Original Sin MPAA Rating: R Entertainment: +1 1/2 Content: -3

Cuban coffee house owner Louis Durand (Antonio Banderas) begins his relationship with Julia Russell (Angelina Jolie) through letters – she living in Delaware and he in Cuba. So, having agreed to marry, Julia arrives in Cuba, and Louis is shocked to find she looks nothing like the picture she sent of herself. She explains that she sent a picture of her more homely sister so her stunning beauty would not motivate him. In response he confesses to actually owning the coffee house, telling her he was only a clerk so she would not be motivated by his immense bank account. They marry within the day, and all is well until suspicions arise that Julia is not quite what she appears to be. ORIGINAL SIN is laughable from the outset. An unbelievable plot to go along with numerous technical problems should make for a quick death at the box office.

The relationship between Julia and Louis is predicated on deception, and things only spiral downward from there. Several characters are clearly motivated only by their own desires. And while one character professes what they consider to be pure motives, it's clear the person’s own selfish desires strongly motivate their actions throughout a great deal of the film. With a cheesy Hollywood ending, the film portrays a world in which following one’s heart/desires will end positively and that consequences for actions are avoided through deception. The former leaves out any consideration of the actual theological concept of original sin, while the latter wholeheartedly affirms it. This is not to mention the rampant sexual content. One graphic sex scene seems lifted from a pornographic movie, and nudity seems frequent. Even though set in a more genteel time, foul language is surprisingly light with only a few profanities, but at least one graphic sex scene, repeated nudity, and other sexual content makes ORIGINAL SIN one bad apple.

Preview Reviewer: John Adair
Distributor: MGM, 2500 Broadway St., Santa Monica, CA 90404