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Movies / On DVD / The Draughtsman's Contract
The Draughtsman's Contract

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The Draughtsman's Contract (1982)

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Reviews Counted:17

Fresh:17

Rotten:0

Average Rating:8/10

Runtime: 1 hr 48 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Mrs. Herbert and her husband are having some marital difficulties, so he decides to take a two week holiday by himself. To surprise him on his return, Mrs. Herbert commissions an artist to paint... Mrs. Herbert and her husband are having some marital difficulties, so he decides to take a two week holiday by himself. To surprise him on his return, Mrs. Herbert commissions an artist to paint twelve portraits of her estate. The artist agrees, but on the condition that Mrs. Herbert lend him the use of her bodily favors for those two weeks. When Mr.. Herbert is found dead in his own mote at the end of those two weeks, the artist is the prime suspect, and Mrs. Herbert believes the mystery can be solved by close examination of the paintings the artist did. Greenaway's film feels a bit like BLOW-UP, but examines a world far stranger than the one of its setting; it feels as though the film takes place in a parallel universe rather than the 17th century. [More]

Starring: Anthony Higgins, Janet Suzman, Dave Hill, Michael Feast

Starring: Anthony Higgins, Janet Suzman, Dave Hill, Michael Feast, Hugh Fraser, Anne Louise Lambert

Director: Peter Greenaway

Director: Peter Greenaway
Composer: Michael Nyman

[See More Credits]

Reviews for The Draughtsman's Contract

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1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; UK critics are listed first)
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Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
08/01/03
Jamie Russell
Jamie Russell
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

ravishingly beautiful

comment Comment
04/06/05
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
08/05/03
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
05/24/03
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Greenaway ploughs the familiar landscape of the murder mystery, but plants in it new, exotic fruits all of his own.

Full Review Source: Movie Gazette | comment Comment
02/13/04
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Movie Gazette

No review available.

comment Comment
01/23/04
Carol Cling
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal

No review available.

comment Comment
11/04/07
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out New York | comment Comment
01/18/08
David Fear
David Fear
Time Out New York

One of the best, most original and diabolical films to come out of England.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
08/22/07
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

No review available.

comment Comment
07/04/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

The Draughtsman's Contract is a thoroughly entertaining murder mystery set in 17th century England.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
02/04/04
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

It shows the director at his best and most playful, and it's a strange delight.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
02/21/08
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

A puzzle book for intellectual aesthetes.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
01/22/08
Jeremiah Kipp
Jeremiah Kipp
Slant Magazine

Far from Greenaway's best work. Very far.

comment Comment
01/16/03
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

This isn't your standard costume drama fare.

Full Review Source: Goatdog's Movies | comment Comment
02/28/02
Michael W. Phillips, Jr.
Michael W. Phillips, Jr.
Goatdog's Movies

Artificial in the extreme, it may nevertheless be Greenaway's most naturalistic and easygoing film.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
07/05/07
Nathan Lee
Nathan Lee
Village Voice

No review available.

comment Comment
07/30/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
10/23/04
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ted Prigge
Ted Prigge
rec.arts.movies.reviews
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; UK critics are listed first)
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