3 reviews
- Dr_Coulardeau
- Jul 15, 2010
- Permalink
This is an extraordinarily moving performance.
The acting (overacting) is done to perfection. Probably my favourite scene is Monterones curse -- its so... hummm... Italian. Then there is Rigoletto's own curse scene (ce vendetta) with the delicious taste of revenge where Rigoletto is virtually drooling at the prospect of his revenge. For amusement count how many characters say "vendetta". Then there is Gilda's sad, virtuous, and self sacrificing nature and her cute little hat. The dramatic irony(s). The force of Andrea Silvestrelli performance of Sparafucile. The death scene sends shivers up my spine. The joyous performance of Marcelo Alvarez as the Duca di Mantova, who genuinely appears to be enjoying his playboy existence.
The entire cast is amazing. Everything, from Cesare Lana performance of Monterone's curse, to the demonic look on the face of the conductor during the final chords. Absolutely beautiful.
The costumes are wonderful, but -- the visual editing is a bit choppy in places. There are scene in which the actors on stage are moving in slow motion... The video quality is not particularly good and there is a light spot on the screen in virtually every scene. The microphones on most of the lead characters are visible...
but the music is perfection and to tell the truth, I bought it to listen to, so the visuals aren't that important. I've listened to other performances of Rigoletto but this one I think is the best in terms of sound quality that I have heard (Pavoratti did not make a convincing playboy Duke).
The acting (overacting) is done to perfection. Probably my favourite scene is Monterones curse -- its so... hummm... Italian. Then there is Rigoletto's own curse scene (ce vendetta) with the delicious taste of revenge where Rigoletto is virtually drooling at the prospect of his revenge. For amusement count how many characters say "vendetta". Then there is Gilda's sad, virtuous, and self sacrificing nature and her cute little hat. The dramatic irony(s). The force of Andrea Silvestrelli performance of Sparafucile. The death scene sends shivers up my spine. The joyous performance of Marcelo Alvarez as the Duca di Mantova, who genuinely appears to be enjoying his playboy existence.
The entire cast is amazing. Everything, from Cesare Lana performance of Monterone's curse, to the demonic look on the face of the conductor during the final chords. Absolutely beautiful.
The costumes are wonderful, but -- the visual editing is a bit choppy in places. There are scene in which the actors on stage are moving in slow motion... The video quality is not particularly good and there is a light spot on the screen in virtually every scene. The microphones on most of the lead characters are visible...
but the music is perfection and to tell the truth, I bought it to listen to, so the visuals aren't that important. I've listened to other performances of Rigoletto but this one I think is the best in terms of sound quality that I have heard (Pavoratti did not make a convincing playboy Duke).
There is one name that stands out in this hideous production of a great opera. That name is Gianfranco Fozzi, director and editor.
Gianfranco Fozzi. A warning label.
Fozzi cannot restrain himself from proclaiming "Hey, I just graduated from film school. Look at how clever I am." And like most children wishing to exhibit cleverness, Fozzi comes across as a fool. And destroys the opera.
The problem? Editing. Fozzi cannot let a scene dwell upon your eye for more than two seconds without cutting to a new angle. As a result, viewer is jerked from view point to view point as though shaken on a spring in the auditorium. Let's look at Rigoletto in a head-and-shoulders shot. No, done with that. Cut to Gilda in a three-quarters shot from below. Now let's get her from the top. Two seconds later, a big setting shot of the Duke's play room.
Musical director Keri-Lynn Wilson does a great job leading a competent cast. But all their efforts come to naught under the lunatic scissors of Gianfranco Fozzi. I guess if you turn off the video and just listen, you will enjoy it. But I stopped watching half way through Act Two.
I checked out Fozzi on the IMDb and thankfully he has been silent since 2005. The film world may have been saved.
Gianfranco Fozzi. A warning label.
Fozzi cannot restrain himself from proclaiming "Hey, I just graduated from film school. Look at how clever I am." And like most children wishing to exhibit cleverness, Fozzi comes across as a fool. And destroys the opera.
The problem? Editing. Fozzi cannot let a scene dwell upon your eye for more than two seconds without cutting to a new angle. As a result, viewer is jerked from view point to view point as though shaken on a spring in the auditorium. Let's look at Rigoletto in a head-and-shoulders shot. No, done with that. Cut to Gilda in a three-quarters shot from below. Now let's get her from the top. Two seconds later, a big setting shot of the Duke's play room.
Musical director Keri-Lynn Wilson does a great job leading a competent cast. But all their efforts come to naught under the lunatic scissors of Gianfranco Fozzi. I guess if you turn off the video and just listen, you will enjoy it. But I stopped watching half way through Act Two.
I checked out Fozzi on the IMDb and thankfully he has been silent since 2005. The film world may have been saved.