★★★ Venus

[Gino: 4.0, Towshoes: 2.0]

Gino says: 'This film stars Peter O'Toole as an aging and ailing actor, who becomes fascinated with his friend's teenage helper. Before seeing this, I thought I was going to be disgusted by the 'romantic' relationship implied here. And, guess what, I was! I was squirming. However, giving it more thought, sexuality is so much a part of (at least) a man's conception of what it means to be alive that it turns out to be quite a good pivot point for a meditation on death, which this film is.

The acting was excellent (any time you have Venessa Redgrave in a film as merely a supporting role, that's a good thing). O'Toole was great, as was the girl, and the supporting cast.

This is probably one of the largest disparities between my rating and Twoshoes's -- she thought it lacked something that she couldn't quite place, but mostly she was expecting a Waking Ned Divine, which this definitely wasn't. To summarize: I was not enthralled, but admired this.'