Valmont

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Valmont ★★★ 1989 (R)

Another adaptation of the Choderlos de Laclos novel “Les Liaisons Dangereuses.” Various members of the French aristocracy in 1782 mercilessly play each other for fools in a complex game of lust and deception. Firth and Bening are at first playfully sensual, then the stakes get too high. They share an interesting bathtub scene. Well-acted, the 1988 Frears version, “Dangerous Liaisons,” is edgier. Seeing the two films together makes for interesting comparisons of characters and styles. 137m/C VHS, DVD . Colin Firth, Meg Tilly, Annette Bening, Fairuza Balk, Sian Phillips, Jeffrey Jones, Fabia Drake, Henry Thomas, Vincent Schiavelli, T.P. McKenna, Ian McNeice; D: Milos Forman; W: Jean-Claude Carriere; M: Christopher Palmer. Cesar ‘90: Art Dir./Set Dec., Costume Des.