Zandalee

Love has left the marriage of Zandalee and Thierry, so Zandalee finds ecstasy in the arms of Johnny, her husband's boyhood friend. Once aroused, her longings cannot be satisfied ...

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» Queued up by 12 people

DL 1152155 Joseph Demme YZ 429452 Mark the Snark SK 520974 Ghost Zapper NP 884639 LL 336918 BA 1569487 Rich1516 Amynescence DM 766828

» Reviewed by 2 people

You wouldn’t expect a casting choice combining Judge Reinhold and Nicolas Cage to work. Especially setting them against each other in a romantic thriller. In another circumstance, perhaps it wouldn’t. But Reinhold has a production credit on “Zandalee.” I can’t know what brought this odd coupling about. Maybe he set it up to be cast opposite Cage in his own picture. None of it matters. In Zandalee, Cage is his usual self and Reinhold rises to the occasion. He pulls off a performance far beyond expectations. The third part of this triangle is Erika Anderson (of “Twin Peaks” fame) and she throws the right amount of flame in the right directions at the right times. Before I go farther, originally this film was rated NC-17. For U.S. distribution it was cut down to an R. I have the uncut version in my collection but I’ve seen the version NF carries. “Zandalee” is beautifully shot and has perfect continuity in the original version but you can tell great care was taken when they cut it for the MPAA. They managed to trim the eros without doing too much harm to the thriller. The result is a hot, steamy, thriller romance instead of a fiery erotic thriller. In other words, you may not see what motivates the depths of passion driving these men at each other, but you’re still left with a solid, satisfying thriller. Cage is an artist who returns to his Louisiana home town and ends up staying in the home of his childhood best friend. Cage promptly seduces his friends wife and the common story goes to uncommon places. The R version is not a bad movie or a great movie. It’s a hot thriller set in steamy New Orleans and just waiting for summertime viewers. I hope my thoughts are helpful 06/21/08 ~~~Wingz
- Wingz

This is a quirky low budget affair. More erotic than thriller, this movie is blessed by the ravishing beauty of Erika Anderson's body and cursed by some of worse acting I've seen from Nicolas Cage. It's hard to believe he already had a dozen or so films under his belt when this was made including Raising Arizona, which he was good in. Judge Reinhold was okay. The plot was... well, what plot? You already know the whole story. A guy seduces his friend's wife (who happens to be ripe for the plucking). That was about it. Why were these guys friends? They never appeared to like each other. The backdrop of New Orleans helped make it worth watching. Apart from showing off her assets, I thought Erika Anderson's performance was the best of the lead actors, and the only believable character of the three. For me she made the movie.
- couchdog53