Lisistrata (2002) * 1/2
directed by Francesc Bellmunt with Maribel Verdú, Javier Gurruchaga, Juan Luis Galiardo, Teté Delgado, Jesús Bonilla, Aitor Mazo and Albert Trifol.
OK. Let's suppose you don't know who Ralf König is. This guy is a german gay comic author whose comics have been previously adapted to the big screen ("Maybe, maybe not", "The Killer Condom") with different result. Lisistrata is his adaptation of Aristófanes' play about a woman from Athens that begins a women strike in Athens and Spartha till war between both cities is over. You may wonder: what's the big deal with the strike? That they don't have sex with their partners, so they carry all day gigantic erections that prevent them of making war with a minimum of dignity. That is, till the gay and lesbian community of both Spartha and Athens notice that this is a golden chance. How the situation develops leads to one of the funniest comic-books ever written, a comic that spread all over Europe becoming a cult classic. It is not strange that the adaptation comes from Spain.Thinking about it twice, only spanish and italian film-makers could have done a good job. And Francesc Bellmunt was in the list of possibilities for developing a good comedy. Add to the cocktail "Y tu mamá también"'s Maribel Verdú as Lisistrata and some good spanish actors and I can't understand how this went so wrong. The problem? It's called "over the top, mediterranean style". The movie never leaves the ground and the funny stuff becomes mostly unfunny (with some exceptions: Aitor Mazo and Albert Trifol's relationship gives the best moments of the movie which have some hilarious shots and situations, but develops with a feeling of "am I supposed to laugh?" most of the time. I won't get further in a movie that doesn't need a more extensive review to disqualify it. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate it. It's just simply forgettable.
Go, look for the Ralf König comic-book, read it, and only check out this movie if you're really curious about how it got translated to the big screen.
