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The Big Blue (1988)
Released By: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment   Rating: PG   In Theaters: N/A
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Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Genre: Action-Adventure
MPAA Rating: PG
Director: Luc Besson
Language: English
Official Website: N/A
Theatrical Release: N/A
Home Video Release: N/A
Cast: Griffin Dunne, Jean Reno, Jean-Marc Barr, Rosanna Arquette
Published ID: 2787
UPC: 043396039278,
Plot: Two men answer the call of the ocean in this romantic fantasy adventure. Jacques (Jean-Marc Barr) and Enzo (Jean Reno) are a pair of friends who have been close since childhood, and who share a passion for the dangerous sport of free diving. Professional diver Jacques opted to follow in the footsteps of his father, who died at sea when Jacques was a boy; to the bewilderment of scientists, Jacques harbors a remarkable ability to adjust his heart rate and breathing pattern in the water, so that his vital signs more closely resemble that of dolphins than men (he even considers a school of dolphins as his extended family). As Enzo persuades a reluctant Jacques to compete against him in a free diving contest - determining who can dive deeper and longer without scuba gear - Jacques meets Johanna (Rosanna Arquette), a beautiful insurance investigator from America, and he finds that he must choose between his love for her and his love of the sea. Le Grand Bleu ran 132 minutes in its original French version, but it was trimmed to 118 for American release, with the original score by Eric Serra replaced by music from Bill Conti. While the film did middling business in the U.S., it was a huge success in Europe, and director Luc Besson released an expanded 168 minute version in 1998. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
IDDateTimeTitleReviewHelpfulVotesTotalVotes
Better than i remembered
Added 3/7/2009

I saw this movie years ago and i just re-discovered it on netflix. I don't remember how the American version was, but don't bother, there is no need to see that version when you have such a beautiful version in the director's cut. The movie is long (almost three hours), but it's definitely worth it. The beautiful water sequences with the dolphins. Jean Reno is so funny as Endo and i just think Jean-Marc Barr is beautiful and so fascinating as Jacques. I am not a big Rosanna Arquette fan, but i definitely liked her in this movie. I loved Eric Serra's music, i think it just brought it all together. It's just a shame that there aren't enough people who really like this movie. And at the end, right before it fades to black. I think the dolphin is pulling Jacques back up to the surface. At least, that's what i hope, the movie made me cry, it was definitely better than i remembered.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
ZE BIG BLEW!
Added 3/6/2009

This movie is baaaaaad but loooooooooooooong...

Talk about a Giant Sucking Sound!

Sure, it's got beautiful scenery and lush cinematography, plus two very likable stars (three, if you count Griffin Dunne doing a bit role). But that doesn't ammount to much when the movie lacks a credible screenplay, and what poses as such is full of unnerving clichés and stereotypes that sink the entire thing deeper than the main character on a quest for the Titanic!

Rossanna Arquette plays the dopey American blonde in love with the ultimate "cold fish", a dreamy French American effete whose only desire in life is to become a dolphin and swim away for all eternity (eventually he does, thank God, but you'll have to spend a great deal of yours to get to that particular scene). Jean Reno plays the (stereo)typical Italian bachelor (obnoxious mother in black included) in a "boastful performance" most humble moviegoers would describe as plain overacting. Even Dunne is given lousy lines the few seconds he's in -something like "You deliberately lied to me, embezzled the company's money, and should go to jail this very instant if I'm not to lose my own job as well. But never mind all that; tell me: is this love for real?".

No kidding: there's an old uncle who dives in a bathtub, a bipolar dolphin who feels out-of-water, and an aquarium where you can break in and walk away with whatever you please without a care in the world. There's daddy dying on cue, mamma frowning on spaghetti -although she cooks lots of it in hotel bedrooms- and Honey getting pregnant and abandoned (tears and all) in a -literally- fishy finale. And there's this guy who grew in an impoverished idyllic Greek vilage, doesn't have a job, doesn't own a suit, and yet stays at the Nice Carlton and lives in a posh apartment. But mostly there's me, the bemused-confused audience, wondering why this pretentious deadweight is hailed as a cult film, when it should be shelved in the far off corners of the Hallmark Channel where it belongs!

P.S.: As any licensed diver can tell you, these guys are fakes! The first and foremost rule in diving is SAFETY. That is, if someone tells you something is not safe, or seems not safe, or may not be safe, or lurks in the vicinity of perhaps not safe, YOU DON'T DO IT, PERIOD! To show otherwise is like showing cops goofing around with a loaded weapon. Whatever one may think about them, professionals is not likely to be on the list. And one is to believe these hotshot divers are pros, let alone World Champions, when hey routinely ignore every warning they're given? Please..!

1 out of 9 people found this helpful.
The Big Blue-Loved it!
Added 2/9/2009

I watched this movie back in the 80s, when I used to work in a video store, because I love dolphins and saw one on the cover. It's definately different, but in a good way. It is slow in a few spots, but overall a good movie. I normally can't stand Rosanna Arquette, but can watch this movie over and over again because of the story and great scenery/photography. Also, Jean Reno is always good as a villain and it's great to see him before he became known in the States.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
The Big Blue
Added 10/14/2008

Big Blue is a joy to watch. The scenery, on land or in the sea is beautiful. The acting is very good. The movie is humorous and mellow. There is a spiritual theme that unfolds towards the end of the movie, but I will not be specific lest I spoil it for others to uncover.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
This film is more than you think...
Added 8/30/2008

Aside from the great reviews this film deserves, It is so far the highest calibrating film of all time. According to the conciousness calibrations of Enlightened Sage Dr. David Hawkins, the film calibrates at an amazing 700 out of a possible 1000 as noted in his book "Truth vs Falsehood" Most movies don't come close to half that. See this film and find out why!!!
1 out of 3 people found this helpful.
Better than i remembered
Added 3/7/2009

I saw this movie years ago and i just re-discovered it on netflix. I don't remember how the American version was, but don't bother, there is no need to see that version when you have such a beautiful version in the director's cut. The movie is long (almost three hours), but it's definitely worth it. The beautiful water sequences with the dolphins. Jean Reno is so funny as Endo and i just think Jean-Marc Barr is beautiful and so fascinating as Jacques. I am not a big Rosanna Arquette fan, but i definitely liked her in this movie. I loved Eric Serra's music, i think it just brought it all together. It's just a shame that there aren't enough people who really like this movie. And at the end, right before it fades to black. I think the dolphin is pulling Jacques back up to the surface. At least, that's what i hope, the movie made me cry, it was definitely better than i remembered.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
ZE BIG BLEW!
Added 3/6/2009

This movie is baaaaaad but loooooooooooooong...

Talk about a Giant Sucking Sound!

Sure, it's got beautiful scenery and lush cinematography, plus two very likable stars (three, if you count Griffin Dunne doing a bit role). But that doesn't ammount to much when the movie lacks a credible screenplay, and what poses as such is full of unnerving clichés and stereotypes that sink the entire thing deeper than the main character on a quest for the Titanic!

Rossanna Arquette plays the dopey American blonde in love with the ultimate "cold fish", a dreamy French American effete whose only desire in life is to become a dolphin and swim away for all eternity (eventually he does, thank God, but you'll have to spend a great deal of yours to get to that particular scene). Jean Reno plays the (stereo)typical Italian bachelor (obnoxious mother in black included) in a "boastful performance" most humble moviegoers would describe as plain overacting. Even Dunne is given lousy lines the few seconds he's in -something like "You deliberately lied to me, embezzled the company's money, and should go to jail this very instant if I'm not to lose my own job as well. But never mind all that; tell me: is this love for real?".

No kidding: there's an old uncle who dives in a bathtub, a bipolar dolphin who feels out-of-water, and an aquarium where you can break in and walk away with whatever you please without a care in the world. There's daddy dying on cue, mamma frowning on spaghetti -although she cooks lots of it in hotel bedrooms- and Honey getting pregnant and abandoned (tears and all) in a -literally- fishy finale. And there's this guy who grew in an impoverished idyllic Greek vilage, doesn't have a job, doesn't own a suit, and yet stays at the Nice Carlton and lives in a posh apartment. But mostly there's me, the bemused-confused audience, wondering why this pretentious deadweight is hailed as a cult film, when it should be shelved in the far off corners of the Hallmark Channel where it belongs!

P.S.: As any licensed diver can tell you, these guys are fakes! The first and foremost rule in diving is SAFETY. That is, if someone tells you something is not safe, or seems not safe, or may not be safe, or lurks in the vicinity of perhaps not safe, YOU DON'T DO IT, PERIOD! To show otherwise is like showing cops goofing around with a loaded weapon. Whatever one may think about them, professionals is not likely to be on the list. And one is to believe these hotshot divers are pros, let alone World Champions, when hey routinely ignore every warning they're given? Please..!

1 out of 9 people found this helpful.
The Big Blue-Loved it!
Added 2/9/2009

I watched this movie back in the 80s, when I used to work in a video store, because I love dolphins and saw one on the cover. It's definately different, but in a good way. It is slow in a few spots, but overall a good movie. I normally can't stand Rosanna Arquette, but can watch this movie over and over again because of the story and great scenery/photography. Also, Jean Reno is always good as a villain and it's great to see him before he became known in the States.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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