Gwyneth Paltrow Movie:

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		Our Price: $28.27
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		MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) Media: DVD

Editorial Review:
While American history buffs and Gwyneth Paltrow fans will want to own this movie just because, it actually compels the viewer to examine the life of our third president a little more closely. Jefferson focuses on the mid-1780s, when widower and pre-presidency Jefferson (Nick Nolte) replaces Benjamin Franklin as the U.S. representative to Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. A lively period, to say the least. And lively, too, is Jefferson, keeping time with a married woman (Greta Scacchi). Also in Paris is one of Jefferson's six children, his eldest daughter Patsy (Paltrow), who went on to have 12 children of her own--remarkable for the time. When another daughter dies back in Virginia, Jefferson sends for his youngest, who brings along her slave, Sally Hemings (a luminescent Thandie Newton), then 15. As nearly everyone knows now, Jefferson allegedly had a long relationship with Hemings and, reportedly, several children with her. This Merchant-Ivory production, written by frequent collaborator Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, languidly attempts to depict a complete portrait of the obviously complex and conflicted Jefferson, who kept slaves but penned the Declaration of Independence.

Initially, Nolte may seem an odd choice--he doesn't resemble the familiar visage on a nickel (or $2 bill). Still, Nolte's performance and his contemporary feel lend a credibility and immediacy to the fascinating story--however true or apocryphal it may be. --Nadine Mendoza

Jefferson in Paris [Region 2] Reviews:
Thank you, James Ivory
2009-07-27 - So I'm the first in 2009 to review this long dead movie. Well, it doesn't deserve to die, it should become a classic. I know a little bit about Jefferson and his beliefs and relationships and I say the film portrays this enigmatic man very much as he was, which should be something to cheer about. If the movie were done by anyone other than James Ivory, the makers would cast Leonardo Decapprio or some other unsuitable young turkey and turn him into a rake about town to sell more tickets to teenies.

A second cheer goes to Nick Nolte, who had the courage to underplay the quiet, seemingly unemotional Jefferson--who would write some of the greatest love letters history has given us. Go figure. And that is our task. If we try to understand the contradictions in Jefferson, perhaps we will make progress in understanding ourselves. One of history's greatest exponents of individual freedom owned slaves. The man who believed religious freedom should be a basic right kept his daughter from following her conscience and becoming a Catholic. The man who vowed to remain true to his departed wife had a long term relationship with a slave girl.

I thought Jefferson's love of Maria Cosway was perfectly played. Can our oversexed, jump-into-bed-at-the-first-hint-of-attraction society comprehend a platonic love relationship? Here is another dimension to human nature that is never explored in the popular culture.

The sets, costumes and general ambience deserve the third cheer. You really get the feeling of being in Paris was in those trying times.

If you want your movie fantasies to contain chases, explosions and sex scenes, head on down to the local multiplex. If you want history and human nature as it really was and is, buy this movie.

OK
2008-05-22 - This was a little boring but maybe more accurate it talks more about him and his time in Paris. I was more concentrated on Sally Hemmings.

loved it!
2008-02-19 - I loved this film. It is incredibly accurate from an historical point of view. The events. people, and places depicted were 100%. If you are a Jefferson scholar, historian, or fan; you will appreciate the detail this film contains. It has been criticized for being slow and overly long. It is true that some scenes dragged and frankly it took me a while to buy Nick Nolte in this role, but overall it is a very fine period piece which tells a very romantic story with extreme clarity. If you are viewing this film as a lover of history - you will not be disappointed.


Good
2007-08-30 - It keeps your attention and is interesting-for a historical movie. What I liked about this is the forbidden, tense, sexual attraction between Nolte & cute-as-a-button Thandie Newton. Paltrow plays something different: mean & flaring. They did a good job.

Disappointed
2007-04-02 - I saw this in school, years ago. At first I was disappointed because I thought the teacher said we were going to watch "the Jefferson's in Paris". So I was a little bummed when George and Weezy never showed up, but the part where Thomas jefferson trips over the log is as funny as anything that was ever on the Jeffersons.