The first time I watched this, my mouth was hanging open. I've read _Lolita_ dozens of times, and over and over again the movie captured it exactly the way it is in my mind.
Lyne's extraordinary sense of time and place, the uncanny casting of Jeremy Irons and Dominique Swain (although I agree with some posters that Melanie Griffith wasn't up to the job; makes me miss the late great Shelley Winters), Morricone's haunting music -- they're all remarkable. And best of all, the film perfectly captures the ambiguity of the book: we can sympathize with Humbert at the same time as we recognize him as the monster he is. I don't think _Lolita_ could be done much better than this. An amazing film.
Lyne's extraordinary sense of time and place, the uncanny casting of Jeremy Irons and Dominique Swain (although I agree with some posters that Melanie Griffith wasn't up to the job; makes me miss the late great Shelley Winters), Morricone's haunting music -- they're all remarkable. And best of all, the film perfectly captures the ambiguity of the book: we can sympathize with Humbert at the same time as we recognize him as the monster he is. I don't think _Lolita_ could be done much better than this. An amazing film.