Don Quichotte

Don Quichotte is quite simply a great film, that has a lot going for it. I saw the film in all three of its versions, and while all three of them are well done on their own terms, the French one I feel is the most effective, but the English lyrics are wonderfully poetic. The only real problem is that some scenes are a little jumpy and perhaps the film is a little too short, but other than that it is fine. Being a fan of the great Russian bass Chaliapin and a lover of the legendary story by Miguel de Cervantes y Saavedra, I wanted to see Don Quichotte after seeing a part of it featured on the outstanding documentary The Art of Singing:Golden Voices of the 20th Century, and after finally seeing the film I was not disappointed.

The visuals here are stunning, with some truly effective framing scenes and the effects of light and shade. The scenery and costumes are also really authentic and don't look fake. The music is absolutely superb, the score is a gem, and the lyrics are simply wonderful. The dialogue is very good, as is the direction and staging. The ending is very effective, beautiful and touching, the story is very coherent and the performances are really good. Chaliapin practically becomes Don Quichotte here, I do agree that his French is marginally better than his English and I do prefer his Boris(where he practically is the Russian tsar), but he has a towering presence and a robust singing voice. Dorville, Rene Donnio, Renee Valliers and Jean de Limur all give great supporting turns, but it is Chaliapin's show all the way.

Overall, this is a great underrated film with many good things about it. 9/10 Bethany Cox