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0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 Richer than lust; darker than love... Mar 20, 2009
It's been compared to `Last Tango in Paris', and while it has some similarities, especially in its attempt to uncover the damage of sexual repression, I must say that `Il Portiere di Notte' is a film all its own. It has elements of `Last Tango in Paris' as well as `Sophie's Choice' and even the recent `The Reader', and while I can't say that it is better than any of those films (`Last Tango in Paris' is one of my top ten favorite films of all time, and `The Reader' is at least top fifty) I can say that it rests on par with them and deserves to be recognized for more than its frank sensuality.
The film follows a dangerous affair that breaks out between Max and Lucia. Max is a former Nazi guard who is working as a night porter in a hotel when he runs into Lucia, a former prisoner and one time lover of Max's. Their chance meeting couldn't have come at a worse time, for now Max is getting ready to stand trial for his war crimes, and the appearance of a live witness could jeopardize his chances of walking away unscathed. He is pressured by his friends to give her up, but his love for Lucia forces him to lock her away, working to keep her out of harms reach.
The film masterfully shows the mental regression that happens when your heart and your head are telling you two different things. Max and Lucia feed off one another. He is throwing away what may potentially be his freedom and she is throwing away her marriage, but together they sacrifice their sanity as they strive to remain together despite all obstacles.
Both Dirk Bogarde and Charlotte Rampling are stellar here, delivering career highlights. They cipher through a long line of emotions as they fully flesh out these two star-crossed lovers; developing their carnal lust as well as their progressive fear and bitter resentment. Through flashbacks we see how their relationship began and we see a fully side to their present day selves; a complete portrait of misguided passions and fatal mistakes. Bogarde is, in my personal opinion, the films major highlight. He captivates the screen and delivers a portrayal of a man desperate for the right answers but unwilling to stop long enough to uncover them. He is at the top of his game, marvelously unraveling Max's core.
Director/screenwriter Liliana Cavani constructs this film masterfully; and while it may be perceived as silly or campy to some, it never feels that way to me. In fact, it is within the rather campy moments that the film's morale or message on the damage caused by their repression can be seen to the full. Besides, the dedicated performances by the two leads help lessen the silliness and add layers to the poignancy of the film.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 An unsettling trip into decadence, eroticism, and bondage... Jan 18, 2009
The film is excellently photographed and edited... There is much artistry in the acting, especially by Dirk Bogarde, who is able to genuinely convey strong mixed emotions...
An ex-Nazi scientist hides out as a porter in a German hotel after the War... One day a very rich woman enters the place, a woman he recognizes as one of his concentration-camp sex-experiment subjects... She recognizes him too, but instead of turning him over to the authorities, she strikes up a dead and perverse relationship with him and slips back into her role as a sex slave...
The movie carefully moves from a slightly romantic byplay to a sexually perverse relationship between the two people, ending in a controversial scene where the woman is chained inside an apartment and repeatedly raped... Most disturbing is the film's accuracy, despite its rather unorthodox development...
The motion picture is not necessarily stimulating, but seriously portrays the damage that can be done by sexual abuse...
2 of 3 found the following review helpful:
A film that has aged well Nov 28, 2008
When I first saw this film years ago, it seemed to me to have a cheap and easy ending, and I thought the whole thing was designed more to titillate than aim for something deeper. Now I've watched it a few times over, and I think it is trying for something. Love elevates the animal into humanity. An old story, but it is hard to argue with this version. Love elevates us; it takes us out of the basest forms of existence. Evil in turn needs to annihilate. The section of the movie where the protagonists reenact the hunger of a concentration camp is perfect, now that I get it. So I take it all back. This is a great film, a perfect film, a good film to own and replay.
8 of 8 found the following review helpful:
Examing evil, embracing cruelty Jun 17, 2008
Examining the very essence of evil, grappling with the demons attached to memory. The Night Porter is a sordid tale of a concentration camp survivor coming face to face with her devastating past--her ex-torturer/lover. The lurid, graphic images simmer and boil over in her mind, scalding the fragments of her sexual psyche.
This story locks you in, you become trapped and pressurized with such an overwhelming intensity. The couple soon recreate their sadomasochistic relationship as you witness the lingering, destructive nature of submission. This strange retrogression definitely brings startling questions--WHY?!??! Why plunge back into this world of hell? How does something so horrifying transform into something you crave, or even become dependent of? Few of us have ever experienced such an overwhelming atrocity, the effects of such a catastrophe are mind-boggling.
I know one thing--70's CINEMA RULES!!!! That was a decade when extremely disturbing topics were tackled. One warning though, this cover is misleading. This is not some sleazy sexploitation stunt, or even a naziploitation flick. It does have some extreme elements, but it's also very operatic and artistic. It's not crammed with sex and action, so some might get bored. I found it a startling character study, not to mention a cultural study as well.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Interesting and sad in a way... Jun 09, 2008
So "The Night Porter" is a film of psychology, violence, and past.
The story is about a man working in a hotel as a night porter in 1957. He is working with some men from WWII about trying to clear his past as an SS doctor working on horrible acts during the war, so that he can move on with his life.
While he is at work one night, a woman comes into the hotel that he recognizes as one of his internment camp victims that he created a sadomasochistic love affair with. She is torn on what she wants to do when she sees him, but eventually leaves her husband and moves in with the porter only to reignite their love affair.
This is a movie of some subtlety and a little slow-going. Overall, I enjoyed the film and the aspects of ones past and mentalities.
This is not a film for everyone, I think a lot of people would find it boring, but I enjoyed it overall. It is not as sexy as it may sound or look by the cover, but still a decent flick.
Plus, if you want to own this movie, Criterion is the only way to go. The only issue is that thhe disc did not have anything in the way of special features. I was a little disappointed about that.
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