The Sheltering Sky *** (1990, Debra Winger, John Malkovich, Campbell Scott) – Classic Movie Review 7834

Debra Winger and John Malkovich play an American couple, playwright Kit Moresby and her husband composer Port Moresby, travelling in Morocco in 1947, who go abroad to revitalise their relationship but instead face physical and moral disintegration, in director Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1990 adventure drama film of Paul Bowles’s novel The Sheltering Sky.

Campbell Scott plays George Tunner, a young dilettante the couple take along with them in their search for adventure and love.

The powerful actors seem a bit at sea with such highbrow literary material, and, with it running 138 minutes, there is a much shorter, more exciting film trying to escape. But The Sheltering Sky looks and sounds a treat in a meticulous production, with lovely cinematography by Vittorio Storaro, a striking score by Ryuichi Sakamoto and Richard Horowitz, and handsome production design by Gianni Silvestri. It was costly at $25 million, and none too popular in America, taking only just over $2 million.

The Sheltering Sky won one Golden Globe for Best Original Score – Motion Picture (Ryuichi Sakamoto and Richard Horowitz) and one BAFTA Film Award for Best Cinematography (Vittorio Storaro).

Also in the cast are Jill Bennett as Mrs Lyle, Timothy Spall as Eric Lyle, Eric Vu-An, Amina Annabi, Philippe Morier-Genoud and Paul Bowles plays himself at 80 years old as a man at a Tangiers café watching his characters from a seat in the café. He is also credited as the film’s narrator.

The Sheltering Sky is directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, runs 138 minutes, is made by Warner Bros, Sahara Company, TAO Film, Recorded Picture Company, Film Trustees Ltd and Aldrich Group, is released by Warner Bros and Palace, is written by Mark Peploe and Bernardo Bertolucci, is shot in Eastmancolor by Vittorio Storaro, is produced by Jeremy Thomas, is scored by Ryuichi Sakamoto and Richard Horowitz, and is designed by Gianni Silvestri.

RIP great film-maker Bernardo Bertolucci, who died of cancer on 26 November 2018, aged 77, in Rome. He is best remembered for The Last Emperor, Last Tango in Paris, and The Conformist. Producer Jeremy Thomas remembers him as ‘one of the greats’.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 7834

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