Amazon.com

Like Tolstoy's novel, this epic-length War and Peace is rough going, but worth the effort. Winner of the 1969 Academy Award® for Best Foreign Language Film and widely considered the most faithful adaptation of Tolstoy's classic, Sergei Bondarchuk's massive Soviet-Italian coproduction was seven years in the making, at a record-setting cost of $100 million. Bondarchuk himself plays the central role of Pierre Bezukhov, buffeted by fate during Russia's tumultuous Napoleonic Wars, serving as pawn and philosopher through some of the most astonishing set pieces ever filmed. Bondarchuk is a problematic director: interior monologues provide awkward counterpoint to intimate dramas, weaving together the many classes and characters whose lives are permanently affected by war. Infusions of '60s-styled imagery clash with the film's period detail; it's an anomalous experiment that doesn't really work. Undeniably, however, the epic battle scenes remain breathtakingly unique; to experience the sheer scale of this film is to realize that such cinematic extravagance will never be seen again. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (40)

Spectacle & Reverence....
You will never see a movie like the Russian War and Peace ever again. With battle scenes involving 200,000 extras (the Russian Army), made prior to CGI, the film has awesome scope and spectacle to spare, as well as a reverence for the source material, Tolstoy's massive and magnificent novel.

It will not please all fans of the novel, no movie can ever do that, but it is a worthy effort in trying to capture Tolstoy's sprawling story, which itself shifts from the spectacle of the wars with Napolean to the intimacy of family life and society in 19th century Russia.

There is meticulous recreation of the lifestyles of the nobility of the era, and some simply incredible sweeping re-staging of the key battles of Austelitz and later the War of 1812. Shot with incredible tracking shots, crane shots and aerial camerawork, there are images here that are stunning.

Perhaps the more intimate stories of the loves of Natasha (a marvelous Irina Skobtseva, a Natalya for all times), the travails of Prince Andrei and Pierre are somewhat overwhelmed by the greater spectacle of the war, but we come to know them nonetheless. Some of the other characters that are vivid in the novel are given short shrift, but in so huge an undertaking, I don't know how that could be avoided. More than one viewing will help to sort them all out.

At any rate, we are left with an incredible effort to capture the sweep of history and its effects on the individuals caught up in it. Tolstoy's themes of love and death, of the horror and futility of war, of the price paid by all for the egotism of a Napolean and the ambitions of ruthless men, are here. The foolish & foolhardy, the wise and the devious, the courageous and the cowards, the loving and the indifferent, i.e., all the very human characters in Tolstoy's Russia are here as well. And the great span of the film allows us to see them grow and change.

Not perfect, but a hugely ambitious film that succeeds more often than not. Worth it.

A surpisingly enjoyable film.
After an unexpected delay, Image Entertainment has finally released the full-version of War and Peace on DVD. And what a collection it is! The entire film is spread out over 4 discs in a serialized fashion with each disc dedicatated solely to a specific portion of the film. Additionally, each disc contains cast biographies, notes on relevant history, architectural drawings, and more. The fifth disc contains lengthy interviews with the production staff as well as original "documentaries" on the making of the film. All in all, an impressive package indeed.

So, how is the movie? When I first sat down to watch it my first thought was "What am I doing? A six-hour Russian film that is almost 40 years old? Is this going to be interesting at all?" Surprisingly I found the film to be very engaging and held my interest throughout the 6 hour 43 minute running time. The photography is excellent, the acting is very realistic, and the enormity of the production does bring moments of "Oh my god!" every now and then. (Seeing 50,000 extras in costume while a battle rages is very impressive!) But the film is not for everyone. It does lack the polish of the traditional Hollywood film and the story is sometimes difficult to follow. The director's style would go from melodrama to experimental with multiple images, odd camera angles, and strange compositions. (You can definitely see the influence of Abel Gance's Napoleon.) The battles scenes are the most impressive portions of this film, perhaps of any film to date, and are worth the cost of this disc alone.

The quality of the transfer is excellent, despite a flawed film source. The audio is up-to-date with excellent 5.1 sound separation and strong bass for those booming canons. Since the disc is not region encoded (for worldwide distribution) it contains multiple audio streams and an enormous amount of subtitle choices. The English audio & subtitles are flawed. The dubbed version has many scenes that are not dubbed at all and contain only English subtitles. (The liner notes say this version on DVD is the restored version, including originally censored scenes. My guess is that the non-dubbed parts are these restored scenes.) As for the English subtitles, they appear to be accurate but often do not materialize during French speaking scenes. However, since I prefer to watch the film in its original Russian language, the only annoyance I encountered was the sporadic lack of English subtitles.

If you have any interest at all in this film, I would strongly recommend this new and definitive release. At 6+ hours, five discs, and a film production that will never be duplicated again, this is a purchase that will not go unappreciated.

Ruscico War & Peace DVD is horribly defective
ZERO STARS. What a dissappointment! The film randomly switches between English and Russian and French dubbing ---sometimes in the same section--- and the subtitles don't always come on in English. I tried it on 2 DVD players so it is quite defective. Judging from some other reviews, other people are experiencing it but for some strange reason they find this acceptable. This is the first DVD I have ever seen which was this screwed up. Too bad----a great movie which I still have only on Beta (Kultur version).

Bondarchuk's "War and Peace" released by RUSCICO
A gargantuan version of Tolstoy's national epic, approached as a priority as important as the Soviet space program, War and Peace is surely the biggest production ever put on film, with entire armies filling the screen and covering vast landscapes. The recreation of the Napoleonic era in St. Petersburg and Moscow is a wonderment. Director Sergei Bondarchuk makes the story work even better at the intimate level. The romantic adventures and heartbreaks of the story's central trio, Pierre, Natasha and Andrei lead to at least 4 or 5 devastatingly emotional highpoints.
Previously, there was the 1956 Dino DeLaurentiis version. Except for some awkward casting, it wasn't half bad, but it pales beside the opulence and scope of this colossus. Ruscico's version is both longer and better-presented than previous releases, and Image has packaged it with helpful extras and easily-navigated menus. More on that below.
Savant was excited to see this pricey-but-exceptional DVD release; Ruscico has a reputation for quality releases of hard-to-see Soviet pictures, and War and Peace is certainly the prize title, at least for Western audiences unfamiliar with the majority of Mosfilm's output. I saw the American release when 16 years old, serialized over two weeks in a fancy theater in San Bernardino. I can't say I followed the story well, and mostly remember the grainy, washed out picture and the distracting English dubbing - Natasha's voice squeaked like Minnie Mouse. But the eye-popping visuals stayed burned into my memory, especially a God's eye view, receding into the heavens, of the Austerlitz battlefield spread out below. It looked as if it took in miles of smoke and fighting.
In Russian with subs in a number of languages, the new Ruscico / Image DVD is a completely different viewing experience. The Russian voices are beautiful, and it's easy to catch cultural things we had only read about, such as the St. Petersburg elite opting to speak French for many conversational details. It's not 70mm, but on a big widescreen television, the scope of the visuals can be almost overwhelming.
Ruscico's DVD of War and Peace is handsomely presented on 4 discs in a thankfully easy-to-understand package. The transfer image isn't going to be able to compete with restorations done here, however. War and Peace was shot in a Soviet color system in 70mm, and the colors are a muted set of pastels we aren't used to. Either the age of the elements, or the reduction printing, or bad storage has given many scenes a dupey look, with slightly fluctuating contrast. The image is stable and intact, but there are occasional scratches and slight damage.
Either that one bad shot was an isolated instance, or most of the time we're too caught up in the story to notice such things. I should point out that I viewed the discs on a 65" monitor that magnifies these kinds of flaws, so many viewers will probably be completely unaware of them.
The DVD producers have included a generous allotment of extras, listed below. A fifth disc contains a couple of Soviet docus on Tolstoy and an elaborate commemorative behind-the-scenes piece. It starts with the stars at a Moscow premiere, and then backtracks to show how many scenes were filmed. The cameraman is on roller skates in the ballroom scene, and a trucking scene through the battlefield shows exactly how some of the more amazing shots were captured. The cameramen use portable 70mm cameras of a kind I've never seen, that look every bit as sophisticated as ours.
In one of the interviews, the President of the Mosfilm studio says that after the years of filming, War and Peace wasn't unanimously praised in the Soviet Union. Everybody saw it, but not everyone thought it was a masterpiece. Audiences are audiences, Russian or American, and after those 4 or 5 transcendant moments in the picture, the ending does seem rather downplayed and anti-climactic. But seeing the show now after 35 more years of film history, this enormous epic seems more of an accomplishment than ever.

P.S. To watch the movie preview video clip you can on russianDVD.com website for free.

Grand epic
This is an excellent movie. The dubbing situation was strange, but that doesn't detract form the overall quality. And off course the book is better and more extensive then the movie. That said though. bondarchuk did do the ideal screen adaption. I only wish Nicholas would have been more prominently featured. ... Read more

Reviews (32)

ONE OF THE BEST MOVIES OF THE SIXTIES
Five or six years before the " Peace and Love " movement that erupted in the United States and shocked a prude nation, French director François Truffaut, in his third movie, JULES & JIM, dared to film a love story between one woman and two men. And there was no guilt in sight ! Jeanne Moreau's love for Oskar Werner and Henri Serre was as innocent as the beautiful song she sang in the movie.

Fançois Truffaut must absolutely be rediscovered one of these days because all the fuss made about his New Wave companion, Jean-Luc Godard, has hidden the fact that his filmography is one of the more personal and interesting of the second part of the XXth century.

For once, Winstar has put a lot of goodies in this DVD. A commentary, a dozen trailers of other Truffaut's movies, filmographies and a tribute to Jeanne Moreau (in fact, a few scenes put one after the other while Jeanne is singing the well-known song of JULES & JIM).

Images and sound are average (there is alas ! only one Criterion...) but imperfections disappear behind the fulgurant modernity of this 1961 movie.

A DVD for your library.

Truffaut's best?
This film, The Man Who Loved Women, and Stolen Kisses rank as my three favorite Truffaut movies, and I have seen them all except for Such a Gorgeous Kid Like Me. Poor audio and poor image quality may make any other film a waste to purchase on DVD, but not this one. Breathtakingly filmed, acted, and directed, this is one of the best films in movie history. Simply THE best French New Wave film. One aspect of Truffaut's movie direction that is truly his own, is the way the camera will stay on a scene long after the main actors are out of the shot. Most often the camera stays on some other minor characters who have nothing to do with the movie. Little things such as these late cuts are what sets Truffaut above the rest (high above Godard in my opinion). Without Jeanne Moreau, the film would be good but not great. The two male leads are exceptional as well. Films like this one are perfect reasons why all movies should be seen in their widescreen aspect. The scene with Bassiak, Moreau, Werner, and Serre, all on screen at the same time in the cottage is magnificent. It doesn't get much better than this in movie making.

THIS PURE TRIANGULAR LOVE
"She is the greatest sweetheart in French cinema. While gangsters and gangs kill each other, she dances in a tutu in a circus, is tortured by a sadist and makes her way through bursts of submachine-gun fire, with thoughts only of love. With trembling lips, wild hair, she ignores what others call 'morals' and lives by and for love. Messieurs, producers and directors, give her a real part and we will have a great film."

Francois Truffaut wrote this of Jeanne Moreau in 1957. Shortly afterwards, when fascination turned to friendship, the burgeoning director's greatest ambition would be to make a film with the woman who had become the most important person in his life.

In JULES ET JIM, Jeanne Moreau's is a performance of touching beauty and lucidity that is unparalleled in cinema. She is Catherine, the woman in love with life, who in turn falls in love with both Jules and Jim (superb performances from Oskar Werner and Henri Serre), amateur scholars, dandies, and the closest of friends. Over the following years, through joy, disillusionment, a world-war and parenthood, the three share a relationship that defines love itself; as Catherine alternates her pledge of devotion from Jules to Jim, and even to other men, our heroes explore a friendship that has been touched by a soul who is "not a woman" but rather "...an apparition".

But Catherine is not "fatale"- rather the very essence of woman, whose divine right it is to live as she pleases, when she pleases, where any potentially ruinous consequences are the unfortunate fruits of an unmitigated love of love itself. Truffaut's art is one that invokes the Goddess, embodied here by an enigma of extraordinary grace and power. His camera laughs with her, cries with her, and encapsulates with amazing dexterity the flow of movement - the whirlwind of life. The theme of JULES ET JIM- a triangular love affair that questions monogamy - is unhindered by any sensuality or sexual intimations. Instead it is a love that is pure, chaste and eternally resonant. The remarkable tact of Truffaut's direction, the refutation of showiness, conveys a cinema of charm and elegance, as the film's mood undulates in accordance with the whims of our great love Jeanne Moreau - from untold joy to the heavy burden that is the awful truth.

JULES ET JIM is a film of harmony and genius, a hymn to life that asks the audience not to judge, but rather to experience and to love. We can relate to the film Truffaut's own words, when, speaking of Nicholas Ray's JOHNNY GUITAR and Howard Hawks' BIG SKY he said: "Anyone who rejects either should never go to the movies again, never see any more films. Such people will never recognize inspiration, poetic intuition, or a framed picture, a shot, an idea, a good film, or even cinema itself."

Overrated
I got Jules et Jim because I saw 400 Blows, thought it was the best movie, and wanted to see more Truffaut. Unfortunately, Jules and Jim did not have nearly the same greatness of 400 Blows.
Jules and Jim is a love triangle, about two best friends who fall in love with the same woman (Jeanne Moreau) and have a 20-odd year menage a trois. Of course, none of the principles age at all, there is a child whos introduced and then pretty much ignored, and one wonders how three people pay rent when all they seem to do for years and years is sit around in a huge chalet sipping beer, smoking cigarettes and having sex. This is the movies, I can understand these things.
However, what "killed" this movie for me was that underneath the cool cinematography and clever, chic narration, was at heart a very silly love story. Sure, there are famous images, like Therese the kept girl "steam engining" a cigarette. The menage a trois is really just a cheap soap, and thus the "tragedy" seems tacked on and hollow. Jeanne Moreau plays Catherine is a sulky, quite possibly manic-depressive siren, but she's so irresponsible and annoying one can't even sympathize with Jules and Jim for their obsession. Jules (Oskar Werner) and Jim (Henri Serre) are ciphers, and their friendship never quite understandable. In the end, the only way a kind of unconventional love story like this can work is if the characters are either likeable or interesting. Jules, Jim, Catherine, as well as Albert (who seems to criss-cross country lines in pursuit of Catherine -- how did these people get visas?) are neither. The movie's early scenes have a narrator with droll commentary, but this is largely lost in the later, more melodramatic parts of the movie. Catherine finally becomes so unbearable that I literally couldnt stand to see her onscreen anymore.
Basically I think this is a movie that makes the Top Ten lists because "everyone" thinks they should like it. I wonder why. The whole thing reeks of artificiality -- there's screaming and crying aplenty, but the total effect is numbing. For instance, why does Catherine nearly have a nervous breakdown when she can't conceive with Jim? She already has a daughter with Jules. I would gather that in 1961 the film was avant-garde, with a frank storyline of adultery without any moralizing. But I admit that in this case a little moralizing might have done some good: the characters are all so self-absorbed and selfish that glorification of this movie as a great romantic drama seems not only inappropriate but obscene.

A meditation on freedom
It doesn't suprise me that at least a 1/4 of the reviews here are from people who cannot understand why this movie is so beloved. Most people these days watch movies as spectacle. This film will give back whatever you invest in it. If you invest nothing, you get nothing.

As I've gotten older, this movie has become more and more emotional for me. The characters briefly live out a kind of reckless and carefree nirvana. They then spend the rest of the film trying to recreate the feeling. But as time goes on, entanglements creep in. Children are born. Wedding vows are taken. Friendships are tested. Which of us over 30 cannot relate to this?

The last line of the film, a seemingly tacked on detail about a request made to a civil servant, sums all that has come before with pure poetry. A final plea for freedom is made, but..."it was not to be permitted". ... Read more

Reviews (52)

Though Not Perfect, A Good Introduction To Opera
That should sum up the schism viewers have for Zefferelli's opera film starring Placido Domigo and Teresa Stratas. There is no question about the supremacy of the film visually. The famous Italian director has made excellent, quality drama and opera as film in the 60's, 70's and 80's; among them the 1968 Romeo and Juliet, Verdi's Othello (also with Domingo) and the 1991 Hamlet starring Mel Gibson. Zefferelli lavishes his films with artistry and lush photography, especially striking are his sweeping locales and precise camerawork. For Verdi's tragic romance, he has selected a fine location that is meant to resemble the French countryside, luxurious interior "ballroom" scenes, effective lighting and contrast, and actors and actresses that look the part. Vocally speaking, the only reason you should get this opera is the tremendous talent of Placido Domingo. He is the equivalent of Enrico Caruso for the twentieth century, an incarnation of the master, appearing handsome and earthy, as well as singing and acting his roles as any Hollywood star would approach the role (could they sing opera that is ). As the lovestruck Alfredo, his arias are striking and reveal great character, especially his "Un Di Felice", his "De Mei Bolenti Spiriti" "O Mio Rimorso" and his final duet "Parigi O Cara". Teresa Stratas looks the part, she is pale and delicate, exotically beautiful as the dying courtesan Violetta. But she has vocal limitations, especially in the higher registers. She has no warmth to her voice and has rather limpid, straightforward vocal lines. The role of Violetta is not an easy role for most sopranos- the heroine must sing most of the time in the course of three acts, and each characterization differs from the other- in Act I she is a flirtatious, bubbly and charming, even operetta-like heroine where her aria "Sempre Libera" demands coloratura fireworks, and her cavatina "A Fors E Lui" requires mellow lyricism. This same type of lyricism, although sung to serve the theme of pathos and dramatic suffering, should be very clear through her duet with Germont in Act 2. These are the arias "Non Sepete" "Ditte A La Giovine" and "Morro La Mia Memoria". In Act 3, she must convey her immediate situation, she is dying and taking her last breath, urges Alfredo to remember her name and to remarry, consuming the audience with the portrayal that although she has been a glittering, amoral prostitute, she will die with God's forgiveness and the joy of having fallen deeply in love. Though vocally this is not the best La Traviata, this is certainly a good introduction to opera. If you watch this film, you might be tempted to see a performance of La Traviata. For recordings of this classic masterpiece, you should go for your favorite soprano. Most go for Maria Callas and Joan Sutherland. I went for Beverly Sills, who sang the role a record 54 times in the space of 63 days, (no one but Sills could ever know the role of Violetta Valery) and who truly masters the role with dramatic, artistic value and sheer, tonal and vocal beauty. All in all, this is still a good film, despite the negative comments below my review.

La Traviata: Opera For Valentines
This 1982 opera-film is highly recommended. It's a perfect way to get into opera if you are a novice and seek to get deeply in love with opera. La Traviata might just do the trick. Franco Zefferelli was by this time a veteran Italian cinema director. He had directed such romantic classics as 1968's Romeo and Juliet. He has a flair for elaborate visuals and scenery. He selects gorgeous locations to shoot his films and drapes the characters with elegant costumes that they seem to come straight out of the 19th century itself. It's very clear that he spends much money and time on his films. He would also direct Shakespeare's Hamlet starring Mel Gibson in the early 90's. It was no secret that Zefferelli loved opera. An Italian man, the opera was a passion to him instilled since his youth. He loved Puccini operas and Verdi operas. Verdi's La Traviata must have been a real delight for him to direct and he always cast the best singers and actors. In this case, he was smart to cast Placido Domingo and Teresa Stratas as the tenor and soprano lovers Alfredo and Violetta. This opera is given a film treatment- there is enough room for the singers to act as well. The film is made in a retrospective style. Alfredo, the romantic lead, is remembering the one year he spent with Violetta and how she died tragically. It reminds me of the way that Baz Luhrman formatted Moulin Rouge, which has the same technique- boy meets girl, boy loses girl to death, boy is remembering their love story and re-telling it to an audience.

With opera, strong emotions are carried out through the dramatic musical score and through the singing, which is required to be sung with real feeling and passion. Placido Domingo, quite possibly the world's greatest tenor, sings with real substance and real passion, which we are inclined to believe springs naturally from his Spanish heritage. Placido Domingo is sensational as Alfredo, his romantic yearnings expressed in the Brindisi, in the "Un Di Felice" duet, throught Act 2's Flora Party's scenes and in the later portions of the opera, especially towards the end. Teresa Stratas, a Canadian soprano with exotic looks (she reminded people of Maria Callas) has an equally gorgeous and dramatic voice. It's greatly to her credit that she's a beautiful woman as well as actress, who can convince the audience as a frail, glamorous beauty who gives up the courtesan life to live with her true love only to meet with an ill fate. Suffering of tubercolosis (or possibly a sexually trasmitted disease like syphillis but Verdi was'nt going to shock everyone with that much information in his opera) Violetta hides her secret torment by giving herself over to decadent pleasures. She lives it up during the Belle Epoque in Paris as a high-class hooker, owns a villa in the country and has many lovers. But she finally finds meaning in her life when she falls in love with Alfredo, a gentleman caller and one-time client of hers. But Alfredo's father disapproves of their love simply because Violetta is a courtesan or has had a past as a lady of the night. He convinces Violetta to give up Alfredo. The tension builds as Violetta and Alfredo are temporarily seperated. For Violetta, tragedy strikes. She becomes increasingly ill to the point she is confined in bed. Teresa Strats delivers her best work in the last act, in which she is reunited with Alfredo only to die in his arms. Her "Addio Del Passato" is heartbreaking as is her death scene, even if she may lack the brilliance and vocal fireworks for the Act 1 aria "Sempre Libera" and even perhaps the "Amami Alfredo " farewell scene. This is a perfect film to watch on the day dedicated to love- Valentine's Day.

The Supreme La Traviata: A Masterpiece
This is without a doubt the greatest version of La Traviata ever produced.On DVD, it's unbelievably gorgeous and features production notes and cast bios as well as a trailer. The forces behind this masterpiece are responsible for its greatness- Italian director and designer Franco Zefferelli, tenor Placido Domingo, soprano Teresa Stratas and baritone Cornell McNeil. The singers are at the top of their game, Domingo is a young, sexy Alfredo and Teresa Stratas IS Violetta Valery in a performance that even Maria Callas would envy. Zefferelli had Maria Callas in mind when he cast Teresa Stratas. Like Callas, Stratas has a Greek background through her parents though she was Canadian born, she has the same type of voice and she is in Zefferelli's own words "an electrifying actress and soprano of the lyric entertainment". The Callas connection is most obvious when Stratas appears in a black veiled gown in Act 2 at Flora's party where even her hair is similar to Callas' infamous 50's performances.

Released in 1982, Zefferelli sought to "convert" people into opera lovers through the lush visual seduction of the cinema. This is exactly what he did. The cinematography of this film kills you with excessive beauty. The opening credits roll as we see scenes of Paris in the Notre Dame Cathedral area and surrounding residential district by the Seine river. The interior of Violetta Valery's mansion, where she hosts the Act 1 party, is luxurious and Zefferelli allows us to be dizzied with the sheer opulence of the house- gilded mirrors, portraits of Violetta, curtains, chandeliers etc. Visually on film we are able to tell things about the characters that stage performances do not, for example as the guests depart from Act 1's party, an old woman steals a silver box from Violetta proving to us that Violetta is not among real friends, these are only fair-weathered friends and bad ones at that. They were not even there for her when she was dying in the finale.

The beginning of the film has Violetta reminiscing about the better days as a desirable and wealthy courtesan who partied all the time. She is deathly ill and already her house is sold and men are moving her things out. The country scenes are incredibly beautiful as Violetta and Alfredo live happily in seclusion. Alfredo rides his horse and Violetta picks flowers for her greenhouse and feeds her white doves in their big cage. Cornell McNeil's bombastic but fatherly Giorgio Germont is a great support to the refined performances of Domingo and Stratas. The Flora's party scene is exceptional with even more visual beauty as Gypsies and bullfighters dance seductively and professional gamblers enjoy themselves. The closing ensemble is not to be missed and neither is the melancholy and tragic ending. Conductor James Levine leads the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus. Once again, this is the greatest and ultimate version of La Traviata ever made. It is a must have for opera fans and for curious non-opera lovers. Other films Domingo made after this film are Carmen in '84 and Verdi's Othello in 86. Teresa Stratas is the greatest Violetta and she will win your heart with her convincing performance as the sickly, passionate and self-sacrificing courtesan whose love for Alfredo redeems her and gives her happiness even if she dies at the end.

Almost perfect
I loved this film. Only about 20 minutes were excised from the score, it was nearly complete. At greater length in the other reviews can be read descriptions of the ballet, breathtakingly beautiful scenery, particularly effective arias. Domingo and Stratas were wonderful. I have Stratas in Boheme on DVD (to replace my original VHS), it made me cry. Traviata made me cry. Can you call anything so painful beautiful? The music was of course glorious. The principals acted and sang to perfection, and of course frail diminutive Stratas looked the part. The movie began interesting, then became wonderful at the first party with the drinking song, then lost interest for me for some time, then picked up again and never let up. The camera-work and crowd scenes were brilliantly done. (I don't like to use the word "brilliant" because it sounds so affected, but I will.) I resent the reviews that call this a good introduction to opera, as though it were somehow inferior to "real opera," I find it condescending, supercilious, pompous and demeaning. However, I gave a copy of the movie to a close friend of mine who also cried, watched it twice and loved it, and this was I think her first opera. It is very beautiful music, well-acted, well-directed, well-sung and with scenery beyond belief.

Traviata agotada
Parece que la extraviada (Traviata)realmente esta muy enferma al final ya que la escena esta incompleta. esto no deberia asombrarnos ya que Zeffirelli hizo algo peor con su Otello con su recortada aria del Sauce. Excepto este detalle no tan importante como el Otello, la pelicula es muy bella aunque para los puristas, entre los que me incluyo humildemente quizas por mi condicion de Profesor de Apreciacion Musical, encuentro en ella tal como note en la Carmen de Migenes y Domingo, ruidos innecesarios que en la presentacion en un teatro serian imperdonables; al fin y al cabo lo importante es la musica y no los extras caprichosos de Zeffirelli. A pesar de estos pequenos detalles la presentacion es maravillosa; las cuatro estrelas en vez de cinco obedecen a estas para algunos quizas necedades. Para mi repito, soy un purista y pienso en la intencion siempre del compositor. Recomiendo la version de Beverly Sills y ni se diga la de Angela Ghiorgiu, superiores excepto los tenores ya que Placido Domingo sigue siendo el mejor. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Yet more misfires from Waterbearer
Unfortunately, Waterbearer didn't correct any of the problems that plagued their first set of Pasolini DVD's: the transfers are all sub-par, with burned-in subtitles (that are sometimes very wrong: did you know that one of the ten commandments is "thou shalt not steel"?) and no chapter stops. The discs are overpriced, especially considering that, despite what it says on the back of the case, none of the discs appear to have undergone any restoration whatsoever.

Pasolini was a master filmmaker, and it's a shame that only one of his films (The Decameron) has a quality Region 1 release. The others (the six released by Waterbearer and Vanguard's release of Medea) are poor transfers that simply don't do justice to this great man's life work.

For now, however, Pasolini fans stuck in Region 1 (I understand superior editions of most of his films exist in Region 2) are limited to these sub-par releases. If you're a Pasolini fan, I'd advise you to buy the discs used, because what Waterbearer's asking for these discs is ridiculous.

1 masterpiece, 1 exceptional film & 1 controversial fable
This three-film box set includes Pasolini's exceptional debut film (ACCATTONE), his first masterpiece - one of the greatest films I have seen (THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW), plus his controversial political fable (THE HAWKS AND THE SPARROWS). I have written about these DVDs individually elsewhere at Amazon.com. Each disc includes the same half-hour 1970 documentary on Pasolini, but no other features. The Pasolini Foundation in Rome, which controls all rights to these films, supplied the prints: good quality for ACCATTONE and HAWKS but not for THE GOSPEL (my Amazon review offers a suggestion on how to adjust your TV to make it look better). The Pasolini Foundation also had the U.S. distributor release the DVDs without any chapters (i.e., in one continuous track), to encourage people to watch each picture in its entirety. Despite those limitations, all these films are very much worth seeing. ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Sergei Eisenstein's landmark tale of Russia thwarting the Germaninvasion of the 13th century was wildly popular and quite intentional, given the prevailing Nazi geopolitical advancement and destruction at the time. It can still be viewed as a masterful use of imagery and music, with the Battle on the Ice sequence as the obvious highlight. Unfortunately, the rest of the film pales in comparison. A great score by Prokofiev was effectively integrated by the Russian filmmaker, but stands on its own merit as well. --Bill Desowitz ... Read more

Reviews (29)

This is the "Alexander Nevsky" to get
(This review refers to the BMG Edition, and not to any other, including the DVD. The BMG Edition has a black and white cover tinged with red. It has not yet been issued on DVD, and is regarded as a Special Edition.)

This is by far the best,sharpest print of "Alexander Nevsky" I've ever seen,and although the story,dialogue,and stylized acting hasn't been changed at all, there is one important difference.
Audiences can finally hear the glorious Prokofiev music--some of the finest he ever wrote- in glorious hi-fi sound. The manufacturers of this version managed to get hold of a print with voices and sound effects,but minus the music,and this has enabled them to replace the once hopelessly tinny music track with this new version, with a new orchestra and conductor. It is still the Prokofiev score,in its ravishing original orchestrations and vocal arrangements,so buyers need not be alarmed.Eisenstein had an incomparable eye for pictorial composition,as is evidenced by the unforgettable Battle on the Ice,and the beautiful,if rather grisly,opening shots of the sky and countryside dotted with skulls still wearing helmets,and now audiences can appreciate both the story and the music (perfectly synchronized with the picture,BTW) without having to allow for the limitations of 1938 recording--made even worse by the fact that Russia just did not have access at that time, and for a long time after,to good recording equipment.

One of the great sword flics
Much more than symbolism drives this tale of a 13th century battle between Russians and Germans. Russians at the time were squeezed between the Golden Horde and approaching legions of Teutonic knights. The Germans were Catholic, and the Russians were and are Orthodox. So the Eisenstein visions of priests and monks blessing the Germans before battle blend well with the frightened bishop scurrying over the landscape after the final Russian victory. Stalin didn't have trouble getting extras, so the screen is full of warriors. Some today might think that the plot is a bit manipulative and corny, but Eisenstein was trying to rouse the Russian people to the very real prospect of war with Germany. A criticism could be of the white vs. black casting of the sides in what was a complex historical event. The peasants must have really dug it. This is black and white, the premier way to tell a film story (with apologies to Ted Turner and his colorizing contingent). The dialogue is in 20th century Russian, but the subtitles are well done and generally consistent with the tone of the movie. Prince Nevsky won the battle on tactics, not weight of numbers. The film is a good reminder why even today the main street in St. Petersburg (Leningrad) still carries his name.

"with their crimson blood they have fed our soil"
It is amazing to think that when this film was released in1938, many dismissed it as merely propaganda, as war loomed ahead with Germany. Though certainly the conditions of the time influenced the script, the film is an epic masterpiece. The history depicted in the story is of the Russians in 1242, already oppressed by the Mongols, being invaded by the Teutonic Knights.
Director Sergei Eisenstein, one of the pioneers of editing for dramatic effect, here created filming on a scale that is astounding. The famous battle sequence takes place on a frozen lake, with a cast of thousands, many who were a part of the regular army.
Eisenstein also collaborated extensively with the great classical composer Sergei Prokofiev, whose magnificent score is so intricately meshed with the cinematography by Eduard Tisse, and along with the spectacular battle scenes, the sweeping panoramas of desolate plains are also extraordinary.

Nikolai Cherkasov's charisma and majestic presence fill the screen as Nevsky. He's considered one of Russia's greatest actors, and here as the warrior prince, he is a larger-than-life heroic figure, with blazing eyes and resonant voice.
An epic film that has influenced many of today's filmmakers, this is one not to miss.
There are a few signs of age in this film, it has been well restored, though the subtitles are sometimes in awkward syntax. Total running time is 108 minutes.

perhaps a little too hyped in my own opinion...
I have just recently become interested in the classic cinema, or classic world cinema in this situation, and I have not delved too far yet into fully understanding cinema in general, but being an extreme history enthusiast I was compelled and influenced by outside forces to purchase the Eisenstein Sound Years Criterion set. I thoroughly enjoyed the "Ivans", but unfortunately the "Nevsky" film and dvd fell a little short of oustanding. The film itself I believe is an important lesson in understanding Soviet propaganda and the limitations set on artists during Stalin's regime, but the actually story and pace of the content is a little...old?(!) I also do agree with this being a milestone in the terms of film epics, and the costumes and cinematography seem to be very good for its time. The only problem I have is you barely begin to understand any characters for the film can only have so many sequences before the epic battle scene, but perhaps I am saying this for I believed both "Ivans" to be artistic and in-depth looks at a complex human being. I will have to show a little dismay also in the dvd, for I know tranfers must be hard to accomplish but the score and film itself are still somewhat grainy. I will not go into the cons very much, for I still see this as a very important film for modern times, and you can easily see the influence in nowadays epics (ie. Star Wars, Lord Of The Rings). I guess my main point is not to come towards the film after reading about it and expect one of the most amazing pieces of art ever made, but instead pull it in as a study of modern propaganda and Soviet Philosophies. As stated, I enjoyed the "Ivans" much more, but considering the restrictions Eisenstein had faced prior to making "Nevsky", it is still a film far above par and unique.

A Review for Alexander Nevsky
This is a Russian film released in 1938, just before the start of World War II. Although the film features battle sequences between the Germans and Russians, it is not about World War II. It is set in the 13th century cities of Pskov and Novgorod. Alexander Nevsky is the prince and a famous war leader who previously defeated the Swedes when they tried to invade Russia. The film has very strong images (and songs) of Russian patriotism, and is probably one of the reasons it was so popular when it was released. Since the Russians were preparing to fight the Germans once again in WWII, this film was likely a morale-booster for the soldiers and the public alike.

The opening sequences of the film feature beautiful cinematography. Alexander Nevsky and his men are fishing on a lake when a band of Mongols crosses their path. The Russians have just fought a war with the Mongols and so some fighting ensues as the Mongols pass by the Russians. Alexander Nevsky, irritated with this commotion as it is scaring the fish away, breaks up the fight. Some of the Mongol leaders recognize him as the man who defeated the Swedes and invite him to become a general in their army. He replies with an old Russian saying that it is better to die than to leave your homeland, giving yet another shot in the arm to Russian patriotism.

After the Mongols depart, one of Alexander's men comes up to him and warns him that they may have to battle the Mongols yet again. However, Alexander brushes this warning aside and advises that the Germans will have to be defeated before the Mongols.

Next, we move on to the city of Pskov. The Germans have already taken over this city and are holding the surviving Russians captive. The men are tied up in the center of the city while the women and children look on. The site of the German army is actually rather amusing. The Germans are dressed up in sheets, somewhat reminiscent of the garb members of the Ku Klux Klan are famous for wearing. Regular German infantry soldiers have buckets on their heads with cross cutouts allowing for them to see out. The German nobility also have buckets on their heads but they get specials horns and other decorative regalia.

This is probably the most graphic and disturbing scene of the movie as the Germans then proceed to exterminate every surviving Russian, somewhat ominous as this is also what the Germans do in WWII. There are close-ups of a German soldier throwing children into a pit of fire as they are screaming out in fear. Everyone else is either burned to death or hanged. However, at least one man manages to escape Pskov and goes to warn Alexander that the Germans are advancing.

When the escapee relates his message to the famed prince, Alexander is deeply disturbed and begins planning how to seek revenge on the Germans. He forms a company of troops and even orders the peasants to join in. One exceptionally brave female also joins the army. They then march to the city of Novgorod to gather more troops. Although some at Novgorod initially refuse to fight, more patriotic speeches are made and everyone agrees the Germans must be stopped.

Once the battalion is formed, they begin marching towards Pskov and run into some German troops. Although the German troops appear to win this minor battle, Alexander regroups and forms a plan for attack set for the next morning. The attack is staged on an ice-covered lake and while some of the men are worried the ice may give way, Alexander advises them that if it does, the Germans are likely to go in first since their armor is heavier... so, all the better.

The lake battle is really quite spectacular for its time, although it would probably be considered cheesy by today's standards. Some of the more hilarious images involve the German soldiers getting conked on the top of the head with an axe and then their buckets crumple up, presumably squishing their heads. As it is mainly a sword battle, there are images of several soldiers getting played out from swinging their heavy swords and having to lean upon their teammates in order to remain standing. The Russians begin to chase the Germans away, seemingly towards areas of thin ice as the next scene is that of the remaining German troops falling through the ice into the piercing cold lake beneath them.

The rest of the film is rather anti-climatic as the Russians return to Pskov and prove their moral superiority over the Germans by releasing the captured foot soldiers and holding the captive nobility for ransom, rather than executing everyone as the Germans were notorious for doing. Then, some brave soldiers choose wives and Alexander declares that everyone should celebrate. All in all, this is a decent film worth watching. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Sex? Voyeurism? Techno-mayhem? Slick futurism? You got it.
You also have quite a few detracting problems.

I must say, I'm surprised that there are no reviews for this item and I'm writing the first one. But then again, this movie has by-and-large, flown under most people's radar, and perhaps for most that is for the best.

I should probably say I hovered between giving this movie 2 or 3 stars for a while before I settled on 3. 2 seems to say "This movie is not worth watching" while 3 better says what I feel - "Might be worth watching."

Demonlover is a corporate intrigue and espionage film that seems to take place in the not-so-distant future, and concerns an employee named Diane who (ostensibly) works for a corporation looking to buy out a hot 3D cyber-pornography company called TokyoAnime. Also interested in these dealings are the fiercely, deadly competitive corporations of Demonlover and Mangatronics. The movie gives the impression that nobody is really what they seem in this movie, from Diane's boss, to her assistant (played by Chloe Sevigny), but you know, none of this really comes as any big surprise. Diane is not an ethical character, so when she gets more than she bargained for in finding out about a covert and dangerously-interactive S&M site, and soon... well, I don't want to give too many plot details away, but Diane raises the stakes for her own reasons...

After this, the movie descends into a sort of surreal, confused madness, sort of like the turn David Lynch took with Mulholland Drive, but... er, not really.

So, what's the problem? Well, for me, this movie never really distinguishes itself as or decides what it wants to be. It tries to put on some airs like it has the chops to be a high-concept art film, but a lot of it has that shoddy, direct-to-video, Cinemax pseudosexual thriller feel to it. This DVD is the R-rated version, and if you're looking for some direct, serious titillation, you'd probably be best served to look elsewhere, as more is implied than anything else.

I consider the photography and the cinematography to be pretty bad - I understand what they were trying to do, but I don't like the final product. As I said in my topic title, some parts of this movie are slick, if they had gone more with the slick, stylized photography instead of the "What the hell am I looking at" school of photography, I think the results would have been superior. This is a movie with flashy people, multinational corporations and high-tech cities, about pornography and voyeurism. A movie like this demands superior shooting and photography, which, especially in the latter parts, it does not deliver.

Many people will claim that the plot has no inconsistencies, and it takes you on the same wild, find-your-own-meaning ride that other, superior films do, but it doesn't. It tries the whole "confuse-you-to-make-you-really-think" ruse, but it's handled so ham-handedly and with such amateurishness that for me it doesn't work.

But this film is an interesting one at least, there are interesting elements to it, but I'm not sure I can recommend it. It's not horrible, but I'm not certain I could call it good. It's a fair movie, could have been *leagues* better. But, like I said, it feels less like a high concept art film than it does one of those sleazy-without-too-much-sleaze direct to video throwaways.

Brave New World
This highly sensual film uses the slick Emma Peel-in-a-skintight-jumpsuit-meets-the-Matrix veneer that most people associate with high stakes business acquisitions, fast cars and corporate espionage . . . and for the first half of the movie, that is exactly what is delivered---intrigue on a multi-national and multi-million dollar level showcased in exquisitely neoned Japan, overseas business class flights and minimalist board rooms. Diane, played to perfection by Connie Nielsen is the Emma Peel of a French investment house intent on acquiring a monopoly on Japanese animated pornography. Perfectly dressed and coiffed, she epitomizes the business woman who has it all: brains, savvy and a polished understated unfluctuating demeanor that make her hard to read and hard to penetrate. We watch her intriguingly non-react as she puts a woman colleague out of commission, discovers that someone else knows what she has done, make deals with an Internet pornography competitor on the metro and all around suppresses her intrinsic sense of womanhood as she stands by and watches----no smiles apologetically----a piece of Japanese anime explicit with enough sexist content to render anyone with the vaguest sense of feminism a bad case of the hives. The fimmaker's vision of people in general in a world consumed by a consumerism so out of control that it feeds off its own negative energy, is blurred; the defining line between men and women eroded by a viciously amoral competition.

Then comes the second half of the movie where so many things seem to happen for no real reason at all. Yes, we can see the varying factions surface as the desire to win control becomes more sharply delineated---but instead of making it all work somehow, where the message, although hidden, can be revealed by some careful consideration, the series of images seem to just run amok. At the end, Diane has reformatted herself a la Laura Croft to deliver the consumer with that which he desires. The message: I am unsure---perhaps intense interplay produces human anime with little sensibility other than winning the competition and delivering product. An unhumbled Diane glares out at the world from a computer screen---is she beaten---no---she has just metamorphed.

This film is not recommended to everyone. Those looking for a fluid plot will not be satisfied with its second half. However, if you enjoy the sense of the real world being shrunk even smaller in a global marketplace where nationality and language are no longer real issues and the Internet serves as a conduit for salving any desire, you may enjoy this director's vision.

What's With the Negativity?
When this opened here in San Antonio, the ad in the paper was very small. Upon arriving at the theater, I was astounded being the only person in the theater on a Saturday morning. Leaving the theater, I was like the Iraqi Army: in a state of shock and awe. I'm not sure why several reviewers here are trashing this film, because it is reflecting the times in which we live. For those of you who want to return to the days of Wizard of Oz, the Sound of Music and It's a Wonderful Life....stay in your homes and rent those DVDs because you just aren't ready to accept the new conceptual films that are coming from Europe.

Criminally Underrated
Admittedly, DEMONLOVER makes a sharp left narrative turn at the halfway point that's going to confound viewers who are intrigued by the straightforward (and extremely absorbing) high-stakes opening. But that's no reason to dismiss the many, many things that writer/director Olivier Assayas gets absolutely right. In the end, DEMONLOVER is a fascinating mirror-world reflection (as William Gibson would call it) of where our global society might be just five minutes from now: the fittest who survive will be multilingual, career-consumed and ridiculously chic, but also soulless, as if missing the gene that supplies a sense of loyalty and ethics. The movie is a cautionary, though entirely plausible, tale of humans debased by their own lust for ungoverned capitalism. Every line of dialogue is about the business merger at hand; in the rare instances where feelings are discussed, they're usually about how *work* affects those emotions. The big wink here is that the characters don't even discuss business honestly, because each has duplicitous motives.

Technically, DEMONLOVER is a feast. Denis Lenoir's widescreen photography constantly dazzles -- many of the tracking shots are sustained in close-up (creating paranoia), and the color spectrum appears as if filtered through corporate fluorescence. (The neon-drenched Tokyo sequence is particularly hypnotic.) Jump cuts keep the narrative one step ahead of the audience. Sonic Youth's atonal guitar score creates the same mutant environment that Howard Shore pulled off in CRASH. Most significantly, Connie Nielsen's face (and hair and wardrobe) mesmerizes more than any CGI I've ever seen. Considering the labyrinthine motives of her character, Nielsen's exquisite subtlety may be lost on first-time viewers; on second look, her emotionless gaze speaks volumes.

Audiences (and critics) have unanimously attacked the "problematic" second half as an example of directorial self-indulgence. While I agree that it's not as satisfying as the first half, I don't think it's a total crash-and-burn (pardon the spoiler pun). Clearly, the ending is open to thematic interpretation, but I think Assayas is just saying that if our species isn't more careful, we'll end up like one-dimensional characters in a video game of our own devising - sure, winner takes all, but the rest of us suffer enormously.

Narrative ambiguity aside, DEMONLOVER is the great Hitchcockian/Cronenbergian espionage fantasia I've been waiting for. It makes sense that it would come from Europe, since Hollywood forgot long ago how to make their assembly-line genre exercises intellectually stimulating. (Like the animé porn within the story, Hollywood movies today represent no more than a calculated corporate commodity.) More than any other film from the last 2½ years, DEMONLOVER seems a product of the post-9/11 world - a not-so-distant future where overwhelming paranoia goads us to preemptively eliminate any form of potential competition before it can do the same to us. And how in doing so, we devour our own tail.

I expect this movie's reputation will grow by leaps and bounds in the coming years.

Demonlover, more like Boraphil....
Ok, it doesn't rhyme, but that is what this movie is. So if you're thinking, cool cast, Connie, Chloe, Gina; I'll give it a try, think again. The acting is just fine all around. Hats off to them. But the movie is sooooooooo slow. The payoff ain't worth time. It is about corporate espionage and some Japanimation porn. If you want a dark twisted movie, rent Dirty Pretty Things. That movie rocks. Late. ... Read more

Amazon.com

This magnificent Argentinean film centers on Rafael (RicardoDarín), a restaurateur whose life is becoming a knot of stress andfailing relationships. When his father, Nino (Héctor Alterio), decidesthat after 44 years of marriage he wants to give his wife, Norma (NormaAleandro), the church wedding she always wanted, Rafael scoffs; Normahas advanced Alzheimer's and doesn't recognize where she is or who'saround her. After Rafael has a heart attack, he realizes he has tochange his life--but when he makes changes, he discovers how much ofhis life he'd been taking for granted, and that he may have cast asidethe very things he seeks. Son of the Bride is smartly and richlywritten, directed with generosity and precision, and full ofastonishingly full performances. The story's full of clever touches,but it never lets cleverness overwhelm humanity. Simply a superb movie.--Bret Fetzer ... Read more

Reviews (17)

If life passes you by, what are you waiting for to catch up?
This little seen Argentinian film is, simply put, one of the most refreshing comedies of the last few years. Nominated for a Foreign Language Film Academy Award in 2001, the movie stars Ricardo Darin (Nine Queens) as Rafael, a man who operates a restaurant once owned by his parents, Nino and Norma.

Basically, the film shows us how Rafael's life changes through a series of events that happen to him and his family, with the final message being that there's more to life than work, and that love is the strongest force there is (at least, that's my take). The tag line says it all: "If life passed you by, what are you waiting for to catch up?". It has some of the funniest dialogues ever, showcasing, in a not-so-stereotypical way, how people from Buenos Aires speak and behave (and I should know, my wife's family's from there!) - although it should be said that some of it may get lost in the translation, especially when really local expressions are used.

The acting is excellent accross the board. Darin is great as the not-so-likeable protagonist, with whom we grow closer as the movie progresses, and most of the other characters, like his girlfriend Naty (the lovely Natalia Verbeke), his ex-wife (Claudia Fontán) and others, while not having that much screen time, give great performances. But the best acting of the film is done by Héctor Alterio, as Nino, Rafael's father, Norma Aleandro (they've worked together in many films, most notably The Official Story, and most recently Cleopatra, with Natalia Oreiro) who plays Norma, his Alzheimer's disease suffering mother, and by Eduardo Blanco, who plays Juan Carlos, his wacky childhood friend who has become an actor.

If you're in the mood to try something that's decidedly not Hollywood, yet refreshing, funny and heartwarming, be sure to give this movie a look. It's well worth it!

Humble comeuppance that reaches for the sky
What a wonderful film! Rafael, stressed and overworked, is rapidly screwing up all the important relationships in his life. He's already divorced, is about to lose his lovely girlfriend, nearly stands up his about-10yo daughter, and doesn't understand why his charming father would want a church wedding for his 'wife' of 44 years, esp since she's suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
Then he has a heart attack - and goes thru a classic change of life. But in this case, he first makes everything worse before figuring out how to make it all beter.
Incandescent performances by everyone. Really an astonishingly wonderful Argentinean movie almost overflowing with touches of humanity.

Splendid
Great acting all across the board! A tear-jerker, feel-good drama that has great wit, Hijo de la Novia should appeal to all film lovers who appreciate fine cinema.
A selfish middle-aged restaurant owner's charismatic father decides to spend his savings on a full-blown wedding for his Alzheimer-stricken "girlfriend" of 44 years. After the restauranteer suffers a stroke, he begins to see his life from a new perspective. His father's love of his mother inspires him, and he begins to make ammends.
There are so many fine performances, the excellent script was totally brought to life by these fine actors. This will make you laugh and cry, an absolute must-see.

One of the best South American firms I have seen
I initially watched the firm to learn Spanish but it turns out to be the best firm that I have ever seen--even though I have not seen too many. It's very uplifting and brought out all the good things in life.

Truly the best film of 2001 and one of the best films ever!
Son of the bride is a drama/comedy whitch is beautifully written, acted and directed. Ricardo Darin (one of my favorite actors of all time) completely takes this movie to the limit with fantastic acting. A great movie. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Nine Queens joins a line of sly thrillers about master-pupil con artists and games within games within games that includes The Sting, House of Games, and Heist. In the first five minutes, we watch an overt scam--a young Argentinian named Juan (Gastón Pauls) running the two-10s-for-a-5 hornswoggle on a convenience store clerk--then find that we have been tricked along with the bystanders as another brand of deception kicks in. And so it goes as Juan, with both trepidation and excitement, drifts into partnership for a day with an older, more cosmopolitan conman, Marcos (Ricardo Darín).Knocking around Buenos Aires--from gritty downtown to cozy neighborhood side streets to a swank hotel where wealth murmurs behind every door--these damnably resourceful scoundrels try not to miss a bet, including an epic swindle involving the titular "Nine Queens," a set of ultrarare stamps. Writer-director Fabián Bielinsky keeps a taut rein on everything, including his own cleverness. The end result is an entertainment as bracingly disciplined as it is ingenious. --Richard T. Jameson ... Read more

Reviews (29)

Who's conning who?
An outstanding movie about a couple of Argentinean cons who are out to swindle everyone they encounter. The lead actors portray Juan and Marcos as a couple of loveable bad guys that will amaze you with the tricks they pull to get money. It seems everyone they encounter is going to get ripped off as they pull off some incredible and hilarious scams. They meet per chance while Juan is pulling a con and Marcos witnesses the game pulled on a gullible store clerk. Juan gets caught and Marcos acts like he is a cop/detective and hauls him away only to reveal himself as a fellow con. A friendship develops and soon they are showing each other their best tricks and plan a major scam involving a forged copy of a valuable stamp set, the nine queens. The film is brilliant, extremely well written and moves at a fast pace that keeps you guessing throughout the movie. Part of the beauty of this film is the bright script(it was a winner in a national script writting contest) that keeps you wondering what the heck is going on. To thoroughly enjoy the movie you may have to succumb to just watching rather than trying to figure it out because everything is not as it seems. There are a lot of twists and turns , cons scaming each other, new characters introduced to complicate things, eventually leading up to the finale where the quest for unloading the fake stamps reveals exactly who is conning who. If you like movies where you play mind games with the movie trying to figure it out than you will love this movie. It is a delightful , witty caper movie that is fresh and totally entertaining. Highly recommended cinema from Argentina that is equal or better than the best from Hollywood.

very good film with some holes not patched up well
yeah, you can write a script about con artists with as many twists as you like if you could twisted logically and reasonablely. the nine queens is such a movie that twisted beautifully when sitting and watching it plays itself out. but once you try to flash back the whole story, there are still lot of inexplanable holes that might spoil your first good impression of the film. yeah, try to think about who's bringing whom to the hotel to meet the supposed targeted con artists and how it could be arranged such encountering. should top notched con artists know each other or at least know who's in the market doing certain sting? a phony sister working in the hotel and help the other con to rip off her phony brother for 200gs? and how this scam is arranged and turned out to be the opposite? how? or you might explain it to yourself that the phony sister actually does not work in the hotel, then why other hotel workers would know her and let her walking around like a real employee? how could the con ring know that the issuing check bank would bankrupt right after the check payment and would make the check as a piece of useless toilet paper? does it mean that the bank itself is also involved or the mob outside of the bank also involved? how could the cons control such perfect timing with such such huge issue? furthermore, you think a smart con artist would accept a check? well, he might accept money order, cashier's check, travelers check, but definitely not a bank check that is so easy to be bounced. and how a street con artist doing daily small ripoffs would own 200gs? and if he's such a small timer already owns 200gs, he would definitely have retired. the whole arrangement of this story once retrospect carefully, those totally impossible twists would become more and more unacceptable. but if the sister does not show up in the final scene and become juan's lover, all might be overlooked and accepted tolerablely.

Smart Film That Keeps You Guessing
I admit that I'm a sucker for con movies. The idea of the clever heist intrigues me. What this film has, that many others don't, is the appropriate characterization to understand the deal in play. As it unfolds, you're exposed to so many possible angles and, more importantly, plausible angles that you can't let your guard down the entire length of the film. A very enjoyable movie!

Even better than all the hype
I am always hesitant to see a movie after it receives so many rave reviews, becuase it is often dificult for such movies to meet my expectations. This film, is one of the few examples in which it actually exceeded all of the hype.

It's a con movie, in the tradition of classics like "The Sting" but it moves much quicker. It's not until the credits start rolling that the viewer gets an idea of how complete the heist was and exactly who was in charge. I saw this movie first in Europe, and was incredibly disappointed that it was not released in the US, so I could watch it again, because it is a movie that you can watch again and again and gather more clues with each viewing.

I was sad to hear that a US company bought the rights to the story. It will be difficult for them no to butcher it, because this was perfect.

Shocking
WOW!!! Great Movie. Gotta see it, gotta have it. A never guessing ending. Lovely actuation.In fact. EXCELLENT!!! ... Read more

Description

Secluded in the French countryside, a brilliant, obsessive doctor attempts a radical plastic surgery to restore his beloved daughter’s once-beautiful face, but at a horrifying price. Lauded as a true rarity of horror cinema, Eyes Without a Face (Les Yeux sans visage) has influenced countless films in its wake and stunned audiences around the world with its shocking yet poetic imagery. The Criterion Collection is proud to present Georges Franju’s lyrical black-and-white classic in a long-awaited, high-definition DVD edition. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Poetry in 'horrific' motion
Georges Franju might be the most underrated director of French cinema history that I know of. His films were marveled at by no less than both Jean Cocteau and Jean Luc-Goddard. As far as *Horror Cinema* goes, "Eyes Without A Face" AKA "Les Yeux Sans Visage" might be the most poetic, eerie film ever lensed. The haunting portrait of Christiane, masked, faceless, and disfigured since an earlier car accident, combined with the obsession of her brilliant father-surgeon, determined to find and graft a 'new' face for her, will leave horrific impressions of intense beauty that will not easily be forgotten. A mixture of fantasy and realism that combines for a movie that far surpasses today's "horror story" standards. Check it out if you're not looking to see a typical 90's "run-of-the-mill" slasher film, AND if you have the patience and understanding to notice the subleties of poetry-in-motion when it surfaces in a genre outside of it's normal influence.

A Portent of Movies to Come
This startling work combines the plot of a splatter movie with the cold, composed style of 1950's Stanley Kubrick. You can sense in it the French appreciation of Poe, Cornell Woolrich, and the Gothic. It has many touches of dark humor and irony that complement the ominous, poetic visual style. Strange moments of anguished emotion keep breaking through the tightly constructed surface of the film. It also anticipates the more graphic horror films to come in the future. The famous "operation" scene will make your skin crawl even after 40 years. The real subject is, of course, our fetishization of female beauty, and what that dehumanization really costs. The figure of a ruthless, murderous doctor performing obscene medical experiments also must have had special relevance to a France that had experienced the terrors of German occupation during World War II. Maurice Jarre's music is memorably spooky. You won't soon forget this one.

Franju where are you?
But what about Georges Franju? What do we know about him and what other films has he made other than "Eyes Without a Face?" I know about, but haven't seen, his ground-breaking documentary "Blood of Beasts" ("Sang des Betes"). I actually own a copy of another film he made called "Judex" which is totally different than either of these. And it is wonderful also.I can't believe he only made three films.Where are the others?
"Eyes Without a Face" is a masterpiece of horror because it goes to the heart of what we fear most-loss of our looks and the pathetic preoccupation with staying young and looking like the magazines and advertisers tell us to. The film is sad because the doctor can't do anything physical to help his daughter.All his skill is useless in the face of her disfigurement. Trying to change fate is useless, learning to live with it is not.

An artistic mad doctor splatter flick from France
"Eyes Without a Face" ("Les Yeux sans visage") is a horror film in which there is certain sympathy with the mad doctor, in this case Doctor Genessier (Pierre Brasseur) who is trying to repair the horrible damage to his daughter Christiane (Edith Scob) in a car accident that was his fault. The doctor, helped by his assistant Louise (Alida Valli), has been kidnapping young girls so that he can remove their skin and graft it onto Christiane's ruined face. Not only do the victims die, but the grafts fail, forcing Genessier to try again and again and again. What makes Georges Franju's film work is the inherent sympathy we feel towards the father trying to make his daughter beautiful again, just as we are repulsed by the surgical procedures he uses. Meanwhile, Genessier remains oblivious to what his efforts are doing to Christiane's own tenuous hold on reality.

"Eyes Without a Face" moves back and forth from the sacred and the profane, between the love of a parent for a child and meaningless destruction of human life. Franju conveys this contrast visually through the use of poetic images and realistic scenes. I have read arguments that "Eyes Without a Face" should be considered with "Psycho" as creating the splatter flick, and while it is hard to imagine anything having the impact of Hitchcock's film, Franju's movie is more artistic overall (of course, the shower scene is the master trump when we talk about horror films as "art"). This black & white French film with English subtitles is well worth seeing and could end up on your personal top 10 horror film list.

The "Eyes Without a Face" translation is actually the British title for this 1959 release, which was called "The Horror Chamber of Dr. Faustus" when released in the United States in 1962, in what must be one of the stupidest titles grafted onto a foreign film in cinema history. Here you have a film that walks a fine line between beautiful visual images, such as when Christiane walks through the house in her mask, and viseral horror, represented by not just the operation scenes but the film's climax. The title is simple and elegant, not to mention appropriate to the story being told, and some suit who heard about Christopher Marlowe while reading an E.C. comic comes up with "The Horror Chamber of Dr. Faustus." Mon dieu, mon ami!

ABSORBING GOTHIC HORROR......
This is one of my favorite foriegn films and one of my favorite horror movies. How devastating this must have been in 1959! At once unsettling even disturbing and yet dreamily lyrical, Les Yeaux Sans Visage stands as a masterpiece of French Gothic horror. Georges Franju directs this as a painting of otherwordly colors (in b&w) and images in evoking an adult fairy tale with the unhappy "princess" being set free in the end surrounded by beautiful birds. All the while, though, it is still a shocking plastic surgery/scarred face story laden with misplaced love and guilt. It conjures emotions that leave you feeling uneasy for days afterwards....This is a must for DVD (from Image hopefully) to preserve the beautiful b&w imagery and to offer the uncut version in it's entirety...keep those cards and letters coming! ... Read more

Reviews (8)

A Funny and Emotional Ride
Truffaut's "Shoot The Piano Player" is a remarkable thing: a funny and light-on-its-feet movie about despair. The director combines the grittiness of David Goodis' noir novel "Down There" with his own more optimistic humanism and the full stylistic arsenal of the French "New Wave" to create a film that manages to say as much about Art and Life as any really good, satisfying book. Charles Aznavour plays the timid Edouard, aka Charlie, a piano player in a cheap bar who is really a classical concert pianist hiding from a catastrophic, tragic history. A pretty new waitress knows who he is and encourages him to live again. But as in most American gangster movies, you can't run away from your past. Truffaut includes an amazing amount of philosophy about women, Fate, success, failure, marriage; all couched in a runaway style that is familiar to us today, but must have been shocking and exhilirating back in 1960. (The famous cut to the "old woman dropping dead" could have come directly from MAD magazine.) And who hasn't sometimes felt bedeviled by fortune and shyness: we greatly identify with Charlie. The comically incompetent yet sinister villains are also a great touch. This movie feels as fresh as it must have 40 years ago.

Sometimes the book is just better!
Maybe one shouldn't compare the movie and book versions of a story. But sometimes that's inevetibable. And sometimes the movie actually improves on the book, ie. "In a Lonely Place." However, in the case of "Shoot the Piano Player," based on the book "Down There," by David Goodis, I can't say this is so. The look of the movie has that gritty noir feel, but all the time one feels as if they're watching the characters in a goldfish bowl ? from a great remove. You don't really get to know the characters or their motivations. In the book, this is much more clear and makes for a much more involving experience. Also, the addition of the character Fido (the piano player's younger brother) adds little to the story. In novel and movie we don't really get a great feel for why the waitress does what she does, but in the novel we get more of a feel for it and that does make a difference. It also makes a difference that we know more of the piano player's background, that he served with Merrill's Marauders in World War II, that, after losing his first wife, he went on a binge of anger and hate and fighting that finally led him to be the "docile" person he is when we meet him. This is little explained in the movie. Some of it's there, but much of it isn't and without it the character just seems a cypher. Read the book, watch the movie and decide for yourself.

MR CHARLIE
This luminous little movie contains 2 of the greatest scenes ever put on film. Charlie, a piano player in a seedy Paris bar, has locked away his heart so even he can't get to it. A young woman who works at the same bar is determined to crash through the wall he has constructed around himself. Through her, his painful past is discovered and the promise of the present ends in the disolution of hope. Truffaut is constantly surprising us with the unexpected. There are car chases & kidnappings & excapes and even oaths acted out; and all with an air of the inevitable. There's never been another film like it. The scene where the barmaid takes him home & they sleep together consists of 360 degree pans around the room with cuts of the couple settling into each others' arms as they sleep. It is one of the most poignant & beautiful scenes ever filmed. (The pans with goldfish feeding at the top of their aquarium are expecially touching.) And there is a scene of the hero Charlie, going to his piano audition, that is done with such economy of style that the mixture of clashing feelings comes flooding out. 'Don't shoot the piano player; he's doing the best he can.' Not to be missed.

NOSTALGHIA
At first, just two or three thoughts about the quality of the Fox Lorber DVD. Poor is the word. Subtitles one can not remove, six trailers of Truffaut movies, so so filmographies and that's all. If one considers that the DVD treatment of the images is average at the best, awful during the first five minutes of the movie in a nightly Paris, you will have to be a genuine Truffaut fan to buy this DVD. I am, so I bought it.

Why does I like this movie ? Well, I presume I'm touched by the so praised Truffaut touch for a beginning. But, above all, I always feel an intense nostalgy when I'm watching SHOOT THE PIANO PLAYER. To hear Charles Aznavour play his sad melodies at the piano and the late Boby Lapointe sing "Framboise" move me a lot. To admire once again this fantastic actor Albert Rémy - the father in the 400 BLOWS -, Michèle Mercier before her ANGELIQUE serie, the screenwriter Daniel Boulanger in the role of a comic gangster or the director Alex Joffé as the passerby philosopher is an always renewed pleasure for me.

A DVD zone give it a chance.

I use the word 'emotional' a lot. It means everything to me
Truffaut said he realised, when filming 'Shoot the Pianist', a gangster film, that he hated gangster films. He shows his contempt most by consistently emphasising human truth over generic convention, but finally allowing generic convention to win brutally through. For Truffaut, genre is incompatible with humanity and its messiness.

Like many of my favourite films (and it is my favourite), 'Shoot' is a reworking of 'Vertigo', the story of a man who lets two women die because of his own emotional cowardice, leaving him in emotional shellshock. Aznavour's performance - and this isn't sufficiently realised - is one of the towering achievements of cinema, a complete, physical embodiment of diffidence, guilt, solitude and emotional paralysis, a man more lethal in his dithering passivity than murderous gangsters are in their violence.

Like all the best art, 'Shoot' is a tragicomedy, moving bewilderingly between the two moods, creating a devastating emotional texture - the hilarious scene where Charlie debates the best way to hold Lena only to tragically realise she's gone, or the frightening abduction scene that sees captor and juvenile captive argue comically over scarves.

As the title suggests, music is this film's soul, the only thing that can transcend genre for Charlie, the only way an emotionally dead man can feel.

Truffaut's restlessly inventive mise-en-scene, switching between studied artifice and breathless open air filming, is full of Hitchcock, Godard, Ophuls, Ray, Renoir - all the best of cinema; but in truth, there is no other film like it. ... Read more