Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The movie is surprisingly subdued in its pacing, its characterizations, and its go-for-broke sensibilities.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

Sexual being Vera Barrie (Neve Campbell) is hired by African studies Professor Hassan Al-Ibrahim Ben Rabinowitz (James Toback) as his assistant. Hustler Ford Welles (Frederick Weller) is working for wealthy Italian Count Tommaso Lupo (Dominic Chianese). He convinces sex partner Vera to spend time with the count for $100k.I remember the main selling point for this was Neve getting naked. With the recent revelations about James Toback, it's impossible to separate the man from his work. Luckily, his work here isn't good and I'm not conflicted about crapping on this. I only feel bad for Neve Campbell. She was obviously trying to do an art indie as she searched for her place in Hollywood. The other notable is a cameo from pre-tattoo Mike Tyson. It may be one of his last appearance before his tattoo. All the cameo starting with Toback himself are disconnected. They make this guerrilla indie fractured like a student film. The central premise holds some problems mainly with the money. Surely, Vera would want a 50/50 split before the meeting. After getting paid, she could try to buy him off. The conflict could still happen after he finds out the secret but in a different way. The money part lacks credibility. Sadly, Neve's nudity is all that's left. Through it all, she somehow maintains her dignity which is far more than can be hoped for. Toback probably spent more time lining up cameo rather than writing a compelling script. Toback is unable to advance beyond his sad experience.

Everybody's right. This movie is dumb, especially when it tries to be smart. It's not even that hot, which means it's unsuccessful on every level. I kept hoping Ghostface from Scream would jump into the frame with a knife and slash all these characters to bits. God thing it's not very long, which evidently this review has to be, even though I've said pretty much all there is to be said. O.K., the sound and soundtrack are bad, too. The attempt at an improvisational, French New Wave style comes off as undercooked amateurism. Neve Campbell is a lovely young lady with a lot of charisma, as evidenced by The Scream movies. It's a shame her career has never really developed, but it's probably because she chose to be in stinkers like this.

Watching wily old writer/director James Toback chatting up dewy-eyed Neve Campbell in WHEN WILL I BE LOVED is to witness a veteran Hollywood player at the top of his game. Casting himself in a small role as a university professor, Toback is pictured talking to a sophisticated young deb named Vera (Neve Campbell) about a job as a research assistant although he seems to be suggesting there are other positions she could fill as well. Since the dialogue is largely improvised it is not unreasonable to assume Toback is fluent in this kind of doublespeak in real life. In the film-maker's 1987 opus The Pick-Up Artist Robert Downey Jr. plays a smooth-talking womanizer rumored to be based on Toback's own experiences. It is possible to see why Toback succeeded where other directors have failed in getting the comely Ms. Campbell to take it all off for her art (which she does in this film.) Toback was nominated for a screen writing Oscar for 1991's Bugsy but it is small personal films like 1978's Fingers and 1997's Two Girls and a Guy that have earned him hipster cred among Hollywood's cool young elite. The filmmaker encourages his actors to become involved in the creative process. In Campbell's case, "I came to her with 35 pages of script and we ended up talking for 12 hours and throwing ideas around and becoming very inspired by each other," he tells us on the DVD commentary track. (We also learn on the DVD that the film was shot in 12 days followed by 8 months of editing. Toback's tips on how to shoot fast and cheap are essential viewing for any young filmmaker with big themes and a miniscule budget.) Campbell won the best reviews of her career for her performance but the entire cast sink their teeth into the meaty provocative dialogue with relish. The script has Vera, described by Campbell on the DVD as "empowered, somewhat manipulative but strong ", exacting an unexpected revenge on her fast-talking hustler boyfriend (Frederick Weller) after he attempts to negotiate a tryst with an elderly billionaire (Dominic Chianese of Sopranos fame ) who has become fixated on her and willing to pay any price to indulge his obsession.The improbable plot line serves as a vehicle for Toback to explore his "curiosity about sexuality and physicality but also human nature and what drives people to do the things they do." (Toback leaves it to his cast to improvise their own sex scenes - like a lesbian encounter between Campbell and Ashley Shelton.) The prickly auteur has a cheerful disregard for conventional rules of film-making and it shows. The conversation between the professor and Vera probably goes on too long and there is a bizarre scene with boxer Mike Tyson that defies description. Yet Toback makes no apologies. "With this film there is no right or wrong answer. The way that people respond or decide who Vera is has a lot to do with who they are, which I find interesting."

From description I was reading on the sleeve of DVD edition of "When Will I Be Loved" it sounded like one could expect thriller with hot scenes of Neve Campbell but what you basically get is pseudo-psychological drama. Like I mentioned, the premise of narcissistic girl who controls and deceives men sounds intriguing, but it is eventually lost in (too) long shots, over forced dialogs and some pretty bad camera and sound work. Only thing worth seeing in this movie is Neve Campbell that only rarely gets a chance in some scenes to show a hint of her talent as actress. Not her fault though, script was poorly written and even more poorly executed, something that was thought of a indie experiment and filmed in 11 days turned out to be failure. You won't find anything thrilling or enjoyable in this movie, and even though it lasts pretty short, you will feel your boredom lasts forever watching it. Really - one to avoid.