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The Object of Beauty

{{Short description|1991 film by Michael Lindsay-Hogg}}

{{Infobox film

| name = The Object of Beauty

| image = The-Object-Of-Beauty-Poster.jpg

| caption = Theatrical release poster

| director = Michael Lindsay-Hogg

| producer = Jon S. Denny

| writer = Michael Lindsay-Hogg

| narrator =

| starring = {{plainlist|

}}

| music = Tom Bähler

| cinematography = David Watkin

| editing = Ruth Foster

| distributor = Avenue Pictures

| released = {{Film date|1991|04|12}}

| runtime = 103 minutes

| country = United Kingdom
United States

| language = English

| budget = £2 million{{cite web|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/sites/bfi.org.uk/files/downloads/bfi-back-to-the-future-the-fall-and-rise-of-the-british-film-industry-in-the-1980s.pdf|page=27|title=Back to the Future: The Fall and Rise of the British Film Industry in the 1980s - An Information Briefing|website=British Film Institute|date=2005}}

| gross = $5,136,759{{cite web |title=The Object of Beauty |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=objectofbeauty.htm |website=Box Office Mojo }}

}}

The Object of Beauty is a 1991 comedy crime–drama film directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg and starring John Malkovich and Andie MacDowell.{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/85350/the-object-of-beauty#credits|title=The Object of Beauty|work=Turner Classic Movies|location=Atlanta|publisher=Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner)|access-date=July 21, 2016}}

Plot

Jake and Tina have taken up residence in a London hotel, living way beyond their means. He is a commodities broker whose shipment of cocoa beans is tied up by a Third World country's revolution. She is a woman with extravagant tastes who is still technically married to Larry, her first husband.

The two of them are so broke that when it comes time to pay for a dinner at the hotel, Jake hands a credit card to the waiter and prays that it won't be canceled. A pair of hotel executives, Mercer and Swayle, repeatedly make attempts to confront Jake and Tina about their growing unpaid bill.

Only one object stands between the couple and total insolvency. That is a tiny sculpture by Henry Moore that was given to Tina by her husband as a gift. But just as she and Jake hatch a scheme to pretend the object is stolen and collect the insurance on it, a deaf housekeeper, Jenny, decides to steal it for herself.

After she steals it Tina and Jake get upset. Then Jenny's brother decides to take it and sell it, but nobody will buy it and he ends up losing it. Jake and Tina argue, he goes to Joan (Tina's best friend) and they end up sleeping together. Next day Jenny searches with her brother and find the statue in a heap of rubble. Jenny returns it then steals it again and when the insurance company comes she hands it over. Jake and Tina auction it off later and are able to resolve their debt with the hotel and continue to go on vacation.

There is a Jekyll and Hyde joke, Lindsay-Hogg directed "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", a TV movie, for Nightmare Classics.

Cast

{{castlist|

}}

Locations

Reception

In January 1991, Variety wrote: "a throwback to the romantic comedies of Swinging London cinema, but lacks the punch... a mildly diverting but empty picture"

{{cite news |author1=Variety Staff |title=The Object of Beauty |url=https://variety.com/1990/film/reviews/the-object-of-beauty-1200428691/ |access-date=2 April 2023 |work=Variety |date=1 January 1991}}

In April 1991, Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times wrote: "not as much fun as you might expect it to be. While we want to be bemused by Jake and Tina’s antics, we can’t escape the fact that they are shallow and manipulative creatures".{{cite news |title=MOVIE REVIEW : 'Beauty': A Comedy in the Screwball Tradition |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-04-12-ca-257-story.html |access-date=2 April 2023 |work=Los Angeles Times |last1=Turan |first1=Kenneth |author1-link=Kenneth Turan |date=12 April 1991}}

In April 1991, Jonathan Rosenbaum wrote: "the film runs a bit longer and slower than it should, and tends to lose some of its energy en route".{{cite news |last1=Rosenbaum |first1=Jonathan |author1-link=Jonathan Rosenbaum |title=The Object Of Beauty |url=https://jonathanrosenbaum.net/1991/04/the-object-of-beauty/ |access-date=2 April 2023 |work=JonathanRosenbaum.net |date=April 1, 1991}}

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 3.5 out of a possible 4 stars. He wrote: "By the end of the film, the plot has been worked out to everyone's satisfaction, but the plot isn't really that important. What is important is the ways that people love one another."{{cite web |date=1991 |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |title=The Object Of Beauty |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-object-of-beauty-1991 |website=Chicago Sun-Times }} {{Rating|3.5|4}}

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 77% based on reviews from 13 critics.{{cite web |title=The Object of Beauty (1991) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/object_of_beauty |website=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=2021-01-01 }}

TV Guide wrote: "The Object of Beauty is not a joy forever. To watch Andie MacDowell and John Malkovich flounder in roles that might once have gone to Cary Grant and Irene Dunne or William Powell and Myrna Loy is to experience moviegoing misery.[https://www.tvguide.com/movies/the-object-of-beauty/review/2000091720/ The Object of Beauty at TV Guide]

David Gritten (of The Daily Telegraph), for Empire wrote: "a sour, ironic little fable with what it fondly imagines is a moral for our times".{{cite news |last1=Gritten |first1=David |title=The Object Of Beauty |url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/object-beauty-review/ |access-date=2 April 2023 |work=Empire |date=2000-01-01}}

References

{{Reflist}}

External links