Love in the Time of Cholera (2007)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Jim H

  
  A man obsesses/loves a woman over the course of fifty-three years. In this adaptation of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's lush novel, I could easily tell the sections of dialogue/narration that were taken from his book. In these sections, the language was so rich that I couldn't… More
  A man obsesses/loves a woman over the course of fifty-three years. In this adaptation of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's lush novel, I could easily tell the sections of dialogue/narration that were taken from his book. In these sections, the language was so rich that I couldn't help but be sucked into the world Marquez created. And in this world the obsession that wracks Florentino makes sense; it almost seems reasonable to equate obsession with love. However, the film's principal flaw is its unevenness - the disconnect between the banality of the situations, cinematography, and acting and the elevation of the main conflict. By the end of the film, it was almost as though I was reading a great book that was getting interrupted by a bad imitation of the book. Also, I wondered throughout most of the film how we're meant to feel about Florentino. Is he elevated as a hero, or should we pity him? The story's conclusion and the fact that he is rewarded with sex with over 600 women while he waits for the object of his obsession makes me lean toward the former option, but what does this say about love? Is love really obsession? Should we really consider such impracticality admirable? In real life, wouldn't Florentino's behavior be tantamount to stalking? The only moment when Florentino is put up for ridicule and question involves him writing a bill of lading as a love poem, and this scene is welcome in the film's larger context. Yet it also contributes to the unevenness of the film because the ridicule is almost immediately abandoned. Overall, I really wanted to like <i>Love in the Time of Cholera</i>, but the film lacks the singular purpose and consistency of it hero.

• Lady D

  
  A sort of tragic love tale of sorts, a long film, but as with most Javier Bardem films, there is a great quality to them. Whilst the storyline itself was a little one-dimensional (in a simplistic sort of way) the acting was not and it was a sincere tale of true love.

• Emile T

  
  Interesting movie, with good acting. <br/><br />Has some memorable scenes. <br/><br />Love in the Time of Cholera is a good movie, well made, nothing more.

• Wahida K

  
  Love is a very weird thing.

• Red L

  
  You would think this movie would work. Florentino finds his soul mate (Fermina) while just a kid, but her father will not bless the marriage, so Florentino waits 50 years while she marries, had kids and her husband dies before he courts Fermina once again. Using the same actor to… More
  You would think this movie would work. Florentino finds his soul mate (Fermina) while just a kid, but her father will not bless the marriage, so Florentino waits 50 years while she marries, had kids and her husband dies before he courts Fermina once again. Using the same actor to play a 20 year old and a 70 year old needs a lot of make up - especially if the 70 year old is naked.

• Mason W

  
  Love in the Time of Cholera is a very nice drama/romance. The story spands fifty years between two people. During this time they are in love but are unable to wed against her father's wishes....will both of them find one another again and be still in love??? you should watch and… More
  Love in the Time of Cholera is a very nice drama/romance. The story spands fifty years between two people. During this time they are in love but are unable to wed against her father's wishes....will both of them find one another again and be still in love??? you should watch and find out.

• Lorenzo v

  
  This film had potential but was easily destroyed by the poor concept and bad execution. The make-up was pathetic, the directing was just average, it seemed like it was done by an amateur filmmaker who just graduated film school. I have problems with the language they spoke. Its… More
  This film had potential but was easily destroyed by the poor concept and bad execution. The make-up was pathetic, the directing was just average, it seemed like it was done by an amateur filmmaker who just graduated film school. I have problems with the language they spoke. Its supposed to be in Colombia where people speaks Spanish, not choppy and unpleasant English. The plot of the film really did have potential but it was butchered by the people who was behind it. It ended up just like those generic love stories that knows no borders. But on the other hand, at least the lush visuals and colorful landscapes at least upped the films ante even for a little bit. It felt like you are just watching the film because of the rich texture of the landscape, never minding the unfolding plot. Javier Bardem loses his mop top bowl cut and takes on a charming young man of 20th century Colombia. His performance is quite okay but his chop socky accent is just too painful to hear. Female lead Giovanna Mezzogiorno and Benjamin Bratt were just okay. "Cholera" is an okay film, I enjoyed the rich background but the make-up was just pathetic. 2.5

• Curtis L

  
  Javier Bardem is pretty great, especially as an old guy that has sex with beautiful women all day. Pretty run of the mill story otherwise.

• danny d

  
  this was a pretty good movie for the most part. the acting was lacking and technical elements of the film were average for the most part, but the story was interesting and it was developed and told very well. bardem was the only actor to shine, and the story following his character… More
  this was a pretty good movie for the most part. the acting was lacking and technical elements of the film were average for the most part, but the story was interesting and it was developed and told very well. bardem was the only actor to shine, and the story following his character was intriguing and profound, speaking alot to the emptiness of the heart when we search for things of a superficial nature. overall it was a good watch.

• Manu G

  
  Very good movie. Stellar acting by Javier Bardem. A love triangle set in turn-of-the-century South America, where two lovers wait out careers, marriages, affairs and deaths until they can reunite.

• Elvira B

  
  They had to be crazy to want to make a movie from El Amor en Tiempos de Colera... I think it's an impossible challenge. The magic of a Garcia Marquez book exists in that context alone. What looks good on paper loses charm on celluloid. Unless you have Stanley Kubrick to adapt the… More
  They had to be crazy to want to make a movie from El Amor en Tiempos de Colera... I think it's an impossible challenge. The magic of a Garcia Marquez book exists in that context alone. What looks good on paper loses charm on celluloid. Unless you have Stanley Kubrick to adapt the book, the transformation is likely to fail. Florentino has been in love with Fermina all his life. But their love is impossible, and many circumstances arise to keep them away from each other. And yet, Florentino persists. The photography of Cartagena is just lovely. Cartagena is a beautiful city and the movie does it justice. The music, the makeup, the costumes, are all very adequate and they work very well. Garcia Marquez's magic realism wasn't well adapted. The exictement and confusion and magic that his narration transmits isn't here -it isn't a matter of having been faithful to the book or not, it's a question of feeling. What good is this bizarre romance without feeling? Javier Bardem is good, as usual. He grasped the essence of Florentino. But Giovanna Mezzogiorno... MISCAST! I hated the performance. She made no effort to show aging, much less such feelings as remorse, or passion, or sadness. She took on the ice lady role when she didn't have to. The film shows us a crazy amount of events taking place one after the other without digging deeper into any issue. There isn't room for reflection or a deeper expression than a few looks. Instead, the writer chose to show us just about every single of Florentino's one night stands. I believe a lot was left out, in favor of something that would attract the masses -lots of nudity and sex. Great. I didn't like how simple and superficial it made the story look. Besides that, I wish it had been made in Spanish. The dialog, everything, it just belonged in Spanish. The words in English sounded strange to me, as if the characters didn't really mean them. Also, the proliferance of random Caribbean/European Hispanic accents got a little weird after a while. But then, of course, had it been made in Spanish it wouldn't have had the projection it has. It was necessary. Watch only if there isn't much else to do.

• Cassandra M

  
  Love in the Time of Cholera is one of my top five favorite books of all time. I was so excited when I heard it was being made into a movie. I'm one of those who approve of books being made into films, as long as they reasonably stick to the novel, because they bring a new… More
  Love in the Time of Cholera is one of my top five favorite books of all time. I was so excited when I heard it was being made into a movie. I'm one of those who approve of books being made into films, as long as they reasonably stick to the novel, because they bring a new perspective and life to the story. However, I had read nothing but horrible things about this film before I went to see it. Now that I have, all I can say to all those who had only negative things to say is: HAVE YOU READ THE BOOK? "Love in the Time of Cholera" retains the same authenticity and tone on the screen as it did on the page. Yes, the characters are strange people, but that is what makes them memorable; we see parts of ourselves in them and parts of their culture that molded them into who they were. Bardem's Florentino is being called a "creepy" "stalker", but his actions in the novel are no different then those on the screen and reflect the passion and desperation of the world he lives in. Fermina is being called "cold" and "unlikable", but in the novel that's what she is; a haughty, proud woman who keeps her heart buried. I know the number of bad reviews out there will undoubtedly outnumber the good ones. I don't care. I urge you to go see this film. The novel it follows is a classic and is one of the greatest love stories of all time. Its characters are not perfect, they are human. The scenery, costumes, and overall atmosphere of the film are authentic and moving. But at the heart of the images, there is a love story that is timeless, character traits that hit close to home, and a happy ending that it seems few of us find. This is why we watch movies. It's not the entertainment, the celebrities, or the technological feats. It is the stories that make us think, that cause us to question the world we live in. We all didn't watch "To Kill a Mockingbird" for the comedy or memorable performances (though they were). We watched it for the time it portrayed, the people it involved, and the message that made us ponder what our world was, is, and is going to be. "Love in the Time of Cholera" is a movie about us. The faults, successes, failures, and dreams we all have. It is worth anyone's time to see it at least once.

• moon r

  
  who is javier bardem and where did he come from? i don't know but here it is christmas and out-of-nowhere he's starring, no less, in two major releases. in this one he's "a shadow" of a man, but with a sad penchant to lilting poetic verse and an undying love… More
  who is javier bardem and where did he come from? i don't know but here it is christmas and out-of-nowhere he's starring, no less, in two major releases. in this one he's "a shadow" of a man, but with a sad penchant to lilting poetic verse and an undying love that won't quit for nothing for "the one who got away". to heal his broken heart (what else's a guy to do?) he compensates with a strange woman or two, or three, or was it 687? i don't remember but the journey's the thing in this unabashed chic flick w/loads of beauty sets, beauty clothes, and pouty lipped gazes into the endless horizon...where did i put that extra popcorn napkin (sniff!)

• Rico Z

  
  I was fortunate enough to see a test screening of this film last night. I was not familiar with the novel on which the movie is based, but I knew enough about the story to intrigue me into seeing it. I was very disappointed. Granted, the print we saw wasn't the final version and… More
  I was fortunate enough to see a test screening of this film last night. I was not familiar with the novel on which the movie is based, but I knew enough about the story to intrigue me into seeing it. I was very disappointed. Granted, the print we saw wasn't the final version and they wanted our opinions as to how the movie could be improved. First of all, the story has a lot of potential. It deals with the love that exists between a pair of lovers who cannot be together for the majority of their lives. They meet and part; meet and part for a period of over 50 years. Florentino (Javier Bardem) must learn to cope with his unrequited love for Fermina. Along the way, he finds solace in sexual pleasure as a substitute for love--until it becomes an obsession (almost like a disease itself.) All in all, the film was okay and the metaphoric juxtaposition of love set in a time of death and illness goes to show how damaging being love can really be. Love isn't always a good thing to feel. The execution of the director was poor. The editing was choppy and slow-paced all at once. It was hard to sympathize with the main character because of his many faults. But I guess that can be attributed to plot of the novel and not necessarily reflects the quality of the film. If the source material is flawed, the film can't fix it. Overall, the movie was fair enough to watch--but not engaging enough to captivate me and hold my interest. I must say that Catalina Sandino Moreno excels in her role as promiscuous (borderline slutty) cousin to the female lead. For this being only her third English-speaking role--she's really showing she can command the scenes she is in. Unless they do a major revamp on this flick, stay away. John Leguizamo is horribly cast as Fermina's father and the movie reminds me too much of The Painted Veil (a far superior, similarly-themed film.)

• Walter M

  
  [font=Century Gothic]"Love in the Time of Cholera" starts with Dr. Juvenal Urbino(Benjamin Bratt) falling off a ladder and dying in Cartagena, Colombia. Of all the mourners his widow Fermina(Giovanna Mezzogiorno) has to deal with, the rudest is Florentino Ariza(Javier… More
  [font=Century Gothic]"Love in the Time of Cholera" starts with Dr. Juvenal Urbino(Benjamin Bratt) falling off a ladder and dying in Cartagena, Colombia. Of all the mourners his widow Fermina(Giovanna Mezzogiorno) has to deal with, the rudest is Florentino Ariza(Javier Bardem) who tells her that he has been waiting for this moment for the past 51 years. She throws him out before recalling when they first met. As a teenager and clerk for a telegraph office, Florentino(Unax Ugalde) admires her from afar before becoming bold enough to exchange letters which leads to a successful proposal of marriage but her father(John Leguizamo, chewing scenery like there is no tomorrow) does not think he is good enough for her and blocks the union.[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"Love in the Time of Cholera" is a vapid soap opera of almost epic proportions that like two other movies Javier Bardem has starred in(Before Night Falls & The Dancer Upstairs) should have been made in Spanish. There is little emotion when the movie returns to the present and it is hard to feel sorry for someone who has the amount of sexual activity that Florentino has had, even if he may have to worry about more than cholera. The movie does not know what to make of his behavior, settling on temerity, instead of erotic or bawdy. But I was not so interested in how he spent his life, as to how Dr. & Mrs. Urbino did and there is much missing including his fight against cholera and the family they raised together. Also missing is anything about the history of Colombia during such a large period of time except for the occasional gunfire and outbreak.[/font]

• Dedy N C

  
  There is two side of coins here, the waiting for love are very Good and may call it legend. But the way Ariza wait is stunning. But i wont use it as guide... How you remember the names and how you do it, and placed it in a diary? :))

• Yinalí R

  
  Somewhat, too good-a-love to be true. Absolutely loved it.

• William G

  
  If only the story were as lovely as it looks. Leguizamo hams it up mucho.

• Remi L

  
  Hilarious and beautiful. I love Javier Bardem, and was pleasantly surprised to see John Leguizamo and Hector Elizando. I wasn't expecting comedy in this film. I loved it

• Daisy M

  
  In the Tropics of South America, Colombia, an innocent desire blossom in to a romance of this beautifull novel. Florentino Ariza magistral performed by Academy winner Javier Bardem, spots the beautifull Fermina Daza, played by Giovanna Mezogiorno, and they fell inmediately in love.… More
  In the Tropics of South America, Colombia, an innocent desire blossom in to a romance of this beautifull novel. Florentino Ariza magistral performed by Academy winner Javier Bardem, spots the beautifull Fermina Daza, played by Giovanna Mezogiorno, and they fell inmediately in love. Denied by her father, Florentino refuses to give up the love of his life, even if tht means waiting decades to fill the passion of his heart. <a href="http://s420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/ladypink_2009/?action=view¤t=2007_love_in_the_time_of_cholera_02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/ladypink_2009/2007_love_in_the_time_of_cholera_02.jpg" border="0" alt="Javier Bardem"></a> Love in the time of Cholera, is a novel written by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Colombian novel writer. He was born in arataca, nothern region of Colombia, I believe many of you have not even heard of this man before, but he has written so many novels, tht has brought him to win Nobel Prize in litherature. Many of his novels were filmed, but this one particular was such a beautiful one, full of emotions and love. <a href="http://s420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/ladypink_2009/?action=view¤t=20071116ho_cholera_5001.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/ladypink_2009/20071116ho_cholera_5001.jpg" border="0" alt="love in..."></a> The movie itself describes the love of a man, who has waited so many years to be with the woman of his life, and thts why the question "how long would you wait for love"? Fans of romatic drama will adore this movie, just let you yourself get lost into this movie, I have no words for this, otherwise I will fill in pages, of wht I found of this whole movie, the cast consist actors like Benjamin Bratt, John Leguizamo and Hector Elizondo, simply great cast iincredible, Just watch it, and share afterwards it with me, Shakira songs were beautiful for the movie, if you are not Spanish speaking like me, make sure you have english undertitling, cuz little part is in spanish, very little. 5 stars ... Collection movie...Worth it to see.. <a href="http://s420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/ladypink_2009/?action=view¤t=love-in-the-time-of-cholera-5-10241.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/ladypink_2009/love-in-the-time-of-cholera-5-10241.jpg" border="0" alt="love in time of Cholera"></a>

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