Popular reviews

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  Review by eely ★★★★ 3

  I googled “what are tilda swinton’s pronouns” while watching this and couldn’t find any clear results and then I realized how idiotic it was of me to think I could address tilda at all.

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  Review by BRÁT ★★★★½ 3

  delightful similarities between Orlando and The Favourite: 
  - filmed at hatfield house
  - costumes by sandy powell
  - handel featured on soundtrack
  - queen anne’s gout is specifically namedropped
  - “my life is like a maze that i continually think i've gotten out of only to find another corner right in front of me.” - abigail dealing with loss of nobility//orlando coping with loss of nobility by frantically running, lost, through a hedge maze 
  - GAY as HELL!!!!!

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  Review by fran hoepfner ★★★½ 1

  men... women... doesn't matter who you are... we are all clothes

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  Review by KYK ★★★½ 2

  orlandx

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  Review by Laura ★★★½ 3

  tilda breaking the fourth wall gives me the same rush as phoebe waller-bridge breaking the fourth wall

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  Review by Lucy ★★★½

  the absolute flex of writing this classic because of a love affair with vita sackville-west... exactly virginia

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  Review by Sara Clements ★★★★½ 1

  “Same person. No difference at all...just a different sex.”

  Orlando is so incredibly smart and ahead of its time. It picks apart societal roles and questions what is viewed as a "real" woman and what is viewed as a "real" man. It's a beautiful, poetic, and oftentimes fantastical story about a soul struggling to pursue their own agency in a society riddled with conventions in regards to gender and sexuality. A soul no longer wanting to be trapped by a destiny that was penned for them at birth. Woolf's depiction of Orlando in all their fluidity proves to be a very modern story that details the liberatory erosion of binary gender. Absolutely genius.

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  Review by Michael Scott ★★★★½ 4

  The British, they just don't seem to make films like this anymore. These manicured, composed, intricate films used to be the backbone of the British film industry (Peter Greenaway, anyone?) and now they are sorely missed, by me anyway.

  I love the esoteric quality of Potter's adaptation. I love its symmetry. I love its archness.

  Observe:

  Shelmerdine: You are hurt, ma'am?
  Orlando: I am dead, sir.
  Shelmerdine: Dead? That is serious, can I help?
  Orlando: Will you marry me?
  Shelmerdine: Ma'am, I would gladly but I fear my ankle is twisted.

  The cast is almost as beautiful as the mise-en-scéne: Tilda Swinton's black eyes are haunting and used to brilliant effect with the numerous, third wall breaking glances at the…

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  Review by SilentDawn ★★★★½ 5

  83

  Just lovely. Even from its mannered aesthetic and the glossy and stuffy costuming, Sally Potter's Orlando finds interest in the way that gender is constructed - how it is built up and broken down by the society's perception of stifling gender binary. Tilda Swinton turns in a marvelous performance, one that bursts with life while the constraining social roles act as an antagonizing force. With each narrative development, it is at odds between its composed structure and its blossoming agency, often excitingly so. The tension of a life being trapped forever, unable to break out of the mores of the time, and the ambiguity of transcendence, makes for an evocative work. And the droning synth soundtrack! Well ahead of its time.

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  Review by nora ★★★★ 1

  my favorite moment of this movie was the title card reading "SEX" that immediately preceded billy zane's entrance on a horse. what a legendary cut, sally potter is an icon

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  Review by Sarah🐐 ★★★★★ 1

  I want to go to the timeline where instead of "looks into the camera like Jim from The Office" the meme is "looks into the camera like Tilda Swinton in Orlando"

  A MASTERPIECE

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  Review by siobhan ★★★★½

  wow i really loved this a lot!!!! some random thoughts:

  1) this really put me in the mood to rewatch the favourite yet again bc it was filmed at the same iconic location

  2) the music popped off (that synth!!!) and i think is what elevated this for me and really set the tone

  3) is it really a tilda swinton movie if she’s not playing both a man and a woman