressed maestro observes his intoxicating new employee, Shandurai reveals herself to be a free spirit with a captivating sadness. And, when Kinsky suddenly declares his undying love for her, she sends him on a dark journey into the depths of passion, jealousy and political intrigue.

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Audience Member

Not quite what I was expecting. I suppose what makes it alluring is the fact that it is "artsy." The characters do not speak much, not even to each other. You have to pay attention to things like a stare, a frown, the incessant piano playing in the background. Half the time I could not even follow what was happening. Worth seeing to some extent.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/14/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A tad too stretched for my liking but done well in terms of cinematic technicalities...

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

Full Review

Audience Member

About as surreal an experience any asylum-seeker could find, but not one of Bertolucci's best films which is slow and staid.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Dec 2010 (with Kaveh and Setareh) - This was a very good romantic movie and it got better and better as it progressed. The music is very good and integrates so well with the story. Also I couldn't be happier with the ending. The suspense is appropriate and I like the fact that there has been a careful choice to avoid lengthening the ending. I was a bit unhappy with English chosen as the main language and I also thought the beginning was a bit slow and made it easy to get distracted.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

Audience Member

In un vecchio appartamento di Roma, vive Mr. Kinski, un eccentrico pianista inglese. Shandurai, una ragazza africana che studia medicina all'Università, vive con lui e fa le pulizie in cambio di una stanza. L'uomo, che trascorre le sue giornate al pianoforte, dando lezioni di musica s'innamora della ragazza. La donna non ricambia i suoi sentimenti, anche perché ha un marito in prigione in Africa. Pian piano, Kinski si disfa di tutti gli oggetti d'arte e di antiquariato, finché Shandurai riceve una lettera dal marito in cui le comunica la sua imminente scarcerazione e che dopo la sua liberazione la raggiungerà a Roma. Pian piano la ragazza incomincerà a legarsi al suo datore di lavoro presa da tanta dedizione nei suoi confronti, fino alla notte prima dell'arrivo del marito, notte in cui il musicista inglese avrà il giusto premio per il suo goffo ma illimitato amore, il finale del film è aperto, si resta sospesi tra il ritorno di Shandurai col marito e la nascita dell'amore con mr Kinski, ma forse non conta il sogno di una notte. [it.wikipedia.org]

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Sadece kamera kullanÄ±mÄ±yla bile alÄ±p gÃ¶tÃ¼rÃ¼yor Bertolucci.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

Full Review

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Bernardo Bertolucci

Director

Thandiwe Newton

Shandurai

David Thewlis

Jason Kinsky

Claudio Santamaria

Agostino

Massimo De Rossi

Actor

Cyril Nri

Actor

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Lisa Schwarzbaum

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: A-

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Derek Elley

Variety

Bertolucci and co-writer Clare Peploe seem intent on deconstructing the story's interesting elements at every turn, substituting woolliness for clarity, atmospherics for real emotion and an often condescending, armchair-liberal naivete for real political

Dec 7, 2007

Full Review

Time Out

It's a film about the limits of art, about civilization at this moment of flux, and about a gentle connection between a man and a woman.

Jan 26, 2006

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Made for Italian TV, this modestly scaled, intimate drama about the relationship between a British musician and his African housekeeper is well acted by Thandie Newton and David Thewlis.

Rated: B

Dec 4, 2010

Full Review

Mark Halverson

Sacramento News & Review

Rated: 3/5

Aug 7, 2008

Full Review

Sandra Contreras

TV Guide

Maddening on many fronts and strangely wordless, Bernardo Bertolucci's purported love story breaks no new ground.

Rated: 2/4

Dec 7, 2007

Full Review

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Synopsis

Mild-mannered composer Jason Kinsky (David Thewlis) hires Shandurai (Thandie Newton), a medical student and recent immigrant from Africa, to work as a part-time maid in his home. As the repressed maestro observes his intoxicating new employee, Shandurai reveals herself to be a free spirit with a captivating sadness. And, when Kinsky suddenly declares his undying love for her, she sends him on a dark journey into the depths of passion, jealousy and political intrigue.

Director: Bernardo Bertolucci
Screenwriter: James Lasdun, Bernardo Bertolucci, Clare Peploe
Distributor: Fine Line Features
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 21, 1999, Wide
Release Date (DVD): Dec 21, 1999
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.0M
Runtime: 1h 34m
Sound Mix: Surround

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