Bound (1996)
Average Rating: 7.8/10
Reviews Counted: 37
Fresh: 34 | Rotten: 3
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 8.5/10
Critic Reviews: 6
Fresh: 6 | Rotten: 0
No consensus yet.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 32,319
My Rating
Movie Info
Gina Gershon and Jennifer Tilly nearly set the screen on fire in this clever, female-powered twist on the standard Mob caper film. Gershon is Corky, an ex-con renovating the apartment next door to where Tilly's Violet lives. Violet is the moll of psychotic gangster Caesar (Joe Pantoliano), who uses the apartment as an occasional location for meetings and beatings, and also uses Violet as an occasional plaything for his Mob cronies. Violet is attracted to the super-sexy Corky, and the two begin
Oct 4, 1996 Wide
Jun 19, 2001
Republic Pictures Home Video
Cast
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Jennifer Tilly
Violet -
Gina Gershon
Corky -
Joe Pantoliano
Caesar -
Barry Kivel
Shelly -
Christopher Meloni
Johnnie Marconi -
John P. Ryan
Mickey Malnato -
Richard C. Sarafian
Gino Marzzone -
Peter Spellos
Lou -
Mary Mara
Bartender -
Gene Borkan
Roy -
Ivan Kane
cop -
Susie Bright
Jesse -
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Margaret Smith
Woman Cop
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Bound Trailer & Photos
All Critics (55) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (34) | Rotten (4) | DVD (13)
Some caper movies build suspense, while others tweak the genre with tongue lancing cheek. But this lesbian caper pic often pulls off both feats in the same scene, even simultaneously.
[VIDEO ESSAY] Revered in lesbian circles for its hat-tips to the milieu's authenticity, "Bound" is a neo-noir that earns every ratchet click of tension is draws from its audience - body and soul.
A typical film-only platter from Olive Films benefits from a sturdy transfer, which flatters some of this hot-lesbian-action thriller's design elements more than others.
It's been praised for its spin on film noir standards, but all it actually does is reproduce them and arrange them back-to-back.
I was on the edge of my seat most of the time.
This lesbian crime drama is enjoyable, though it's a pale imitation of the Cohen brothers and Tarantino.
Stylish, nicely written and filled with tension. An exceptional piece of filmmaking.
A masterful neo-noir, with bright and shiny colors and contrasts, deliciously camp acting, and a killer plot.
Excellent movie, proving the Wachowski Brothers did have talent, once.
Gangsters and Lesbos and pre-Matrix Wachowskis . . . oh my!
Audience Reviews for Bound
Super Reviewer
The result is this nifty little convention tweaking neo-noir crime thriller Corky is a tough ex-con who, newly released from prison, begins work as a painter and plumber working out of her new apartment she's renovating. She lives next door to Violet, the disgruntled and fed up girlfriend of psycho sleazeball mobster Caesar. Violet dreams of leaving her current life and starting over. After beginning a clandestine affair with Corky, the two hatch a plot to steal $2 million from the mob and make Violet's dream a reality.
Despite the superficiality of the plot, this is a slick and clever little thriller that takes something old and puts a nice twist on it. The action is intense, the atmosphere great, and, best of all, there's great characters who are wonderfully developed, and the way that the affair between Violet and Corky is handled is one of the best and most realistic lesbian relationships ever done in a mainstream film. Bravo.
Strong writing only takes a character so far, but thankfully, these characters are brought to life by solid, believable performances from a stellar cast which includes Jennifer Tilly as Violet, Gina Gershon as Corky, and Joe Pantoliano as Caesar. The actual heist plot gets rather involved, but it's fairly easy to follow, and there's an unbelievable amount of suspense going on as things progress, and I found myself on the edge of my seat more than once.
Give this one a watch. It's a snazzy genre film that tweaks formula, is quite tense, and handles lesbianism in a way that unfortunately isn't done as often as it should be. Also, the Wachowski's original script for Assassins can be found online. I highly recommend reading that as well.
Super Reviewer
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- Caesar: What did she do to you?
- Violet: Everything you couldn't.
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- Corky: [after making love with Violet] I can see again!
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- Violet: I'm not sorry for what I did, I'm sorry for what I didn't do!
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