In the Soup

Being one of the biggest movie experts ever my movie knowledge is so varied, that you shouldn't be surprised of the fact that I know the neo-realist movement even tho I have seen very few movies from that movement. And since I am a big fan of Steve Buscemi, I knew that I had to see this one, and I mildly liked it. Adolpho Rollo (Buscemi) is a loser that lives in an apartment and is often visited by two gangsters that menace of breaking his legs unless he pays the rent and has dreams of being a filmmaker despite he can't have his projects green-lighted. His fate seems to change when he meets Joe (Seymour Cassel) who shows some interest in his script and wants to turn it in a movie. But more Adolpho spends time with Joe he notices that the guy isn't right and refuses to work for him. Joe doesn't take no for an answer and will do everything for making Adolpho say yes for doing the damn movie. This film is surprising because even tho it's shot in black and white and probably made on a low budget, it has a lot of famous supporting actors. Not only Cassel and Buscemi, but also Stanley Tucci, Will Patton, Sam Rockwell (and his brother directed it), Jennifer Beals, Debi Mazar and Paul Herman, so you certainly should have money for hiring all these names. I liked the performances but I thought that at times it was a bit too strange and some moments were on the verge of confusing the viewer. So, my advice would be to suspend disbelief because if you think too much your head might explode.

If you love Jim Jarmusch, Bukowski novels and the music of Tom Waits, you will probably like this. Down and out protagonist dreaming of bigger things. Shot beautifully in black and white. This movie proves that you dont need a big budget to make great cinema. And makes you wonder what happened to the whole entertainment industry in the last 50 years. It seems like success and prosperity kills all greatness. My theory is that it creates a spiritual gap between the haves and te havenots. No matter how rich you get, however many accolades. One man starving means humanity is starving. Every single orphan represents our own moral cowardice. Movies like this remind us to celebrate the madness. All is fair in love and war.

I really loved this film... I found it refreshing and a real oddball classic.. Seymour Cassell is incredible and Steve Buscemi and Jennifer Beals put in great performance... The story is unique and the humour might not suit every-one but I certainly enjoyed it. The Use of voice-overs was refreshing and I found myself completely engrossed with Aldolpho does any-one agree.. I highly recommend. Can any-one recommend a similar film I might enjoy? Steve Buscemi=9/10 Seymour Cassell=9/10 Jennifer Beals=7/10 but Jim Jarmusch=10/10 A truly hilarious cameo

I remember watching this movie back in the nineties and REwatching it back again now in 2023 I just realised how MAGNIFICENT this picture STILL IS! The GOOD: this is THE REAL THING!. The photography is OFF THIS PLANET. It's gorgeous. I am not exagerating one bit. Because EVERY scene is like jawdropping GORGEOUS black and white. MORE GOOD: this picture is FUNNY. And I mean the kind of funny you rarely encounter, where almost every other scene is SO in your face beautiful AND offbeat AND STILL REAL and FUNNY simultaneously! Oh, this is really one of the most MAGNIFICENT movie classics (that has been completely overlooked and forgotten) of the nineties. Steve Buscemi is like...comedy heaven. One of his best performances of his carreer. Even more praise for Seymour Cassel, who gives one of the best performances of his lifetime. Also starring the ever lovely and charismatic and shining Jennifer Beals. Actor's paradise! The heart and soul of this movie is so VISCERAL and ALIVE and god honest GORGEOUS. I am in AWE... WHAT a movie. Spread the word. Only 19 reviews for one of the most MAGNIFICENT comedy movies of the nineties. Let's give this movie the credits, the applause it deserves. BRAVO!

This is a wonderful film. Quirky, funny, moving it's one of those films which gets under your skin. My skin, anyways. See it if you love Steve Buscemi, Seymour Cassel, Jennifer Beals or great, offbeat movies.

Adolpho (Steve Buscemi) is a loser who wants to be a filmmaker. However, his prospects are non-existent and he has two singing gangsters threatening to break his legs unless he pays his rent. His fortune seems to have changed when he finds a guy who likes his work and wants to finance his films. But the more time Adolpho spends with Joe (Seymour Cassel) the more he realizes the guy just ain't right...plus he's a crook. Adolpho is shocked and despite the two guys threatening him, he refuses to work with Joe, as Joe just seems dangerous and bizarre. Joe simply won't take no for an answer. What's next? See the film. This small black & white independent film is very odd. It's because although it appears to have been made for practically nothing and looks grubby, it has an amazing array of supporting actors. This includes the director Jim Jarmusch (in an acting role), Jennifer Beals, Stanley Tucci, Carol Kane and Sam Rockwell in addition to Cassel and Buscemi. Obviously the filmmakers knew people. So is it any good? Well, it certainly never is dull as the film is jam-packed full of weird and quirky folks. You just can't ignore them--and they are captivating and it looks, at times, like a Fellini film (he was known for the 'faces' co-starring in his movies). Weird beyond belief the more you watch! The only one who came off poorly, surprisingly, was Tucci, as his accent sounded very strange. The rest were strange but entertaining....as was the entire film! My recommendation is to watch it but turn off your brain...otherwise you're bound to wonder WHAT you are seeing!

A neurotic nebbish (Steve Buscemi) lives in two worlds: the fantasy of winning his dream-girl (Jennifer Beals) via a hit movie, and the meager existence he scrapes out from very odd jobs, such as thesping in an arty no-budget flick. How fitting that Jim Jarmusch has a cameo, because this film is very much a Jarmusch type of movie. Had his name been under the "directed by" heading, I would never have doubted it. Which, I suppose, is a compliment to the real director. You also have to hand it to them for getting such a stellar cast. Buscemi is an indie darling, but Beals had already gone big by this point -- it was brave for her to take this role. This is not so much a movie about making a movie as it is an underworld film. Not a mob movie, exactly, but definitely people of loose character who walk on the edges of society. And yet, there is something rather charming about them.

Movies about making movies are always fascinating because there is always an element of truth in them. Just look at The Big Picture or The Player. In the Soup is similar in theme but lacking in execution. It's hard to deny that there was potential in In the Soup. The cast is solid (Steve Buscemi has a knack of appearing in films about filmmaking) and the story foundation is ripe for a brilliant satire. Beyond those things, however, there's a virtual vacuum. Excepting a few witty dialogue exchanges and quirky moments, In the Soup is a combination of a meandering script and rootless characters. I can count on one hand the number of scenes that were inventive, engaging, and/or amusing. The script-within-a-script, Unconditional Surrender, is a masterpiece of worthlessness. In the Soup is a case of reality imitating art.

This enjoyable indie feature, a one of a kind crossover of Jarmusch meets Coen brothers with a touch of David Lynch proved to be a true revelation. An outsider loser played with true perfection by Steve Buscemi with his wide-eyed naiveté, lives in a dingy apartment with Tarkovsky, Goddard and Renoir on his wannabe filmmaker's mind and is suckered into a passionate relationship with a smiling gangster beautifully portrayed by the late Seymour Cassel, a role that won him a prize at Sundance for his scene-stealing turn as Joe, the small-time hood who helps aspiring filmmaker Adolpho Rollo (Steve Buscemi) make his screen bow in return for the odd favour. Cassel once claimed that the fun part of acting was "filling out a part and making it a little crazy", and this is the key to his byplay with Buscemi. Buscemi on the other hand is filming his dream with 16mm camera exactly like the Kieslowski's "Film buff" and the centerpiece of this dream is beautiful Angelica Peña, played by Jennifer Beals in a truly memorable role. Their relationship is a roller coaster ride between contempt and affection a perfect antithesis to the role Cassel plays in both their lives. Stanley Tucci has a great cameo as French oddball wannabe husband to Beals and in a scene taken directly from David Lynch his favorite little man Michael J. Anderson appears and does the trick. Not to forget couple of idiotic landlords that spark up the story and LP record step-by-step guide to dancing the Cha-Cha. I watched this movie with widest smile and it was such a refreshing experience to see the best parts of distinctive directors I love in each scene beautifully put together by Alexandre Rockwell. It's funny, it's refreshing and relaxing. You may even simpathize wit the characters. More than recommended.

Photographed in an inner-city urbanscape, it describes the almost comical struggle of a young actor-director. Some neighbors get involved, and other people found on the way. The story is quite unconventional. Not visually stimulating as a color movie, it yet has unusual picture frames (like the view through a keyhole distorted by lens) that make it most interesting. The facial details of the actors are also the highlight of this motion picture.