Own it:
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With: Jean-Marc Barr, Jean Reno, Rosanna Arquette, Paul Shenar, Sergio Castellitto, Jean Bouise, Marc Duret, Griffin Dunne, Andreas Voutsinas, Valentina Vargas, Kimberley Beck, Bruce Guerre-Berthelot, Gregory Forstner
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Written by: Luc Besson, Robert Garland, Marilyn Goldin, Jacques Mayol, Marc Perrier, based on a story by Luc Besson
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Directed by: Luc Besson
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MPAA Rating: R for sexuality and language
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Running Time: 168
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Date: 08/19/1988
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Sea Right Through You
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
Luc Besson's The Big Blue was released in France at (to the best of my knowledge) 138 minutes and with a score by Eric Serra, and was a huge success. In the U.S., a version that ran 118 minutes, with a different score (by Bill Conti), was released and flopped. I finally had a chance to watch the 168-minute director's cut. I don't suppose there's much going on here, really, but it's a beautiful film that feels like a warm vacation. It focuses on two free-divers, Jacques Mayol (Jean-Marc Barr) and Enzo Molinari (Jean Reno), who have known each other since they were kids in Greece, and are now friends and competitors. Jacques's life is upended when he meets the gorgeous American insurance agent Johana Baker (Rosanna Arquette). Hers is too; she drops everything and moves to Europe to be with him. The film was shot in Greece, France, Peru, Sicily, and more, and the landscapes are always breathtaking. Even more breathtaking is the underwater photography, showing the divers, indeed, without any breathing gear. It's based on a pair of real-life guys, but it's such a loose adaptation that it barely qualifies as a biopic.
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