Fur Review – I will leave many things out so you still have plenty to look forward to…also I’m a horrible writer so don’t hold anything against me but when I write stuff, I like to eat words, so you’ll have to try and imagine things…




I see Fur as a story of discovery and rebirth.


The movie opens with two title cards... it explains why this is not your typical bio film...

In the very first scene Nicole is visiting a nudist colony... and after this short scene, we go back several months and we see Nicole setting up her husband's studio for a photo shoot.... (very important detail, studio is inside of the apartment)

Things to look out for:

Art Design... walls are blue, her dress is blue, her eyes are blue, light bulbs are blue...
Blue is a very cold and unpleasant color, and this is how Nicole feels at the beginning of the film... she's trapped mentally and physically... she’s confined within her own body… she’s stuck in her own apartment…

I’ll skip a few things here,… after she meets Robert and they start talking and spending time together, we get to see that transformation from cold to warm… no words can describe it, one has to see how this happens and how Nicole struggles and fights to finally be free… she starts wearing dresses with lighter colors, she lets her hair down, she starts smiling…

Nicole’s parents are very important...how they talk to her, you get a sense of people she grew up with, these awful people who raised her... and why she would feel trapped in her own body...

Smoking and nudity are a big part of this movie, so if you are at all apprehensive about those things, be prepared. Also there are three love making scenes. All done in a very specific way… and very important to this story… absolutely intrical part of the story… no question… I know some people are hesitant when it comes to scenes like this… I am too… but there’s absolutely no reason to question these scenes in Fur… I will be honest …one of these will make you uncomfortable for a moment…

From the very beginning your body will feel tension… you will experience every single emotion she feels… being trapped, unappreciated, being loved and free…

Downey’s apartment (he moves in and takes the top floor) in terms of space is very ambiguous… but it is connected to Nicole’s apartment… I’m not going to tell you now, but you’ll get it when you see the movie, and you’ll know why I keep mentioning the apartment…

Beach scene I believe represents rebirth… it’s very emotional and what leads up to it, is very emotional and heartbreaking… Nicole shaves Robert’s whole body… this scene is very touching and I felt very uneasy watching it… I felt I wasn’t supposed to be there, I wasn’t supposed to see what was happening between them at that very moment… reason why she shaves his whole body is this… Robert plans to commit suicide and he wants to swim out as far as he can into the ocean… later they both go into the ocean… Robert dies and Nicole is reborn…

Final shot represents absolute brilliance in acting…it’s very short and it happens very quickly so don’t blink… it’s a close up of Nicole’s face and to me it reveals every single emotion, feeling, hurt, happiness, disappointment, *do not like*, rage, love, passion this woman experiences… it all comes down to that one shot… don’t miss it for the world…

This is a beautifully photographed film, they did a marvelous job… great piece of film making… the colors, the lighting, the mood… just perfect…

I can’t find a single thing to complain about…


Feel free to ask me more in detail about specific scenes…

Ed

...wow...

thnx a lot for this review. i would say that you did not give away too much (except perhaps what robert/lionel is going to do at the end of the pic), and it just makes me even more excited. i chose to read this topic because i don't know when i am going to see it, since there is no release date for my country (i.e. germany) so by the time i am actually going to see this movie i will probably have forgotten about the details

wow...with each detail i become more and more intrigued! thank you for the go ahead foxy and thank you for sharing your thoughts ed.

Thank you very much, Ed, for giving a description of some of the vital parts of Fur. I probably won't be able to see it for awhile either since it may not be shown in my city--I don't think we have any movie theaters that cater to Independent films.

Thanks again!

Thank you for that!!! i didn't read the whole thing cause i want to see the movie but sounds so good.
I don't like the sex scenes but anyway.

I am going to be a hot mess during these scenes it looks like. I cried during the beach scene in Birth and this sounds somewhat similar. And I had read about Nicole shaving Robert's whole body but the way you described Ed, it just sounds so intimate.

But thank you oh so very much for this, Ed. It sounds stunning. You answered most of what I wanted to ask you but if possible I would like to know if Downey Jr.'s look disturbed you at first. A few comments I have read have said it takes some getting used to. Oh, and I love music so any bit of info you could give about the score would be great.

Thank you so much Ed. As I was reading what you wrote the hairs on my arm stood up and I could feel the tears starting. I know some of us have been blessed to live through a 're-birth', so I could feel your words go straight to my soul. You did a wonderful job IMHO.

Thank you .. now I just have to decide if I am strong enough to watch this in a public movie theatre - or it is best to await a video.

~ r@g

Thank you Ed for the fantastic review


Reading parts of it made me cry so I can only imagine what the seeing the actual movie will do to me but I am looking forward to the experience.

Thanks you so much for your review Ed!

I so appreciated everything you said, and yes I had goose bumps just reading
your words, I can only imagine what I will feel seeing the film itself......
I compliment you on saying what you did, and yet I am more than ever looking so forward to seeing this film, and seeing Nicole incredable as Always!.....
Ty again

I'll be honest with you... I did not find him disturbing at all... Robert Downey Jr. does an amazing job... for the most of the film you only see his eyes...

ohh sorry I forgot the music... which btw compliments the film in the best possible way... it reminded me of Stanley Kubrick's films and how he was a master at combining music and color to set just a perfect mood...

wow sounds amazinggg!!! cant wait! xxx

I peeked!

Although I only skimmed your review in case I would find out too much, the bits I saw tell me you are very impressed with this movie and that the audience's emotions will be strongly involved.

Thanks Que. I suspect I will peek some more but at the moment am trying to resist

foxy, so did I..... and actually read the whole thing.
Ed, thank you so much for your review of the movie. I am anxiously awaiting this film. I love Arbus' work and its a pity they were not able to use her original photographs. Also, my favorite Nicole movies are always the offbeat ones. She is truly in her element.

thank you.

Thank you so much for your review, it is very insightful. I too loved Fur and I'm looking forward to seeing it again (in Italy it comes out tomorrow!).
ciao

Ed, thank you for your review! The initial comments enthralled me, the mention of Kubrick in the music gave me chills and nailed it for me - this is a film I MUST see. (Not that I didn't know that already, but on some level I was wondering what you'd say and would it be a disappointing experience, etc.) I'm pleased to hear that this is very much consistent with Nicole's best film work (even the underloved or underappreciated ones.)

And thank you for the spoilers warning. (As much as I say that I disliked spoilers in movie reviews by professional critics, you had the courtesy to forewarn us - and yes I confess I read all the way through.)

The only part of you initial review that I might leave off, if I were you, is the section explaining why Nicole "shaves his whole body" to the end of the paragraph.

How is the 70's legend Jane Alexander? Isn't she Diane's mother or some Russian snob diva lady(what I've heard?)?

yes she plays her mother...

Thanx 4 da review Ed I'm gettin really desperate now I dyin' 2 c it

~Viviana~

Thanks for the review Ed! I really, really can't wait to see it now!