The first 30min or so were so freakin great with the whole kidnapping and keeping hostage of Forest Whitaker's character, but after Whitaker's character dies I just lost complete interest in the movie. So i'd have to say this is a fairly overated movie imo.

C

One of my favorite movies of the 1990s. An A.

It's a testament to the power of Miramax in the early 90s that it pushed this thing to as many Oscar nominations as it did (six? seven?). Even for the Acadmey, this is a bit edgy, especially compared to what it was up against: Unforgiven, A Few Good Men, Howards End, etc.

I didn't think it was fantastic. A strange, off-kilter (or maybe just... British?) tone accompanies the storyline, and I don't know. It just seemed so unconventional to me. But it certainly is an absorbing drama, often effective and a bit chilling.

B+

Glad to see you enjoyed it.

I'd rank it higher thanks to the Oscar-winning Screenplay (the only win out of 6 noms). The dialogue seems so refreshing, yet perfect, timeless, and too true. Dil and Fergus are, imo, the most interesting on screen couple ever. I'd love to get more people to discuss this one some time.

I think this is certainly a top 20 film for me. I appreciate the dialogue between Fergus and Dil and the acting to go with it. The story I enjoyed as well and the introduction with Whitaker is excellent work too. I agree with the comment on the film being "edgy" for it's time and how it got all those Oscar nods shows it certainly hit with the voters. Too bad it didn't surprise with an acting win, but it's great nonetheless.

A movie that sells itself on a gimmick, take away the surprise twist and you get a dreadfully boring movie. It definately doesnt deserve the acclaim it gets and this coming from someone who enjoys Neil Jordon movies

C

B

This film was very weird, yet I did enjoy it. The first 45 minutes or so and then the ending are the best parts...the middle was kind of dull to me. The screenplay is very good, though.

I liked it more than I would have guessed, but at the end just kinda felt like "so what".

yay.

but boo.

not sure what to tell you. i find the meat of the film to be in the middle act, though the ending is valuable, a simple testament to the endurance of love, maybe.

A cracking character study and another notch on Neil Jordans great movie tree. Even if you know the twist before hand you'll still enjoy this immenesly. Jordan does Irish characters better then any hack foreign director and Dil is always a fasinating creation

A

It's a good thriller. Really well-strung screenplay, great performances by Davidson and Rea (and Whitaker in his short role), and though I saw the twist coming, it was handled well.

I didn't quite love the movie though, and I can't put my finger on why. I guess it is just a good thriller, it hardly reaches higher heights than that, away from maybe the conversations between Rea and Whitaker at the beginning.

B+

More people need to see this. Dolce, back me up.

Loyal?! Fucking loyal, aren't you supposed to love this film as much as me?

What is this film about?

Games. Crying. A game about crying.

Fantastic movie that plays-out on two seperate levels. At once a probing insight into the politics and violence of the IRA and also a quiet and demanding exploration of a relationship altered by politics and shifting gender roles and sexuality. This is still Jordan's best work and his tightest all the way around. Everything from character development to editing and cinematography is unrivalled, and his timing for the big reveal is flawless. The cast rises to the challenge of delivering a double narrative where the relationship between government and nationlism is interwoven with the relationship between individuals. Both are tumultuous and expose the myth of normalcy and equilibrium, though one is left at the end hoping the personal relationship can serve as a potential microcosm of the larger picture.

I love that Boy George song more than sliced bread.

If Boxie really doesn't know what the movie is about, please no one tell him. My one wish was that I didn't know the movie verbatum when I entered the theatres to see it for the first time.

Spectacular.

I have the same question for this movie as I do with The Usual Suspects and it's sort of kept me from watching both. Can you still appreciate and enjoy (might not be the right word) this despite knowing what the twist is going into it?

Yea. The movie doesn't really rely on the twist, it comes far before the end of the film and doesn't really "change the game" for the viewer, it just does for the lead, heh. For the record I watched it with my parents and they guessed it shortly after she got on screen anyways, it's not meant to be that hidden.

Loyal claimed this is his 2nd favorite movie ever, which is why I watched it.

It is most certainly not my 2nd favorite movie ever. I guessed the twist 20 minutes ahead of time, so that may have dampened some of it. Outisde of that it's a very well constructed, intense thriller, however it is not some revolutionary movie, at least for me. It was kind of edgy and in a very clever way, but there's just nothing here that elevates past the level of magnificient into the level of "perfect" that many movies have.

5/5

There wasn't anything revolutionary about it when it came out originally either. The twist was just a well kept secret most of the time back in 1993. The other thing great about this movie besides the interesting chatter and interaction between the two leads was how much recognition the film got during awards time. I was glad to see that. This is one my favorite films but not top 11.

What a perfectly boring film. 4/10.

Great film. Maybe my favorite by Neil Jordan, though I also absolutely adore The Company of Wolves, Mona Lisa, Interview with the Vampire, and Breakfast on Pluto.

The "twist" gets too much attention. I feel as if this movie's other qualities--Rea's terrific performance, the political-thriller elements--are often swept aside by, "OMG! CHICK HAS A COCK!"

When I began reading this thread I thought the twist in question were the resurfacing of the IRA soldiers. I suspected that Dil is a transvestite when Jody said that the blond IRA girl is not his type of women and had it confirmed by Dil's voice when Fergus got his haircut. If that was supposed to be a twist, then the film is even worse than I thought.

Oh, please. You're smart, Argos. You know people aren't referring to Miranda Richardson popping up again when they discuss the "twist" in The Crying Game.