Stealing Beauty (1996)

NEUTRAL

Amazon, iTunes, Vudu

73%

1996, Drama, 1h 58m

RT Critics’ Score: 51% (BIAS DETECTED)
RT Audience Score: 75%
Awards & Nominations: 3 wins & 11 nominations

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Critics Consensus

Stealing Beauty is a film that is both visually stunning and deeply unsettling, a combination that only a master like Bertolucci could pull off. The ensemble cast is superb, with each actor bringing a richness of detail to their character that is both captivating and haunting. However, the film’s pseudo-profundity and florid notions of decadent eroticism can come across as hilariously inscrutable, leaving the viewer wondering if they are missing something or if the director is simply indulging in his own parabohemian fantasies. While Liv Tyler’s radiant performance is a highlight, the film ultimately suffers from Bertolucci’s self-indulgence, making it a meditation on sex, life, and death that is best left to older teens with a taste for the bizarre.

Audience Consensus

Stealing Beauty is a movie that’s like a box of chocolates – you never know what you’re going to get. Some critics think it’s a masterpiece, while others think it’s a snooze-fest. Personally, I thought it was a bit creepy, but also pretty to look at. And let’s be real, Liv Tyler is a total babe. But seriously, can we talk about how weird it is that older male directors are always making movies about young, beautiful women? It’s like, come on guys, find a new muse. Overall, I’d say this movie is worth a watch if you’re in the mood for something slow and contemplative. Just don’t expect to be blown away.

Storyline

For 20 years, many visitors have come to the villa on an Italian hilltop owned by an English artist. Lucy, a 19-year-old American, was last there four years ago and wants to meet up again with the young Italian who kissed her and corresponded for a while. She has brought the diary of her late mother, filled with enigmatic poems that suggest Lucy was conceived on that hilltop. Lucy wants to find out if Daddy is the Italian war correspondent who wrote to her mother for 20 years. Then again Daddy could be the dying English playwright in residence, or the artist who uses a chainsaw on tree trunks for his sculptures. The three, of course, have no idea that Lucy is there to solve a mystery. They, the artist’s wife and daughter, and the daughter’s American lover are most intrigued by Lucy’s virginity.

Production Company(ies)
Ear Goggles

Distributor
Fox

Release Type
Theatrical

Filming Location(s)
Brolio, Castiglion Fiorentino, Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy

MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong sexuality, nudity, some drug use and language

Year of Release
1996

Technical Specs

Color:

Color
Sound mix:

Dolby Digital
Aspect ratio:

2.35 : 1
Runtime:

1h 58m
Language(s):

English, French, German, Spanish, Italian
Country of origin:

United Kingdom
Release date:

Release Date (Theaters): Jun 14, 1996 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 8, 2002

Genre(s)
Drama

Keyword(s)
starring Liv Tyler, Sinead Cusack, Donal McCann, Jeremy Irons, Jean Marais, Rachel Weisz, directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, written by Bernardo Bertolucci, Susan Minot, drama, R rating, box office gross $4.6M, Fox, produced by Jeremy Thomas, reviewed by Joe Morgenstern, Anne Billson, Adam Mars-Jones, Desson Thomson, Jonathan Rosenbaum, Geoff Andrew, Michael Atkinson, Joyce Slaton, Cole Smithey, Jeffrey M Anderson, Susan Granger, coming of age, Tuscany, poetry, family history, suicide, male suitors, lessons about love, unattainable love, callow, pretty, unexpected lessons, ensemble cast, glancing richness, pseudo-profundity, eroticism, parabohemian lifestyles, meditation on sex, life, death, older teens only, radiant, self-indulgence, arthouse, sculpting, virginity, Italian countryside, tastefully done, beautiful story, cinematography, mature performance, box office performance

Box Office Details

Worldwide gross: $4,762,310
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $9,090,038
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,995
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 991,280

US/Canada gross: $4,722,310
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $9,013,688
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,646
US/Canada opening weekend: $103,028
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $196,654
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,672

Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $10,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $19,087,455
Production budget ranking: 1,386
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $10,278,595
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$20,276,012
ROI to date (est.): -69%
ROI ranking: 1,799

Cast & Crew

Liv Tyler

Sinead Cusack

Donal McCann

Jeremy Irons

Jean Marais

Lucy

Diana

Ian

Alex

M. Guillaume

Liv Tyler – Lucy
Sinead Cusack – Diana
Donal McCann – Ian
Jeremy Irons – Alex
Jean Marais – M. Guillaume
Rachel Weisz – Miranda

Bernardo Bertolucci

Jeremy Thomas

Director

Writer

Producer

Director(s)
Bernardo Bertolucci

Writer(s)
Bernardo Bertolucci, Susan Minot

Producer(s)
Jeremy Thomas

Film Festivals
Sundance, Cannes

Awards & Nominations
3 wins & 11 nominations

Academy Awards

Top Reviews

Joe Morgenstern

Anne Billson

Adam Mars-Jones

Desson Thomson

Jonathan Rosenbaum

Wall Street Journal

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Independent (UK)

Washington Post

Chicago Reader

STEALING BEAUTY
All Critics (51) | Top Critics (17) | Fresh (26) | Rotten (25)
Very pretty, and very creepy.

December 12, 2018

Joe Morgenstern
Wall Street Journal
TOP CRITIC
Is there not something a little disturbing about the way in which ageing male film-makers are applauded for their ogling of actresses young enough to be their granddaughters?

November 22, 2017

Anne Billson
Daily Telegraph (UK)
TOP CRITIC
Unusually for Bertolucci, the film is an ensemble piece, with great glancing richness of detail conveyed by a wonderful cast.

November 16, 2017

Adam Mars-Jones
Independent (UK)
TOP CRITIC
[A] hilariously inscrutable exercise in pseudo-profundity.

December 7, 2007

Desson Thomson
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
A civilized, mellow, and generally graceful chamber piece.

December 7, 2007

Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
A welcome reminder of Bertolucci’s directorial assurance.

February 9, 2006

Geoff Andrew
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Bertolucci’s florid, rather sophomoric notions of decadent eroticism and parabohemian lifestyles are delivered in elliptical, inconclusive fiction-workshop parcels.

October 25, 2019

Michael Atkinson
Spin
Meditation on sex, life, death; older teens only.

January 2, 2011 | Rating: 4/5

Joyce Slaton
Common Sense Media
December 14, 2007 | Rating: 4/5

Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com
I find it to be one of his most sublime achievements, filled with a sunny laziness and slow awakening.

May 26, 2006 | Rating: 3/4

Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
December 16, 2005 | Rating: 3/5

Susan Granger
www.susangranger.com
Liv Tyler is radiant, but the film itself suffers from the same self-indulgence that always hampers Bertolucci’s work.

October 9, 2005 | Rating: 2/5

Chuck O’Leary
Fantastica Daily…

Plot
For 20 years, many visitors have come to the villa on an Italian hilltop owned by an English artist. Lucy, a 19-year-old American, was last there four years ago and wants to meet up again with the young Italian who kissed her and corresponded for a while. She has brought the diary of her late mother, filled with enigmatic poems that suggest Lucy was conceived on that hilltop. Lucy wants to find out if Daddy is the Italian war correspondent who wrote to her mother for 20 years. Then again Daddy could be the dying English playwright in residence, or the artist who uses a chainsaw on tree trunks for his sculptures. The three, of course, have no idea that Lucy is there to solve a mystery. They, the artist’s wife and daughter, and the daughter’s American lover are most intrigued by Lucy’s virginity.

Trivia