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List Price: $32.99 | | Label: Japanese Import
Salesrank: 27758
Released: February 26, 2002 |
| Our Price: $19.95 |
| Used Price: $13.33 |
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MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Although its publicity touts Three Seasons, a triple winner at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, as "the only American film made entirely in Vietnam,, there is little that is American about this movie. Its sensibility seems far more Vietnamese than American, from its lyrical Oriental imagery and its concern with the plight of Vietnamese citizens since the war to its reverence for the country's ancient culture. Similarly, Harvey Keitel is listed as the star, but his is really the most minor of the film's major roles.
Three Seasons tells three tangentially linked stories. First is the tale of Kien An (Ngoc Hiep Nguyen), a lovely young woman who works picking lotus blossoms at a sanitarium. She becomes a scribe for its mysterious proprietor, Teacher Dao (Manh Cuong Tran), a leper who hides himself away in shame but whose soul is full of beautiful poetry. Then there is Hai (Don Duong), a gentle "cyclo" (bicycle ricksha) driver who falls in love with Lan (Zoe Bui), an alluring, feisty prostitute he sees coming and going from the big tourist hotels. Last, there is James Hager (Keitel), an ex-Marine who fought in the war and has returned to find the daughter he fathered many years before. There is also a charming plot about Woody (Huu Duoc Nguyen), a little street urchin who sells contraband out of a suitcase. The narrative involving Keitel's character is the least developed in the film, and seems to be almost an afterthought, but in any event, truly magnificent visuals and a delicate lyricism make Three Seasons a haunting, bittersweet film portrait of life in contemporary Vietnam. --Laura Mirsky
Three Seasons Reviews:
Absolutely magnificant! 
2009-10-11 - Possibly one of the most exquisite films I've seen! Three Seasons narrates three separate lives that are ultimately intertwined. The cinematography was absolutely amazing! It was effortless to relate to the main characters, as they were "real" people who all strive for one common goal...to find themselves and happiness. There were moments that were heartbreaking. For example, when the young boy lost his only means and livelihood which was his briefcase overfilled with novel trinkets. I'm so thrilled to see Vietnam portrayed in a beautiful way aside from the war-torn depictions that some still coincide with my homeland. I've seen numerous film on Vietnam and without a doubt, this is an absolute must see!
Great movie for romantic evening, unusual not cheesy!
2008-10-05 - I saw this movie 10 years ago at a movie festival and loved it!
The story, the picture everything. Now I am happy to own it!
One of the best movies ever
2008-08-13 - This is a great movie, a great piece of story telling, and a great piece of filming, casting, and directing. I saw it on the Sundance Channel and immediately came to Amazon to order the DVD.
It's a beautiful film, telling a beautiful story, filmed in a superb manner. The music and the poems add to the overall effetiveness.
Note that it is a movie and was not meant to be a travel video. It is a poetic, eloquent story and is not a documentary on 'modern Vietnam'.
If you appreciate extremely well made movies, you will like this.
Buy it new or used.
widescreen version??
2008-05-26 - Just about anyone who has seen this wonderful film is going to give it a minimum of four stars. My only complaint--and it's not an insignificant one--is that the film was shot in widescreen, but the DVD is full screen. It really needs a widescreen version, if for no other reason than that the cinematography of the Vietnam landscape, which some of the reviewers have raved about, will allow you to see even more of Vietnam's beauty; plus, of course, "widescreen" is how the director intended for this film to be seen.
four great stories in one movie
2008-03-15 - this film takes place in ho chi minh city in the 1990's. it's a movie with four individual stories which blend into one larger tale. a common thread is the beginning of new relationships. harvey keitel stars as a vietnam veteran who has returned to vietnam to find the daughter he left behind. a second story has us following a woman from her first day of work gathering lotus flowers to sell in the city. she develops a touching relationship with a reclusive but brilliant leper for whom she works. the third storyline deals with a young boy who struggles to survive by selling trinkets to anyone who might be interested. finally, there is the cyclo-driver. he is a humble guy who meets the lady of his dreams, who also happens to be a lady of the night. at various times throughout the movie, characters from different parts of the movie run into each other without knowing that we(the viewers)are aware of what is going on in both of their lives. this movie is excellent - one of the ten best films i have ever seen. i hope you enjoy this movie as much as i did!
