Product Description

Presented by Quentin Tarantino, MY NAME IS MODESTY is the thrilling adventure about a sexy spy who's skilled in the art of deception ... and the ways of revenge! Orphaned as a child and raised by a casino owner with ties to the mob, Modesty Blaise learned early on how to fight, steal, and spy. Once grown, she becomes the casino owner's bodyguard, but is ultimately unable to protect him from a murderous old enemy. Now, with vengeance on her mind, it's time for payback! Based on the popular "Modesty Blaise" series of graphic novels, it's a stylish big-screen adaptation full of action and suspense!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #46296 in DVD
• Brand: STADEN,ALEXANDRA
• Released on: 2004-09-28
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 78 minutes

Amazon.com
My Name Is Modesty is a sleek but hardy entertainment based on cartoonist Peter O'Donnell's story about an orphaned girl who survives wars, deserts, and sundry hardships to become the tough manager of a Tangiers casino. Alexandra Staden (Vanity Fair) is the second actress to play Modesty Blaise in a feature film (Monica Vitti took the role in 1966), and her beautiful cool and enigmatic poise are perfect for the mysterious yet likeable heroine. My Name Is Modesty cleverly introduces Modesty's background and wiles in a thriller set during an armed takeover of the casino. Deflecting demands by a terrorist leader (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) while also creatively keeping hostages alive, Modesty agrees to a game of roulette with the strongman. She plays for lives; he plays to hear chapters from her unknown life, reluctantly told. Directed by actor-director Scott Spiegel and presented by Quentin Tarantino (among the DVD's special features is a conversation between the two), the film is a noble, engaging genre piece. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Modesty Done Right -- Who'd'a Thunk It?
For fans of Peter O'Donnell's character Modesty Blaise, screen adaptations have been very frustrating. The Sixties flick sacrificed O'Donnell's vision in favor of the campy cool that was in back then, which entertained fans of Sixties cool while forcing livid Modesty Blaise fans to wonder why the movie's producers bothered to pay good money licensing Blaise if they weren't going to use the Blaise they licensed. A later, barely-noticed small screen adaptation similarly put the beloved name of Blaise to the service of a generic action plot about generic characters.

When the highly regarded moviemaker Quentin Tarantino announced that he was a fan of O'Donnell's books and comics about Blaise and wanted to see the Modesty Blaise property done right on the big screen, that gave fans some hope. But he said that ten years ago, and little has been done since -- until this cheap, direct-to-video Modesty Blaise prequel, which was shot in less than a month solely because Miramax would lose the rights to the property if it hadn't made a movie within a certain time. That's right -- this movie is a hurry-up, zero-budget flick about a character that others couldn't get right on a big budget with plenty of time. And it's a prequel, to boot. A recipe for diaster if there ever was one.

But something went wrong with the recipe, and the movie turned out to be the only one so far that deserves fan approval. While its shoestring budget means low production values that will turn off those who don't care much for the character, the script's fidelity to O'Donnell's vision of Blaise will make fans slap their foreheads and shout, "At last!"

This is mostly due to a faithful script that cleverly manages to work O'Donnell's enjoyable account of Blaise's childhood into a conversation between the teenage Modesty and a sadistic thug who takes her hostage at the casino where she works. Also, care went into casting Modesty. Alexandra Staden is clearly not the athelete Blaise is supposed to be -- for all her slenderness, her arms are flabby -- but she otherwise bears a striking physical resemblance, she carries herself well, and she does a good exotic accent.

For those looking for a high-class flick, though, the low production values will be a sticking point. The movie looks like it was made for ten bucks, and though the script manages to justify the low number of sets, the movie is stagebound enough that justification was required. Plus, the action sequences, though rare (this is more of a suspense movie), are not particularly well-staged or effective. This is definitely direct-to-video fare.

But for Modesty Blaise fans, it is direct-to-video fare that will be a blast, and a relief, to watch. If this much care went into putting the Modesty Blaise that O'Donnell fans know and love into a rinky-dink video just made to preserve the producers' rights to the franchise, then we can have confidence that when they finally manage to make the big-budget one, it will be one the fans will love. (Heck, by that time, Staden may be old enough to play the early-thirties Modesty that movie will require.)

Surprisingly good--for Modesty fans
I just finished watching the Miramax "My Name is Modesty", and, I'm afraid, actually enjoyed it. Understand something--it's not a full blown, big-budget action blowout. But it tells the story of fiction's most spectacular female agent, one rendered for thirty years in comic strips and more than ten novels. Peter O'Donnell's creation is brought more fully to life here than in previous live-action incarnations, but it's a small film, made so that Miramax could keep their movie rights. That said, I loved it, and real Modesty fans will as well. More to the point, I now have hope that someone might make a "real" full out Blaise film one day. This isn't a bad start at all!

Modesty Blaise fans rejoice!
For the uninitiated, this film will probably be hit or miss. For diehard Modesty Blaise fans like myself, however, it is manna from heaven. It is Modesty Blaise portrayed as she should be! I was skeptical when I heard it was shot in only 18 days on a low budget and was only 78 minutes long. On viewing it, however, I was more than delightfully surprised. The film is very much in line with the MB history and mystique the way Peter O'Donnell wrote it for so many years, and those in the know will recognize many of the elements (and a couple of characters) that have played a role in the novels and short stories.

Alexandra Staden was previously unknown to me, but she deftly portrays Modesty (a difficult role at best) true to character, though it's obvious the producers should have had her work with a trainer to build up and tone her body prior to filming. One important bit of lore that was overlooked was that Modesty was never shod until she was 14, but it's a small discrepancy to live with given the film's otherwise authentic portrayal of the character and history overall. Watch for the single, character-defining moment when Modesty rips her skirt. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the Modesty Blaise fans like me have come to adore and cheer for! My only real complaint? One film is not enough; I want more!