Tale of Tales
Directed by Matteo Garrone
Inspired by the celebrated fairytales by Giambattista Basile, Matteo Garrone’s TALE OF TALES is an epic vision of cinema. From the bitter quest of the Queen of Longtrellis (Salma Hayek) who forfeits the life of her husband (John C. Reilly), to two mysterious sisters who provoke the passion of the King of Strongcliff (Vincent Cassel), to the King of Highhills obsessed with a giant Flea (Toby Jones) leading to heartbreak for his young daughter, these stories weave the beautiful with the grotesque, creating a stunning and unique work of gothic imagination.
The film interweaves three separate story strands bookended by brief bits in which involves a street circus family, a jealous queen who forfeits her husband's life, and a king whose passion is stoked by two mysterious sisters.
Cast: Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, Toby Jones, John C. Reilly, Shirley Henderson
Member Reviews
A gorgeous movie, but it falls flat right at the end. There's a particular moment when action is suspended at an emotional height, but that doesn't resolve itself in a satisfying way. Still, the ride is worth it. (The ending may be true to the book, I don't know; I've never read the book. )
Great film, amazing cast, fun monsters. Based on 3 italian fairy tales unfamiliar to most Americans. This one's def a fantasy adventure in the spirit of The Princess Bride, but the horror aspect is minimal. There is no real ending, and I assume that's intentional and normal for these source tales.
Entertaining enough…. 3. 5 skulls.
It was beautifully done, in terms of the cinematography, the scenery, the sets and the costumes, and how the stories flowed amongst each other. The cast and the acting were superb. It did leave you wanting more from the storylines, however. As detailed as it was, I felt like, in the end, it left you feeling incomplete. Overall, very cool premise though.
I'm only giving it three skulls because I feel like I don't know exactly which fairy tales they were all representing, and I'm not sure I like the ending. I don't understand what happened to the woman after she had her skin flayed off, and I feel like all of them did not have very clear endings. I understood the endings, but I feel like they could have been represented better. Overall though, I thought the acting was very good.