Arts Movie Reviews

Donizetti was a composer of over 70 operas. Some are outstanding; others less than so. Three of his comic operas, Don Paquale, L'Elsir D'Amore and La fille du Regiment are in the former category. I first saw this work when the Met toured, featuring Joan Sutherland and the young Pavarotti. It was a fantastic performance, and remains the benchmark for me. So how to evaluate this disc?

First, the music: it is a hugely melodic work, with one great melody following another. The plot is somewhat trivial by today's standards, but it still holds together well. The video is full screen and well defined, and the sound allows for DTS as a menu choice. In that mode, the sound is stunning.

The singers are all quite good. No, Paul Austin Kelly is not Pavarotti, but he is an attractive, believeable Tonio, and he can act. He hits all the notes , even the high ones woth clarity and presicion. Bruno Pratico is a competant Sulpice and Ewa Podles is a funny yet well sung Marquise. It is Mariella Devia who steals the show, though. She has a big lyrical soprano voice for such a petite woman, with supple runs and a brilliant top.

I have said repeatedly that the DVD medium is the next best thing to a live perdormance, and this disc is further proof of that. It is also an excellent "first opera" for anyone (including the kids) who is curious about why so many of us love the stuff.

Once available only on recordings in Italian (with an exception on the London label), Donizetti's "La Fille du Regiment" now has several sound recordings in the original French. An old video with Beverly Sills is in English and not very well done, and one from Australia boasts Joan Sutherland (who in no way looks the part but has few vocal problems with it). Now we have a really excellent DVD version put out by TDK (DVUS LFDR) from La Scala under the musical direction of Donato Renzetti and stage direction of Filippo Crivelli.

While tenor Paul Austin Kelly does not hit those 8 high Cs with quite the brilliance that the young Pavarotti was once able to toss off, he is comfortable in the role both musically and dramatically. Bruno Pratico makes a likable Sulpice (very important in this opera), while Ewa Podles hams it up but sings marvelously as the comical Marquise. Soprano Mariella Devia might be the most petite Marie ever, but her clarion notes when she imitates the regiment's trumpets are stunning.

The program notes mention how Zeffirelli designed the costumes and scenery to tone down the jingoism and pro-military sentiment of the original; but during the introductory titles, drawings of battlefield slaughter are shown on the screen and one wonders if those responsible for the video consulted with those responsible for the stage production.

At least there is not too much clowning in the comic scenes and the serious sequences are taken--well, seriously and without camping. I honestly doubt if a better version will appear on video and this is a very good choice for your next opera-video purchase.

The picture is in "full screen" ratio (4:3), and if you wish to use subtitles, they are available in English, French, Spanish and Italian.

This is review of the Kultur Film DVD copy, catalogue #D2070 of 1980 Covent Garden Opera performance. What we can say about old generation operatic stars, like Dame Joan Sutherland (born in 1926) and Alfredo Kraus (born in 1927). Both are in excellent shape. Kraus is so fine that in Gennaro's aria in the beginning of II act usually omitted from performance of the opera (even do not presented in his RCA 1965 studio recording with Montserrat Caballe!) he received loud applause from usually reserved British audience. His sound is still very clear and intensive in higher register and fantastic in top Cs. The other principal singers are well too. Please, listen how effective is Anne Howells in Orsini's II act aria 'Il segreto per esser felici". The profound deep bass of Stafford Dean (Alfonso) is very attractive. Beautiful design and costumes, excellent orchestra playing under the conduction of maestro Richard Bonynge. Fine staged and recorded, sound is clear with enough higher frequency. Only one complaint: there is unexpected persistent noise in the sound. Otherwise irremovable English subtitles do not bother you. By the way it is full version of the opera, as it is in 1974 DECCA studio recording. I suggest that this DVD-performance should be presented in all opera lovers library.

This is Sutherland's best performance of an complete opera available, and this includes her Lucia. I give it five stars.

to the detroit person:
If this performance is so boring, and you watched this dvd, you'll see that Sutherland receive hundreds of flowers thrown on the stage after the performance. I've never seen so many bouquets thrown on an operatic stage before, ever. It was a complete triumph. The bravas are so loud you can't even hear the applause. So your opinion is in the vast minority. I myself was riveted by the great acting and equally great singing.
You know that you never listen to one note of this opera. I can tell by your reviews of all of Sutherland's great roles, you just put in a two sentence that you're disappointed and give it one star to slap Dame Joan in the face. Why are you so hateful? Did Sutherland do something bad to you in the past?
If you're disappointed, don't buy anymore, ok? Sutherland is consider the greatest bel canto soprano of our time, but if she continues to bore you, don't pretend that you actually go out to buy her recordings and listen to them over and over again. Because all these negative reviews are getting out of hand.

Dame Joan Sutherland sings the rol of Lucrezia Borgia with such virtuosismo that one wishes she had sung Elisabetta in Roberto devereux,Maria in Maria di Rohan and all the Donizetti roles that need a prima donna of her calibre. In Lucrezia her trills, high notes and coloratura, as well as the drama in her voice, make the video a must for all bel canto lovers, and for all Sutherland fans too. Kraus is stupendous and they both make a superb couple in Borgia.

This is a great recording. The artists performance are excellent. Sutherland is excellent despite she isn't in her glorious days. The only problem: the sound is not that excellent thing. There is an inconvenient (high)background noise in the whole recording.

People on here constantly say JS should have retired years before she did. I for one am glad she did not. I saw here three times in the late eighties, twice in concert, once in Anna Bolena and she did not disappoint. The minute she opened here mouth you knew who u were listening to; her voice is unique.

I remember watching this performance for the first time some years ago; it was broadcast on satellite in the Uk by BSB. I remember thinking it must have been a recording from the late seventies and was amazed on finding the date of the performance was 1986.

Sutherland's voice is incredibly fresh; you won't hear a better Lucia; her opening scene and the following Regnava etc is amazing; and would have been amazing is he were 30 at the time of recording rather than 60.

I have all the vidoes and dvd's of JS. This without a doubt (although Lucrezia, Anna Bolena and Norma are close); is the best I have heard her sing on visual media. Her acting is credible; her voice, for a grandmother, is startling.

Buy this!

Sutherland is superb as Lucia. The production was as good as I have seen. It lent it self well to experiencing it via DVD.

But then, Sutherland is probably my all-time favorite soprano. I had the great good fortune to see a performance of this production at the Met when I lived in Manhattan at that time. Because the Met is such a big house (I sat in the orchestra section), the sound on the video is much better than at the live performance. Krause, in particular was difficult to hear, and Elvira's deeper voice often almost impossible to hear, even in the orchestra seats. Dame Joan is of course much older than the heroine, but her difficulties both in voice and physical movement make her seem that much more touching and vulnerable in the role, to me. The fact that her voice is not the pristine, perfect instrument is was in the 60s and 70s, also, for me, adds emotion and expressiveness to this particular production. I will always be able to enjoy this performance, and as a lover of vocal and musical beauty, that is quite a comfort to me. I highly recommend this particular version to anyone who loves the opera, and especially who love Sutherland's voice.

Firstly, the video and sound on this DVD transfer are quite good, especially considering the dates of the original production. That said, the important business at hand is the performance of the greatest Lucia the world has ever seen.

Sutherland made this role her own from the 1959 Covent Garden debut onward. Whilst there are many commentaries and opinions about how influential the people surrounding her on this original project were, even the opinion of Callas says it all: "That I would do for no one!" (Referring to Sutherland's moving about the stage so much and falling over backwards down a flight of stairs at the end of the Mad Scene.) Callas had launched the Bel Canto revival with the idea that a large voice could perform the coloratura--Sutherland took THAT to the next level.

While a comparison of this Met performance with her 1962 (or was it 1961?) performance of the Mad Scene on the Bell Telephone Hour shows how the voice had aged and lost its bright sparkle of her early days, this performance shows the experienced and dramatically developed Sutherland at home and secure in herself. There are places when one can hear a slight beat beginning which marked her very last years, but even with the first half of the mad scene transposed downward, the top notes are stellar! For a woman her age at the time (56!) Sutherland gives us more than most other opera stars could hope for in a career. The Regnava... is quite fine and this DVD also gives us an insight (especially for those who never heard her live) into just how large this voice was. The column of sound is HUGE and when she sings with others it is startlingly obvious. It is a shame that Kraus was the Edgardo since he is obviously suffering more from age than Sutherland. If only this had been one of those many Sutherland/Pavarotti events at the Met...

In summary, although this may not be Sutherland at her peak, there is so much good and so much advantage in having this document of her signature role performance that any disadvantages are easily washed away!

First of all, I would like to dispel any notion that the readers of these reviews might acquire about Maria Callas's interpretation of Lucia. If you haven't noticed, many of the other reviewers you see here produce every argument in the book why Sutherland sings the role better than Callas. Why do they have to harp on it to such an extent if Sutherland were the undisputed queen of this role?? Both Callas and Sutherland are very individualistic singers, like apples and oranges, and it's impossible to make the claim that either's interpretation is superior to the other.
One of the many indicators of Sutherland's prowess is not simply that she hits all the high coloratura notes without cracking, but that she glides up to them with perfect and even tone quality. She never belts out of the ensemble to get the notes out; her notes just provide the apex of the pyriamid, as it were, in perfect harmony with the rest of the singers on stage.
Contrary to what the other reviewers have written, Callas has no problem at all hitting the super-high coloratura parts that the role of Lucia demands. Just get any recording of her in this role to prove that. In fact, I think it's worth mentioning that Callas is the only soprano who could master the role of Carmen, actually a lower, sensual mezzo-soprano role, as well as Lucia di Lammermoor. While Sutherland is a true coloratura soprano, Callas can sing any role she wants. No other soprano than Callas has ever had that much success in so many tonal dimensions!! Not to mention that Callas is also the undisputed queen of acting on the operatic stage. Her whole life was a drama on and off the stage. Sutherland, while a superior singer, arguably stands quite awkward there.
Onto the criticism of this DVD, I would definitely recommend to any opera fan to obtain this recording. I need not be redundant by repeating any of the other songs of praise the other reviewers wrote. They're all true! The only thing I think needs adding is that Sutherland steals the show to such an extent in the "Mad Scene" that the opera seems to reach a climax at that point, so that the final scene of Act III with Alfredo Kraus seems like a let-down, even though his performance is also splendid apart from hers.
When you watch this DVD, you'll wish you could go back in time and see the performance live. Every time the crowd goes wild for Sutherland, you'll cheer on along with them. Lucia di Lammermoor is a great opera that builds itself around the showcase of the coloratura soprano. In this vein, it's necessary to have a true master performing it. Get this recording with Sutherland, and you can join in the excitement that everyone else also experiences about her interpretation of Lucia.

Well, I got accustomed to the low quality of "Visual Artists International" videos, and would not have bought this one, if only I could get another Anna Moffo video recording of a complete opera. But what I heard here is simply below any reasonable quality standard. High notes are distorted, orchestra voices are not heard at all, everything is messed up. When they sing or play loudly and high, you just have to shut your ears. Many old archived non-restored recordings are of better quality than this one. Total waste of money.

I was really disappointed in the casting of this video. Moffo sings beautifully in dubbing but the balance of the cast is inferior to say the least. The costumes are pretty and the castle is grand but found myself totally unmoved. The Met version with Sutherland is better in my opinion, even though I'm a fan of Moffo. Must remember it's done in 1968 style as well, and not as much good acting as some today. Nice to have to remember Moffo, however.

As far as opera movie goes this one is surprisingly good.
Granted the acting is a bit static and the filmography
academic and the sound a little fuzzy in ensemble - however
the sets (real castle, real outdoors) and costumes are
beautiful and everybody looks good and right for the parts.
Anna Moffo is definetely the star - she is ravishing to
look at and a pleasure to listen to - a warm, full lyric
soprano voice with an easy top and considerable agility -
tenor Lajos Kozma is light and a bit nasal but sings well
and baritone and bass are good. All and all a very enjoyable
movie and a lovely memento of Anna Moffo in her prime,
especially to people like me too young to have known her
while she was still active.

After hearing her Decca recording of La Fille du Regiment, I'm disappointed with Sutherland's singing in this performance. It's just sad to hear her way past her prime. High notes are forced and effortful. Timbre is thick, heavy, and mannered. What more, as always, her acting is below mediocre, and as this being a comic opera, the entire performance suffers. Sutherland should have known better than to step back into a role she knows she's not capable of handling anymore. Sorry, but that's how I feel.

I had watched my VHS tape for years and enjoyed the staging of this comic opera. I ordered the DVD when it came out, and boy, did I regret it! The DVD production is horrible! It came at the usual poor Kultur DVD production level (no extra features, DD2.0 sound, no subtitle selection, etc.) That's fine, I can live with that. But the video quality is so poor, you can literally see the screen as a bunch of small pixels! I don't know what kind of video compression technique was used for the DVD production, but it is about as poor (if not poorer) than a VCD (MPEG1) quality. And the compression is so bad that some times you watch the action in slow motion!

Regarding the opera production, it is a real delight! Joan may not have all her power and high notes in her prime, but she showed us what a brilliant actress she is. The orchestra played real well under Richard's conducting. The tenor is no Pavarotti, but is quite acceptable.

I just hope that Kultur can start improving their DVD production quality. Otherwise, so many great performing archives that Kultur owns the release right will be ruined.

Sutherland is good here. But she is spectacular in the DVD "The Complete Bell Telephone Hour Performances 1961-1968, and the VHS "Age of Bel Canto". These two are Joan Sutherland's most accomplished performances and among the most mind bogglingly awesome recordings available today.
In this Daugher of the regiment, she is way past her prime. If you like the opera, buy the Sutherland/Pavarotti cd or cassette instead.

It goes without saying that this, having once been done, need not be done again.

This is not going to work, not even foor opera fans. This is a play done with real settings, yet with a lot of dialogues and suddenly the actor/actress sing an operatic aria and then cut short and then another scene...

Sutherland and Pavorotti singing was not as good as one would expect-- we can't see their acting, and nd the sound is not so good in any event. The costume is, however, very good, so is the photography. Acting is not bad. But where is the drama,the climax or anti-climax...It's the form it takes that causes the audience most trouble.

One would accept an opera with real setting like Onegin with music written by Tsaichovsky etc more readily.

Once you realize that this is not to be Donizetti's opera, but rather Weigl's own creation that consists of Schiller's dialogs in German and Donizetti's music in Italian, you'll love it. Weigl chose the parts from both that he found important to show us the aspects of a relationship of the two queens. He created a film that fluently moves from German to Italian, from talking to singing. Both German dialogs and (of course) singing were lipsynced, but there is nothing to be affraid of - as always with Weigl, actors did an excellent job. I think there cannot be more European film than this - Czechoslovak actors "speak" German and "sing" Italian. Turn on the English subtitles to get the complete image. Well, you either like an idea of a multilingual film or not. I happen to like it. As for an opera part, being a fan of mezzos I love the idea of transposing the role of Elisabeth for contralto. This brings a better contrast between the queens as well as gave a chance to Huguette Tourangeau to be revealed to me :-) I must admit I like her (and Kamila Magalova, who plays Elisabeth) more than Joan Sutherland (and Magda Vasaryova). If you find Maria Stuarda interesting, don't forget to check out also The Turn of the Screw, Rusalka or Winterreise.