Cult director Peter Greenaway is not used to having his films booed at the Cannes Film Festival, but this one was - at least it was by most of those who managed to last the two hours-plus running time. Many others bailed out early either through boredom or digust or a mixture of both. The cast today looks like a dream, with Ralph Fiennes and Julia Ormond both playing central roles before achieving Hollywood top billing, but the plot (was there ever actually a workable script? ) is a rambling, shambling, farago. Basically it's about the exploitation of a 17th century baby by the boy's sister (Ormond) and other relatives. Many of the scenes are difficult to watch with the sister at one point sentenced by a bishop to be raped 217 times, which leads to a particularly gruesome death scene. From its highly theatrical opening shots of the baby's hideously bloated mother giving birth, this a non-stop gut-splattered gorefest. That in itself may be an attraction to a minority of viewers but most will be reaching for the channel zapper long before the end credits.


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