Immortality (The Wisdom of Crocodiles) (2000)

47% of critics liked it
(19 reviews)
51% of users liked it
(3,932 ratings)

Stephen Griscz, the protagonist of The Wisdom of Crocodiles, is a handsome but enigmatic man of many talents. He is also an incurable womanizer, always searching for the perfect woman. But all his relationships end in tragedy, which arouses the suspicions of police officer Healey. One day, Stephen… More Stephen Griscz, the protagonist of The Wisdom of Crocodiles, is a handsome but enigmatic man of many talents. He is also an incurable womanizer, always searching for the perfect woman. But all his relationships end in tragedy, which arouses the suspicions of police officer Healey. One day, Stephen meets Anne, an engineer who is also a very strong woman and definitely much better than all the others. Anne is intrigued by Stephen's strange airs. But soon it becomes clear that only one of them will survive the relationship. Po Chih Leong, who launched his film career as an editor with the BBC and went on to become a television producer in Hong Kong, made his directorial debut in 1976 and has since directed over a dozen features in English and Chinese before this British production. The Wisdom of Crocodiles was screened at the Montreal World Film Festival 1999. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 38 min.
Directed By: Po-Chih Leong
Written By: Paul Hoffman
Genres: Drama, Horror, Art House & International, Mystery & Suspense

In Theaters: May 1, 2000 Wide
On DVD: Mar 13, 2001
Studio: Miramax Films

Critic Reviews

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
A philosophical thriller that's no less intriguing for being murkily theological and ceaselessly artsy.
Jan Stuart, Newsday
The Wisdom of Crocodiles benefits from handsome production design (Andy Harris) and photography (Oliver Curtis).
J. Hoberman, Village Voice
Inoffensively glib and innocuously arty.
Peter Brunette, Film.com
Raises the most profound issues about the difference between humans and animals, good and evil, truth and lies.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
...so enigmatic and mysterious that by the time the movie's over, you still aren't entirely sure what just happened.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
A chic modern vampire tale.
Maitland McDonagh, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Not much actually happens.
Susan Green, Boxoffice Magazine
Director Po Chih Leong and cinematographer Oliver Curtis certainly know how to provide visual splendor for this film without much of a pulse.
, E! Online
The plot is quite silly.

Read all 9 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Nicki M

Not bad. I was able to put my immense dislike of Jude Law on hold long enough to watch this, (mainly as I was interested to see Elina Lowensohn in something other than Nadja or the Hal Hartley movies). This movie seems a little on the long side, even though it actually isn't,… More
Not bad. I was able to put my immense dislike of Jude Law on hold long enough to watch this, (mainly as I was interested to see Elina Lowensohn in something other than Nadja or the Hal Hartley movies). This movie seems a little on the long side, even though it actually isn't, and an interesting spin on vampires is stretched a little thin, but on the whole, I didn't mind it. Elina, as always, adds a quirky presence to this. She is definitely an underrated actress. Jude Law is pretty good too, and I don't generally say that, have not really liked him in anything since Gattaca. Fans of the genre might enjoy this, although it is not especially violent and isn't a great deal of sex in it, which is unusual for a movie of this type. It is more of an arthouse take.
Conner R

Very bizarre and very cheap looking. It's a straight-to-video in every way, but it's really interesting for some reason. It's essentially Jude law running around seducing girls and being a vampire. I just honestly have no idea what was going on here with the plot, it… More
Very bizarre and very cheap looking. It's a straight-to-video in every way, but it's really interesting for some reason. It's essentially Jude law running around seducing girls and being a vampire. I just honestly have no idea what was going on here with the plot, it seemed like they were trying to update Dracula but I can't be sure.
Emily A

Jude Law as a vampire. Dammit, they know my weakness! This is a really seductive film, and the premise is fascinating. Although it takes a bit of a wrong turn near the end, it redeems itself at the last moment. It's hard to say what it is about this movie that's so… More
Jude Law as a vampire. Dammit, they know my weakness! This is a really seductive film, and the premise is fascinating. Although it takes a bit of a wrong turn near the end, it redeems itself at the last moment. It's hard to say what it is about this movie that's so compelling. It just is.
Ashton R

This was actually a bit of a surprise. I was expecting absolute crap, and got an actually half decent film. The acting was good, especially Jude, and the story was at least different from most films.