StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Salubfoto It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Rexanne It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

framptonhollis Beautiful! Kenneth Anger's obscure filmography is chock full of artistic masterpieces, and "Eaux d'artifice" is among his very best work! Unlike many other Anger films, "Eaux d'artifice" is not provocative, explicit, or disturbing, instead it is a gorgeous, magical short focusing on the majesty of water. The fountains featured in the film flow with grace, water moves majestically through nearly every shot, images dissolve in and out of one another in a uniquely constructed, breathtaking way. This film will likely have fans of experimental art and imagery speechless, gleefully bathing in Anger's adventurous imagination. An avant garde classic this one is, and for good reason!

gavin6942 A woman dressed elegantly walks purposely through the water gardens at the Villa d'Este in Tivoli, as the music of Vivaldi's "Winter" movement of "The Four Seasons" plays. Heavy red filters give a blue cast to the light; water plays across stone, and fountains send it into the air. No words are spoken. Baroque statuary and the sensuous flow of water are back lit. Anger calls it "water games." Based on what I've read, many have considered this among Anger's best, or his masterpiece, and it is apparently very influential. For me, I just did not care for it. I get that he shot it very beautifully and the use of tinting and light make this something of a moving painting. But, you know, it does not have that imagery I expect from his work.

greenegg Many years ago, I took a college film/literature/art class co-taught by a marvelous English professor/filmmaker and an art professor who was also a gifted modern artist. The entire experience proved enlightening and just plain delightful, despite a handful of redneck ignoramuses. One of the most captivating, intriguing films we viewed during that class was Eaux d'artifice. I adore water gardens, such as the ones I had already toured at Longwood and Chatsworth. Long a student of history, I felt fascinated watching this rather small woman in 18th century garb waft about the sumptuous foliage and water arrangements amid the splendor of Tivoli and the d'Este estate. Vivaldi's Winter provided the perfect soundtrack. Thirty years on, I recollect this incredible film with the greatest pleasure. The photography remains breathtaking, even filtered through my memory banks. We also viewed Anger's Magick Lantern Cycle, which simply confirmed my estimation of Anger's genius. His use of imagination in exploring history and eroticism through the framework of the arts also stimulated my own imagination. This film, as well as Anger's other work, certainly bear exploration. Sit back and let the beauty of Tivoli and the mystery of its diminutive guest waft over you.

EyeAskance A stunning water garden is the empyrean setting for this short film, one of the director's strongest works. The ceaseless motion of liquid in an elaborate fountain-system is given close study in high-contrast black and white...jets, streams and droplets dance madly to classical music as the water becomes seemingly enlivened with a zoetic personality. The mood shifts with the music's dramatic rise-and-fall, being somber and wintry one moment, majestic and powerful the next. Intermittently, a shadowy figure in period costume moves hurriedly through the scenery, adding even further mystique to the proceedings. Mesmerizing in its organic beauty...a small masterwork. 9/10