The Tales of Hoffmann

IMDb RATING

7.1/10

4.2K

YOUR RATING

Moira Shearer and Ludmilla Tchérina in The Tales of Hoffmann (1951)

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Fantasy Music Musical Romance

A melancholy poet reflects on three women he loved and lost in the past: a mechanical performing doll, a Venetian courtesan, and the consumptive daughter of a celebrated composer.A melancholy poet reflects on three women he loved and lost in the past: a mechanical performing doll, a Venetian courtesan, and the consumptive daughter of a celebrated composer.A melancholy poet reflects on three women he loved and lost in the past: a mechanical performing doll, a Venetian courtesan, and the consumptive daughter of a celebrated composer.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.1/10

4.2K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 2 wins & 3 nominations total

Trivia
George A. Romero, writer/director of Night of the Living Dead (1968) and Dawn of the Dead (1978) has cited this as his all-time favorite movie, saying that it was the one that originally inspired him to get into filmmaking.

Goofs
Giulietta's necklace is turned from jewels to wax by Dapertutto, however, in a longer shot, it is briefly shown as jewels again, before a close-up, where it is wax again until Dapertutto changes it back to jewels.

Quotes
Chorus of Students: Some drink, drink, drink, drink, drink: do you hear us about? You lazy lout! We want some beer; we want some wine! Pour out the wine, and drink and drink till morning. Pour out the wine for drinking is divine. It is divine. We want some beer; we want some wine. We want some beer; we want some wine.

Crazy credits
In the end credits, main actors appear taking curtain calls next to the singers who dubbed them.

Alternate versions
The complete 138-minute version was available in 16mm black and white early television prints. The complete 138-minute version was also available in 16mm Kodachrome (color) rental prints. The complete 138-minute soundtrack was available for many years on LP (London Records).

Connections
Featured in The Late Show: Michael Powell (1992)

Soundtracks
The Tales of Hoffmann, A Fantastic Opera
Music by Jacques Offenbach
Arranged by Thomas Beecham (uncredited)
English libretto by Dennis Arundell
From the French text by Jules Barbier
Conductor: Thomas Beecham (as Sir Thomas Beecham Bart.) with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Sung by Robert Rounseville, Dorothy Bond, Margherita Grandi, Ann Ayars (as Ann Ayars), Monica Sinclair, Joan Alexander, Grahame Clifford, Bruce Dargavel, Murray Dickie, Owen Brannigan, Fisher Morgan, Rene Soames, and The Sadler's Wells Chorus

User reviews63

Review

Featured review

dazzling

Powell and Pressburger made this overblown opera a few years after their ballet film, The Red Shoes. Featuring good performances from Robert Rounsville, Moira Shearer, Robert Helpmann and Pamela Brown and some fantastic images; plus that great music from Offenbach (not always easy to follow the stories but they are enjoyable) and lots of garish Technicolor. I think Olympia might be my favourite of the stories but I did find them all equally excellent. Hard to categorise this movie but in the P&P canon it stands as one of their best.