Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

I didn't know anything about Sally Potter's adaptation of Virginia Woolf's novel when I rented it, and that made "Orlando" even more of a treat. In a way, it predicted the era when gender definitions would be less defined, as Tilda Swinton's title character undergoes a significant change over the course of the movie. The changes that the eternally young Orlando personally experiences are as significant as those in society over the centuries.I wouldn't call it one of the greatest movies ever made, but I like how it shows the protagonist accepting who she is. Were "Orlando" more famous, it might now be an iconic movie among the people who don't conform to the gender binary spectrum.Anyway, it's a fine piece of work. A particularly impressive scene is Orlando running through a room full of works of art, having to move her dress from side to side to avoid hitting them. Those dresses must have been a pain to wear.Also starring Billy Zane (Titanic), John Wood (WarGames) and Toby Stephens (Die Another Day).

The 1992 independent movie Orlando is directed by Sally Potter. The main character, the omni-sexual hero-heroine of the story, Orlando, is played by Tilda Swinton. Orlando is based on Virginia Woolf's 1928 novel about an Elizabethan nobleman who remains youthful and changes sex as he lives through four centuries. The story begins in 1603 when Queen Elizabeth I tells Orlando to never grow old before awarding him with a grand estate. He starts his journey of love, poetry, finding his place in society, and searches for a meaning in life. The story follows Orlando's life experiences of love, life, and gender issues.In this film, there are some important aspects to reflect upon. Orlando includes the audience in the story as he/she speaks to us during a significant point or gives us a telling look. I thought that it was unnecessary to address the audience because when she slowly turns her head and gives us the deadpan expression, it seems strange and creepy. The film offers no explanation as to why Orlando suddenly changes from man to woman overnight. The intertitles over the course of the movie helped because it announces or labels the main focus and century during that time period that Orlando is living in. ***Spoiler*** The ending in the film leaves the audience questioning what would happen next as well as wondering why there were signing baby angels in the sky.The audience can identify the sexual roles during the different centuries. Orlando is a man in the beginning and exhibits feminine qualities and traits like poetry and love. It becomes a reversal as Orlando changes into a woman. She is independent, strong, and more masculine in some ways. We see that when Orlando was a man, he had the legal right to own property but when he returned as a woman from his ambassador trip in the Far East, she lost it all. This reinforced the belief that women are the second sex. In the late 20th century, we see that Orlando is driving a motorcycle and returning to the mansion that was once hers with her child in tow. Women and gender have changed throughout the centuries. It was also interesting to see Orlando as a man being disappointed in love and opening up to love again as a women.I really liked the settings in the movie. They really helped enhance the story. I was impressed by the historical detail and some of the notable moments, for example, Queen Elizabeth's entrance, the royal party on the lake, and the gardens. The background music and the costumes were a very important aspect during throughout the film. We can see that in the beginning of the movie, men's fashion and vanities exceeded the women during Queen Elizabeth's reign. The music helps create a dreamy atmosphere throughout the whole movie as Orlando drifts from century to century.I thought that this film was alright but very interesting at the same time and I would still be willing to watch it a second time because the story was confusing at first. I would like to read the novel by Virginia Woolf someday because I like to compare and contrast the movie and book. Overall, the movie is filled with beautiful scenes, great actors and actresses, and a good representation of how gender is viewed throughout the centuries. It is an interesting movie and If you like fantasy and gender-benders then I recommend it!

Sally Potter's Orlando is a clever and ambitious dissection of love and gender that defies culturally sexed expectations in both content and form. The film owes much of its narrative experimentalism to Virginia Woolf, who first conceived the story of immortal, androgynous Orlando as an exploration of societal prejudice and conduct, satirizing naively patriarchal feelings of romantic ownership and the laughably self- important status of masculine art. Potter deserves credit, however, for translating the story into a Brechtian subversion of traditional viewership modes: the film's drag casting, fourth wall disruption, titles and music all remind us to be conscious and critical of how we engage the film. Orlando is anchored by a charming performance from Tilda Swinton, and some stunning costume and set design. It is a smart film that challenges the sexed gaze, and it genuinely earns the sense of hope it ends on. -TK 10/12/10

What in the world do we gather from this film. Tilda Swinton plays the never aging male/female lord/lady Orlando. Queen Elizabeth I is also played by the "wrong" sex.When the young lord Orlando inherits the queens estate it's on the promise that he will always stay young and he does. What follows is a biography covering about 400 years and a sex change.This is indeed a fun look at the roles held by the two sexes during the course of these centuries. Though it does play more or less as a drama it has large shades of comedy as well. For one we have Orlando often throwing a few comments to the viewers about the plot + the ridiculousness of the whole set-up.Swinton is most certainly up for the challenge here. Portraying the ever changing lord/lady through this most strange journey. With wits and elegance this film comes off as one of the kind and something which should be experienced.