On M List of Movie Reviews
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Mona Lisa (1986)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
4/14, 9/20
4/14:
I'm not a fan of Neil Jordan's films and don't think much of them, but there's one standout in his oeuvre: Mona Lisa.
Having first seen The Crying Game, an overrated film from the 90's, I'm now inclined to believe
Mona Lisa is where the source came from. Apparently, the director is obsessed with tall, thin, black tarts whether
they're transsexual or not.
Anyway, it's clearly Bob Hoskins' show. As a reward, he was given an Oscar nomination. I've always thought of
him a natural actor, and in Mona Lisa, Bob Hoskins makes most of his potential and is effective in creating
chemistry with Cathy Tyson.
His character, George, is peculiar because he's a bulldog who happens to be both stupid and naïve. Yet he's fascinating
because of his volcanic temper. George finally figured out at the end that he had wasted his time
with the black hooker after all. A strange odyssey into the seedy world of pornography and hustling, the film is, in many
ways, Taxi Driver and reverse Taxi Driver all rolled into one. Although the theme has been touched many times
before, it's nice to see the application of some British flavor.
The casting of Michael Caine, who's great by the way, is ironical if I think back to his character in
Get Carter
when he played a good guy (if you will), and see his transition to the other side. Robbie Coltrane plays a pleasant
secondary character who adds a bit of candy for the fun of it.
All in all, thanks to Bob Hoskins, Mona Lisa is a delightful, if disturbing, neo-noir picture with plenty of
verve.
9/20:
Some movies have been tailor-made for certain actors, and for Bob Hoskins, it's Mona Lisa which earned him an Academy Award
nomination.
As much as I want to like it, comparisons with Taxi Driver are difficult to avoid. Both are nearly the same
except that Mona Lisa is British and has a reverse ending. Regardless, it's been a pleasant viewing.
I don't have any sympathy for the "tall, thin, black tart," but what she goes through her job as a high-class call girl is
similar to the prostitution stories in a three-book-series for You'll Never Make Love in This Town Again. Hence,
Cathy Tyson's performance is true to the core. By the way, what the heck happened to her career afterwards? She hasn't
been in anything else of prominence.
George must be either stupid or naïve not to know what's going on, but he has one winning trait: his bulldog personality.
It makes him an endearing character, hence the perfect casting of Bob Hoskins. Michael Caine is great, having done a
similar picture called Get Carter.
All in all, Mona Lisa is the British version of Taxi Driver with Bob Hoskins giving the best performance of
his career.