Moon in the Gutter

UPC: 881394113824

Studio: Cinema Libre

MPAA Rating: NR   Contains:[Violence, Nudity, Not For Children, Adult Language, Profanity]

Summary: Filmmaker Jean-Jacques Beineix followed up the surprise international success of his first feature, Diva, with this stylish but downbeat drama. Gerard (Gerard Depardieu) is a dock worker who becomes an emotional wreck following the rape and suicide of his sister. As his relationships with his girlfriend Bella (Victoria Abril), his drunken brother, and his depressive father begin to decay, Gerard becomes obsessed with finding the man who attacked his sister and spends most of his nights lurking about the scene of the crime. In time, Gerard makes the acquaintance of Loretta (Nastassja Kinski), who cruises by the waterfront every evening in a red sports car. Desperate to pull himself out of his emotional doldrums, Gerard becomes involved with Loretta. Bella, however, is not at all happy about this, and she convinces a pair of strong-arm men to teach him a lesson. Gerard must now decide if he wants to be with Loretta or Bella, just as he's discovered evidence that may reveal who raped his sister. La Lune Dans Le Caniveau received uneven reviews on its initial release and won a French Cesar Award for its production design. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Drama

Awards: Best Production Design – French Academy of Cinema

Features: Newly added! "Mr. Michel's Dog" - Beineix's very first film
Jean-Jacques Beineix's interview with Tim Rhys of MovieMaker Magazine
Photo gallery

Moon in the Gutter

Format: Blu-ray

Release Date: 11/29/2011

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Cinemascope

Audio: DD2 Dolby Digital Stereo

Runtime: 137 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) French

Subtitles: English

Region: Universal Compatability

Craig Butler

While every bit as visually fascinating (if not more so) as Diva, director Jean-Jacques Beineix's previous film, The Moon in the Gutter is nowhere near as effective. Make no mistake about it: this is a stunning film to look at. The director shot it all on a soundstage, creating with cinematographer Philippe Rousselot and an incredibly talented design team an artificial look that is simply gorgeous, even though the setting is usually "the wrong side of town." That eponymous moon in that eponymous gutter glows entrancingly, and there's a sheen and a gloss to almost everything that is hard to resist. It all takes on a surreal, somehow romantic atmosphere, which is a tremendous asset. Unfortunately, all of this glorious visual work is in the service of a screenplay that is entirely uninvolving. Diva was similarly superficial, but it worked because the characters were interesting enough to make the viewer care about them. The exact opposite happens in Moon -- the characters are ill-defined, fuzzy and pretentious. The potentially fascinating story is negated by poor storytelling and these characters that simply don't engage us. It's not the fault of the actors; when even as charismatic an actor as Gerard Depardieu and as intriguing a presence as Nastassja Kinski cannot engage the audience, something is seriously wrong. For all its amazing visuals, Moon is an empty and ultimately boring picture. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Jean-Pierre Laurent  Actor 
Katya Berger  Actor 
Jacques Herlin  Actor 
Jean-Roger Milo  Actor 
Guido Alberti  Actor 
Victor Cavallo  Actor 
Jean-Jacques Beineix  Director 
Jean-Jacques Beineix  Screenwriter 
Gabriel Yared  Composer (Music Score) 
Lise Fayolles  Producer 
Olivier Mergault  Screenwriter 
Gérard Depardieu  Actor 
Nastassja Kinski  Actor 
Victoria Abril  Actor 
Vittorio Mezzogiorno  Actor 
Dominique Pinon  Actor 
Bertice Reading  Actor 
Gabriel Monnet  Actor 
Milena Vukotic  Actor 
Bernard Farcy  Actor 
Anne-Marie Coffinet  Actor 

Country: France,Italy