Themes: Nothing Goes Right, Crisis of Faith, Out For Revenge
Main Cast: Aidan Quinn, Courteney Cox Arquette, Anthony LaPaglia, Louis Zorich, Pamela Gray
Release Year: 1996
Country: US
Run Time: 86 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
In this dark comedy, Seth Warner (Aidan Quinn) is a good man having a run of bad luck. His pregnant wife disappeared in the ocean during a trip to the beach, a tornado destroyed his house while leaving everything else in the neighborhood untouched, his boss fired him, and he was struck by a bolt of lightning that also injured his dog. While recovering in the hospital, Seth comes to the conclusion that God has cursed him. His brother-in-law Harry (Anthony LaPaglia) thinks that this conclusion is absurd -- after all, Harry reasons, he violates five or six commandments every day before lunch, and things are just great with him. This notion puts a bug in Seth's ear, and when he gets out of the hospital, he decides to confront God by deliberately violating all ten commandments; he hopes to start by seducing Harry's wife, Rachel (Courteney Cox). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
Although it doesn't quite work on every level to which it aspires, this highly creative misfire from director Daniel Taplitz recalls other noble failures such as Joe vs. the Volcano (1990) and A Pyromaniac's Love Story (1995) in its loopy, addled charm. Purposely offbeat, Commandments mixes magical realism with eccentric characters and dark comedy to result in a bizarre but entertaining stew that can never quite be taken seriously when it's sober and is never quite hilarious when it's not. It's a singular style that may be interpreted as "confusing" by the masses, but this intriguing sub-genre does have its admirers and those with unusual tastes will appreciate it. The presence of producer Ivan Reitman would lead a credits-reader to expect something broader, but Commandments is for gourmands only. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
Stephen Alesch - Art Director, Lynn Kressel - Casting, Nellie Nugiel - Co-producer, John Dunn - Costume Designer, J. Miller Tobin - First Assistant Director, Daniel Taplitz - Director, Michael Jablow - Editor, Stuart H. Pappe - Editor, Ivan Reitman - Executive Producer, Joseph Vitarelli - Songwriter, Peter Fernberger - Camera Operator, Robin Standefer - Production Designer, Slawomir Idziak - Cinematographer, Daniel Goldberg - Producer, Joe Medjuck - Producer, Michael Chinich - Producer, Robin Standefer - Production Sound, Connie Brink - Special Effects, Alan Byer - Sound/Sound Designer, Joseph Grossberg - Special Effects Supervisor, Daniel Taplitz - Screenwriter
