"Beyond the Clouds." is told from the dreamlike perspective of a wandering film director, the movie weaves four stories of love and lust, inspired by Antonioni's writings about enigmatic, unrequited or unresolved relationships. Set in several beautiful European locales such as Portofino and Paris, the film uses striking compositions, sensuous shots of lovely nudes and a moving musical score (featuring Van Morrison, U2 and Brian Eno) to create a radiant meditation on love and desire. The film is co-directed by Wim Wenders and boasts an eclectic international cast including John Malkovich, Sophie Marceau, Irene Jacob, Jean Reno and Vincent Perez. Image Ent.




Antonioni's first film since suffering a stroke in 1985 is based on stories from his book THAT BOWLING ALLEY IN THE TIBER and was realized with help from Wim Wenders. It is a loosely connected series of beautifully shot romantic vignettes tied together by "the Director," (John Malkovich) who wanders around Italy observing the inhabitants of various cities: a beautiful young couple have two magical evenings three years apart; The Director learns the secret of a beautiful young woman (Sophie Marceau); a married man (Peter Weller) must choose between his young mistress or his loyal wife; and, finally, a young man (Vincent Perez) tries to win over an aloof young woman (Irene Jacob). RottenD




Made of four short tales, linked by a story filmed by Wim Wenders. Taking place in Ferrara, Portofino, Aix en Provence and Paris, each story, which always a woman as the crux of the story, invites to an inner travel, as Antonioni says "towards the true image of that absolute and mysterious reality that nobody will ever see". China Daily





Made four years ago, seen widely in Europe but glimpsed here only briefly at the New York Film Festival in 1996, Michelangelo Antonioni's mournful movie has at last been given an American release-quite a shift from his earlier career, when a film like "Blow-Up" could cause an international stir. Antonioni himself has probably changed less than the moviegoing audience; this latest work deals in much the same currency as before-baffling ruminations, foggy days, empty lives, and a helpless reverence for beautiful actresses. (-Anthony Lane - The New Yorker)




There are four connected stories here, set in Italy and France; all of them turn on the coupling and uncoupling of men and women, overseen by a brooding movie director (John Malkovich). Some of the characters are married; others are virtual strangers, which in the world of Antonioni amounts to the same thing. (-Anthony Lane - The New Yorker)




The whole enterprise is humorless and infuriating, and yet it gets to you; no one else could have summoned these twin images of arousal and graceful doom, or drawn such emotional dedication from so rich a cast-Sophie Marceau, Jean Reno, Fanny Ardant, Peter Weller, Jeanne Moreau, and the late Marcello Mastroianni, to name a few. This is the art movie to end all art movies; indeed, it feels like the end. (-Anthony Lane - The New Yorker)