Costumes Movie Reviews

I ordered this DVD because I couldn't find a DVD of my favorite Dice Clay video - The Diceman Cometh. This act was [...] crap compared to his earlier material. He has replaced the many moments of wit and humor (yes, I'm talkin' about Dice) with simple juvenile crudeness. Now, I can deal the nastiest of the nasty, as long as there is some humor involved, but F-word, C-words, etc... are not particularly funny unto themselves. It looks like Dice just dug the "shock" value of his rep and ran with that. What is worse (at least on my copy) is the SOUND. I guess it was recorded thru the telephone!!! Some of the words I could not even figure out. There are a couple decent moments which might be worth [$], but my time is more valuable than that!

Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy Andrew Dice Clay's comedy, his early work was, just plain funny. I have spent many hours listing to his old records, however this DVD was a disapointment, I seen it when it was first broadcast in 1993, It seemed fresher then.. His timing is a bit off, and rehashes his old material. The DVD sound is not that great even though it is advertised as redone in 5.1.. I don't know if it was his mic that night or what. There are no extras except for a lame intro with him trying to rap and hit a punching bag.. On the original broadcast there was a really HUGE comedian named wheels, he was on for about 15 min. They do not mention him in this DVD and he was 10 times as funny as the Diceman was this night.

My girlfriend says that when I am drunk, I get loud, obnoxious and just plain stupid. That being said, I think The Diceman must kick back a few drinks before doing his leather jacket clad cigarette smoking filled routine. Otherwise, he's one hell of an actor. His jokes cover everything from women to racism--done in a shock value style long before Eminem was offending everyone and everything. If you wanna see foul mouthed, politically incorrect dialogue delivered by a Jewish goomba from Brooklyn who could just as easily have had a career like Stallone or Travolta (both of whom he imitates to a T along with Elvis and many others), than Dice is your guy. Dice was hugely controversial in the late 80's and early 90's and if I recall he even tried to clean up his act and make a few unfunny family sitcoms. But this is what he does best, and he has since rebounded with a live show out in Vegas and more comedy CDs. If you like Rodney Dangerfield, Joe Pesci and comic geniuses like them, you will enjoy The Diceman. If you are offended by his schtick you need to lighten up. The guy aint the best of all time, but he thinks he is, and that's what makes him cool.

The staging is cramped. The sets are stupid. The whole first act looks like it takes place in some kind of prison. The children's chorus bangs on the bars.

Everybody is miscast and the acting is pure ham.

There are many available recordings of Carmen, but this has just become my favorite. Anne Sofie von Otter gives us the Carmen which I believe Bizet intended: a sensuous, titillating, sexy woman of every man's dreams, who warns all men that she lives for "right now"--don't try to change her or possess her.

Von Otter remains in character throughout, singing to the characters on the stage, rather than to the audience, as so many singers do. This is both a good introduction to Carmen, in that it stays true to the story and faithful in its performance. It is also a fanatastic Carmen for those who think they know Carmen--that there's nothing more to add to it. Indeed, there is: This Carmen will knock your socks off. She is involved in all the action on stage, reacting to all the other characters. We may have thought we knew Carmen, but Von Otter shows us we hadn't seen nothin' yet.

The one negative I found in this production was the fault of the sound engineers. Sometimes I had to turn up the volume to hear some of the singers. Yet, considering the overall impression of the performance, this was a fault which was not intrusive. There were several good extras in this DVD set, including a tour of Glyndebourne Gardens, a primer on staging fights in operas (the difficulties of singing while wrestling), and a feature on how the costumes were made and chosen. There is also an illustrated synopsis, which makes it easy to introduce the story to new viewers.

For those who enjoy watching conductors, you're in for a treat with this Carmen. Phillipe Jordan conducts with almost incredible bombast and dramatic flair--you'd swear he might spear his other hand with the sword-thrusts of his baton. It might be out of place elsewhere, but it seems strikingly appropriate in the eptiome of drama: Carmen.

I've enjoyed lots of performances of Carmen, but if I could see just one Carmen production, this would clearly be the one. It won't disappoint you.

Collectors of opera on dvd will definitely have to take a very attentive look at the BBC Opus Arte releases. This Carmen is a complete knock-out, looked at whatever angle you wish: musically, visually, presentation-wise, you name it. The performance was taped during last year's Glyndebourne Festival, Anne-Sofie von Otter was 46 (she was born in 1955) and at that wondrous age of feminine attractiveness, she became a tigress of a Carmen, a rÃ'le few expected her to take on so successfully at that stage in her impeccable career.

To begin with, forget about the classic dark-haired and -eyed castanets and peineta-clad cliché we've been seeing since time immemorial, as regards the Carmen character, and forget also about any misgivings you might have had on this hitherto often called "swedish ice queen" taking on a rÃ'le so many supposedly "warmer-blooded" singers have so successfully brought on stage since the work saw the light over a century ago. What you have here is a fiery red-haired, blue-eyed, erotically super-charged whirlwind of a woman, on whom the world is centred since the very first moment we see her bursting on the upper part of the stage with a sonorous whistle. Von Otter is not only physically stunning to look at throughout, she'll also amaze you vocally and absolutely reinvents the character, a Carmen wholly of her own. I guess David McVicar, the enfant terrible of theatrical stages both sides of the Atlantic, has had his fair share in this rethinking of the character, but I doubt he'd been so successful had he had any other singer at hand.

The other singers are no less good. I've read some complaints on Naouri's alleged aloofness as a signature of his Escamillo, to me he assumes dead-centre the characteristic pose and attitude any successful spanish bullfighter worth his salt will assume once his hitting it big-time, he really seems to know how a successful spanish bullfighter ought to behave. And he ends up thus being a truly superior impersonator of the rÃ'le, impeccable also from the vocal side. The Don José is also very well characterised and sung, Haddock not only conveys the character's indecision, on one side longing for the world he left behind in his home town in Navarre and on the other this lustful, lascivous temptation of a new world Carmen offers for him to dip into. Micaela is proposed here as some sort of very proper and petite-bourgeois or middle class woman, somewhat past her best years and on her way to becoming some sort of spinster, a sincere and good-hearted human being but in the end the loser, the woman left behind by perhaps her own doing or as a consequence of her conventions, as the spanish saying goes, "left over to dress up images in the local church". You may prefer other impersonations that show her as a pure soul ready to sacrifice herself for the man she's loved for so long, but I'm perfectly ready to buy this variant. The other supporting rÃ'les are well taken, the chorus work very well, even the kids who so noisily mock the troops' changing of the guards in the first act.

The work is given in its original, Opéra Comique version, that is, with spoken dialogue between sung segments instead of the recitatives added later. This may prove a dangerous decision in non-french speaking countries, because if your singers are non-native speakers of the language, or at least have a better-than-average command of it, you may end up having them speaking some horrendously-sounding patois, and on the other hand having the audience left out in limbo, not understanding what's happening on stage. But here, o wonders of the new integrated Europe, you have a bunch of mostly british singers who surprisingly do achieve a more than passable utterance of one of those incomprehensible languages spoken beyond the channel, and on top of it, an audience who appear to actually understand! Naouri is of course a native french speaker, and french is one of the languages the versatile Von Otter speaks as fluently as her native swedish.

Jordan's conducting is very much to the point throughout, with an acute sense of tempo and dynamics inffusing the performance from beginning to end, you'll have a hard time finding a better-conducted Carmen on shop shelves. Visually he's very distractive, recalling Georges Prêtre in his dancing, he makes faces, frowns, stops dead suddenly beating time or weaves the baton frantically, Furtwängler-like, opens his eyes as in utter wonderment whilst holding the baton like some sort of weapon. His stick technique looks erratic sometimes and must have been confusing to the musicians, who usually tend to take a cavalier look at these podium antics; I presume these LPO members must have had a difficult time getting used to that. But the end result is impeccable.

Sound take is superior, as seems to be customary from this source, very realistic and theatre-like (some critics have complained on the singers being at times overshadowed by the orchestra, but isn't that what you do encounter when you listen to opera in the theatre and not just from recordings?), as is the video presentation. In sum, then, a must.

An excellent performance by Rick Wakeman. I honestly believe he is the greatest keyboard player ever but, even Rick Wakeman can make mistakes. In this case, his mistake was to include Ashley Holt in the performance. This DVD would have been more enjoyable with no vocals at all; especially Holt's vocals. I have nothing against Holt. It's just that his time has past and you get the impression he is just trying too hard and would be much better if he took himself less seriously. I was expecially disappointed to hear lyrics added to "Merlin The Magician". There are no lyrics in the original studio version and I've heard many live versions that also had no lyrics. Listening to Holt sing to this was annoying. I wanted to hear Wakeman play it as the instrumental it has always been. Another thing I could have done without was the long drum solo during "Anne Boleyn". I love a good drum solo and the drummer is very good but, it just didn't fit the song. Still, through it all, Wakeman's incredible playing just amazes me and it always has. It makes you easily forget about the singing, which thankfully does not occur in every song.

Rick Wakeman's return to stage during his limited 1990 tour (which barely covered England and Europe) featured a very tight band. Notable here is Tony Fernandez, who does a stunning job on the drums (although his drum solo is ruined by Ashley Holt). His renditions are nothing short of breathtaking. There is even a place where his fingers, on a close up min-cam wave hello with two fingers while in the middle of a solo! Each song is note-perfect, especially Merlin The Magician and Elizabethan Rock. The bring down was the decision to bring back Ashley Holt, the vocalist from RW's famous Sydney live concert feed in 1975 for Journey to the Center of The Earth. This man is talented, bu obviously a has-been. His voice is still quite good, but he tries too hard and ends up failing miserably, especially on "Make Me A Woman." His, dare-I-call-it percussion during Tony's drums solo was unforgivable! Obviously he and Rick are old friends and Rick is doing him a favor, but the feel of the drum solo is totally ruined by Holt's banging away on his Simmons Pad toys. Overall a great video to own, but a bit flawed. The sound quality is crisp, full and direct. Flawless. Once you get past the Holt Issue, you have a fantastically inspiring concert. Very intimate. If you are a RW fan, BUY IT!

There's awesome playing by Rick Wakeman (as always) on this DVD. Wakeman makes use of incredibly fast fingers to play blazingly fast melodies, solos and multiple keyboards simultaneously.

Disappontments that I have are that 2 copies of this DVD have video problems on my DVD player (square colored "tiles" on the screen). It could be a hardware problem on my end (Sony DVP-S500D) as it plays fine at the store where I bought the disc. This is however, the only DVD that does not play correctly out of the 30 or so titles that I've used in the player.

My second disappointment is that Wakeman does not play the same keyboards that he used when he first recorded these songs. The new breed of keyboards are capable of remarkable new sounds (which he uses) but for performing these great songs of the past I can't help but feel that part of that classic sound is lost in the transistion.

On the good side, there's Wakeman playing live (!) which is great to watch and I'm very happy with the camera angles and closeups. The sound is nice and clear...very good actually, but the audience's clapping is too loud in the mix (imagine crumpling a brown paper bag right on a microphone's pickup at full volume with the bass up).

The track listing is:
Catherine Parr
Elizabeth Rock/Make me a Woman
Anne Boleyn
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Merlin the Magician

Musicians:
Rick!- keys
Ashley Holt- vocals, electronic percussion
Tony Fernandez- drums, percussion
David Paton- bass

Andrew's overall summary:
A must have DVD for Wakeman fans.

Don't buy it. I have wonderful memories of seeing this film at the movies when I was a child. I loved it so much that I even had the record album. I couldn't wait to get it on DVD to share with my children. What a disapointment! It looks like the same print they showed in the theaters back in the early 1970s. The colors are washed out and faded. Even worse, the image looks soft. I knew this was an old film and I wasn't expecting a "Snow White" quality restoration, but this was so bad that my family and I couldn't even finish watching it.
The dismal quality becomes even more apparent when you watch the "Making Of" promo included on the disc. Filmed in Black & White back in 1953, it looks crisper and sharper than the film itself.
I knew I was in trouble, though, when I opened the DVD case and there wasn't a chapter list inside. I sensed that if View Video (the distributor) didn't care enough about their product to include a chapter list, they wouldn't care about getting the best possible print (let alone striking a new one). And I was right.
Again, despite whatever fond memories you might have of this film, save your money. Don't buy it.

Purchasers who are looking for the "real" Hansel and Gretel by Humperdinck should NOT by this video. This video is an adaptation which uses MOST of the music from the original but not all of it; and what IS used is not always used in the original order. This results in some sections being recast in different keys; unexpected cuts; and other anomalies (including some new vocal lines where there was previously just orchestra).

The text is sung in English and the translation is very good (almost word for word); but the concept is all wrong. Very little is actually sung: Hansel and Gretel sing about 50% of their material; the Mother sings none of it. Major set pieces like the "Children's Prayer" are spoken through with words that have nothing to do with the original.

The casting and scripting suffer from their 1950s/60s style. The worst offender in this is Constance Brigham's dual role as Hansel and Gretel. Gretel is portrayed as an airheaded giggler who is prissy, reacts to all adversity by crying, and has no control over her emotions. Hansel is rude, treats adults with disdain and his sister with contempt. (Just watch any of the classic TV sitcoms produced around this time and you'll see the same thing). The fact that the father sings all of his lines (and sings them well) and the mother speaks hers (when she isn't gasping or crying out "oh") only further adds to the incongruity.

The only thing that saves this performance from total disaster is the performance of Anna Russell as the Witch. Even with all of the impediments previously mentioned, this is the best performance of this role I have ever heard. I almost hate to say this, but the film is worth watching for her performance alone.

But for those looking for an introduction to opera or those familiar with it, be aware that this is a good film of its genre, but opera it is NOT.

I can remember seeing usually in December at the local movie theater in my hometown with my older sisters It was a big hit with us then and still is a big hit around our house. Anna Russell's performance is a classic and the way the original opera is presented makes it a little bit easier for the young ones to enjoy it. Sure this is not the sort of thing you would see at the Metropolitan Opera House, but it is a lot of fun. And this Video brings back a number of good memories!

I'm very disappointed with the sound quality here as there is a very noticable compression and background hiss. I did not like Doese at all. Her acting seemed contrived and was very uncomfortable throughout. Frey does his best but is not suited for this role. Doigt is good as David. McIntyre is just okay. The sets are for the most part good and the 'Dances of the prentices' scene is very well done. The Mackerras led orchestra was competent but uninspiring. I love Meistersinger but this DVD surely can't be satisfactory with that bad sound. I keep wondering when/if the Met will fill the void.

First of all this is a review of the DVD and the cut Act III prelude is intact as is everything else. The problem is that the sound is compressed to a noticeable degree. It is rather annoying. Fortunately this is a good performance. Not that there couldn't be a better one. But the MET performance of this year will probably not be out for two or three years and Wagner lovers in the meantime can savor this disk. McKerras leads a fine orchestra. The soloists are overall good if not outstanding and they look their parts. No funny stuff in the production. Satisfying all around execpt for that sound.

Nothing fancy, no tricks, only the opera performed by good singers in a traditional production. McIntire as Sachs and Pringle as Beckmmesser are great, everyone else more than pulls their own weight. Well done group scenes and enough spectacle to be true to the story.

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.

I have watched this DvD and must say that for anyone who is a fan of TRUE Hardcore wrestling they should get this. For those unfamiliar with FMW, it is the TRUE Originator in Hardcore, Extreme Wrestling. It was the first to have the King of the Deathmathc Tournamet. It originated using lightbulbs, electrified barbwire, and EXPLOSIVES!!! The matches on the tape are some of the most extreme I have ever witnessed and I have been watching and following wrestling for 20 years. If you like Extreme and want to see the Real Mick Foley, AKA CACTUS JACK, and witness one the greatest wrestlers in the world before his injury, HAYABUSA, then Get this tape because if you don't then you are truly missing out.

I was really disappointed with this video. The main reason for my disappoitment is the stupid highlight videos (instant replays)that kept on popping up during the matches. I hated these highlight videos because they ruined the flow of the match. It wasn't like they showed the videos while the wrestlers were laying exhausted on the floor doing nothing (like after a wrestler hits a plancha and then rests on the arena floor for a little while). They would do these instant replays during the middle of heated action. I remember even missing a 2 count (u could hear the ref counting to 2 in the background) due to one of the instant replays. What made it even worse was that the same instant replays that were shown during the matches, were also shown after the conclusions of the matches. What was the point of showing the same clip twice? I really hope that FMW will get rid of the instant replays for the next tape it produces.

Backstory

The card all of this footage comes from took place sometime in '97 (they mention the date on the tape, though I don't recall it), and we get three "complete" matches in addition to highlights from some of the undercard. The DVD version allegedly has a couple more full matches, but I haven't made the commitment to that level of technology yet.

According to our Tokyo Pop announce team, the entire show was revolved around the final match of FMW's top lady Megumi Kudo and managed to sell out Yokohama Stadium...the first time a predominantly male promotion had even tried something like this with a female main event.

The Commentary

I thought I'd throw in a segment about the announcing since early releases by Tokyo Pop caught some heat for theirs. The first set of videos in the series featured what I here were some pretty cheesy scripts where writers gave the announcers fictitious backstories to put over and lame jokes to go along with them. That's gone now.

In its place are "Straight Up" John Watanabe and Dan "The Mouth" Lovranski who call the action and set up matches from a nice little studio set. Their commentary is a bizarre mix of in and out of kayfabe, and that aspect of it really doesn't work. Hearing the guys using phrases like "babyface" and "angle" one second and then hearing them trying to put over the action in the ring as legit is just outright odd.

Once they do slip in to kayfabe mode, however, things really aren't too bad. Watanabe has the obnoxious JR "call every move three times" habit, but they do a good job of bringing up history and attempting to educate the fans to various aspects of the product (angles, what a guy's finisher is, etc). Particularly good is the calling of the main event, as they actually have time to spread things out instead of trying to crowd everything in to a two minute highlight package.

Match #1 (Highlights): Tetsuhiro Kuroda & Hayato Nanjyo vs. Crypt Keeper & Flying Kid Ichihara

There's probably no more than a minute of stuff here, so I can't really form an opinion on it one way or another. Ichihara wins with a moonsault, if I remember correctly. Seems like, if nothing else, this was just thrown on the video so viewers could get acquainted with some more of the FMW roster.

Match #2 (Highlights): Kaori Nakayama, Michika Oomukai, Chikako Shiratori, Mizuki Endo and Yoko Ikeda vs. Lioness Asyka, Eagle Sawai, Crusher Maedomari, Michiko Nagashima and Miss Mongol (Ten Woman Tag Team Match)

This gets more time than the previous match, but the clips are pretty much turned in to nothing more than an exhibition of Nakayama's offense, presumably to establish her as something of a star to the folks watching at home. If nothing else, this segment's notable for the announce team making fun of North American women's wrestling in comparison to this match.

Match #3 (Highlights): Jinsei Shinzaki vs. Super Leather

The WWF pasts of both men are mentioned, though commentator Dan Lovranski flubs a bit and says Shinzaki's WWF feud (as Hakushi) with Bret Hart was for the IC Title. Unfortunately, they don't mention Mike Kirschner choking out Vince McMahon. Pretty much just a compilation of Shinzaki's key spots with Leather getting in something here and there. I'd assume we have this on the tape to a.) utilize whatever name recognition Jinsei still might have left with a US audience and b.) play up a relationship between Shinzaki and Hayabusa, explaining Jinsei making the save for H later on the show.

Match #4 (Highlights): Kodo Fuyuki, Jado and Gedo vs. Hisakatsu Ooya and The Head Hunters

I'm glad they didn't give us a full Fuyuki match, 'cuz I've heard some not so nice things about him. The primary focus is the Headhunters' high flying ability. We get shots of a missile dropkick, swandive headbutt, and moonsault (the finish) from the big boys. It'd be pretty impressive to watch this if you hadn't seen the Hunters in action before...but, other than that, it seemed to serve no purpose.

Video Package: Recap of the Hayabusa vs. Mr. Gannosuke feud

Not being an FMW follower, I don't know all of the ins and outs of the angle myself...but the package does seem to present something that's compelling and actually well thought out, involving much deeper emotion than what's normally involved in American storylines. Torn between his friendship with Gannosuke and loyalty to FMW, Hayabusa actually breaks down and cries at one point, something that we'd probably never see on Raw.

(And, for you anime fan boys who actually care about this sort of thing, the wrestlers' speaking parts during the video packages are subtitled, not dubbed.)

Match #5: Hayabusa vs. Mr. Gannosuke (Hair vs. Mask Match)

This is treated as being a full match by the announcers, but I have this feeling that it's been clipped down a good deal. Regardless, it's still five minutes plus, so it's not quite in the "highlights" category. It seems like just a collection of spots, however, with Hayabusa flying around like a madman and Gannosuke really doing nothing of note save the occasional powerbomb. Hayabusa eventually takes the win with a particularly brutal Falcon Arrow, which dropped 'Suke on the top of his head instead of providing the normal suplex-style release I'm used to seeing.

Though Hayabusa's stuff was pretty sweetly executed (except for the Lionsault that saw his face colliding with Gannosuke's knee), there was no flow, and the match really did nothing for me. If the match really consisted only of what was shown, we'll call it about *.

Gannosuke/Hayabusa Post-Match Hyjinx

This being a hair vs. mask match, we'd expect some shaving now...right? Nah. Hayabusa gets on the mic and gives his friend one last chance to side with him. As you can probably all imagine, Gannosuke doesn't take it and instead pummels the H-man. We also get an unmasking, despite the fact that Hayabusa won the match. As if THAT weren't enough, Gannosuke attempts to set his former best friend on fire...but Jinsei Shinzaki makes the save, as foreshadowed above. Pretty darn good angle advancement in my book, if not rather predictable angle advancement.

Highlights: Cactus Jack vs. WING Kanemura (Some form of Deathmatch involving lots o' barbed wire)

This match not only allegedly sets up the next fight, but is ALSO featured on the Tokyo Pop release FMW: King of the Deathmatch. WHAT A HAPPY COINCIDENCE! If you've seen Mick Foley falling in to barbed wire before (And who hasn't?), there's nothing new here.

Cactus Jack, Mike "Gladiator" Awesome, and Terry Funk vs. WING Kanemura, Masato Tanaka, and Atushi Onita (Six-Man Texas Tornado Street Fight)

Historical Significance Factor (?): Lovranski mentions this is the last match Foley wrestled as Cactus Jack before he revived the character in WWF rings.

Do you want lame weapons shots? Do you want use of barbed wire that obviously tears away a man's shirt and leaves his body unscathed? Do you want something that's too damn hard to follow because there's twenty things going on at once? This'd be the match for you. Forget Crash TV, it's Crash Ringwork! Onita does eat a rather large fireball courtesy of Funk, but, other than that, the only real redeeming quality of the match is watching Awesome nail a few particularly wicked powerbombs, as well as he and Tanaka trying to out-tope each other. I recall Team Onita winning, though I don't exactly recall how...it was that forgettable. 1/4* for Gladiator and Masato.

Video Package: Recap of Megumi Kudo's career and feud with Shark Tsuchiya

Kudo gets the big babyface treatment, as a speech about her retirement is show, as well as Tsuchiya getting the win in a previous match. Geez, the only way they could make the result to this thing any more obvious would be if they threw in an injury angle on top of it.

Megumi Kudo vs. Shark Tsuchiya (No-Rope Explosive, Electrified Barbed Wire Match, Kudo's Retirement Match)

Ring setup: There's barbed wire replacing the ropes on two sides of the ring, and nothing at all on the other two. However, on those sides, the floor is covered in barbed wire. There's allegedly 160 explosives in said wire.

You know, for barbed wire that's electrified, they really don't sell it like there's current....some twitching would be nice.

That, however, is my only complaint about what was otherwise a pretty good little match. Teases of the big tosses in to the wire were strong, and they managed to work some nice wrestling in there too, despite being limited by the lack of any ropes. A sickle was introduced, and it resulted in Kudo doing the best blade job I'd ever seen from a woman. In total, there were five trips to the wire...three for Kudo, one for Shark (result of a very sweet reversal sequence), and one double shot.

This opera doesn't lose much from minimalist staging, which is exactly what it gets in the Opera du Rhin's production. I compare it to a production that the Lyric Opera of Boston did a few years ago, also minimalist, and equally effective. It's all psychology, fear of life versus fear of death, religious conviction versus the expedience of bowing to the popular will, etc. None of this requires elaborate sets or costumes. All that matters are the singers' voices and mannerisms, and in this production they are more than adequate. Not every opera has to be a Met extravaganza to work.

I must state from the git-go that I love this opera, and that this is a very good performance. There are many of us who cut their teeth on the Metropolitan Opera production some years ago, and while this doesn't match it's emotional impact, it is still a jewel - just a little different. I think it may have been a mistake to cast Anne-Sophie Schmidt as Blanche. She sings well, but sounds very mezzo-ish and a bit strained in many of the higher passages. She's a pretty good actress, but seems to struggle more with the notes than with her faith. And she can't begin the portray the slightly "unhinged" component in Blanche's personality that Maria Ewing did so memorably at the Metropolitan. The rest of the cast is very strong, visuals are never less than commanding, and the final scene, while a bit stagey and symbolic, is quite gripping. Poulencs' gem of an opera is an acquired taste, I think, but well worth the acquisition. I advise you to buy this and watch (and listen) about 4-5 times - you'll be hooked. Now if only the Metropolitan (M. Ewing, J. Norman, R. Crespin) would release its performance on DVD !!!

Apparently the reviewers below had no prior exposure to this work before viewing the DVD in question. That can be a handicap when coming to a work such as "Carmelites." Perhaps I am a bit better equipped to judge, as this is one of my favourite operas of all time.

This is a truly excellent performance, recorded in 1999 at the Opera National du Rhin. Aside from a small spoken scene in Act Three where Blanche learns of the arrest of the sisters, the performance is complete.

The cast is uniformly excellent, but particular mention must be made of Anne-Sophie Schmidt's highly moving Blanche and Nadine Denize's haunting old Prioress with a riveting death scene. Additionally, Patricia Petibon is a charming Constance and Hedwig Fassbender a sympathetic Mere Marie.

The sets and costumes are simple and evocative without getting in the way of the action, and although I'd quibble with the staging of the final climactic scene, everything else that is done is done extremely well.

In short, if you want a DVD version of "Dialogues of the Carmelites," I really can't see this fine edition being bettered anytime soon.

I must first admit that Siegfried is my least favourite opera in the entire Ring cycle. Maybe it's because of this reason that I'm disappointed by what I see and hear on this DVD recording, as there's nothing which can make me like this opera more.

I have nothing really against the staging and direction. However, these come across as being rather perfunctory. At times, the singers are left with nothing much to do for a long period of time. Things are sometimes too static for the music, which are often much more lively than the stage action.

The singing is mediocre. I like James Morris's Wanderer. Siegfried Jerusalem, though musical and mostly accurate, is a little too slender in tone for the hero. I'm not impressed by the Brunnhilde of Hildegard Behrens. The other performers are adequate but no more. The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra under Levine gives a good though not transcendant performance.

Maybe I'm being a little too harsh. But I think this opera has much potential that has been unexplored by the performers and the director here.

This was a very grand production of Seigfried. Master Levine does an incredible job as conductor and his interpretation of Wagner is grand. I do not think the production is dull. The lighting is a bit dark at time, but I think that James Morris is superb as the Wanderer. As expected a very good Metropolitan Opera performance. This completes the Ring Cycle for me.

I disagree strongly with the reviewer who complained that this production is "dull". It is rescued from dullness by Heinz Zednik, the genius who plays Mime, and by fantastic sets. Also, James Morris is at his peak as the Wanderer, totally convincing visually and vocally, and he's the only one I've heard so far who can sing the line: "Ha-ha, ha-ha, ha-ha-ha-ha, der witzigster bist du ..." with all the "ha"s correctly timed. Everyone else--especially Hans Hotter--consistantly screws up this line, even in studio recordings.

Ekkehard Wlaschiha hits a homer as Alberich. Superbly menacing as he threatens the Wanderer and a great bully when he fights with Mime over the treasure.

This is the absolute worst (martial arts or otherwise) film I've ever had the displeasure of watching. Any viewers should be reimbursed for their time wasted. I would recommend this film to no one. This "c" movie had no story line, terrible acting bad correography, and nothing of value to offer viewers. As a Wing Chun practitioner and avid martial arts movie goer, I would like to offer some quality films with skillful actors and great fight scenes. A few are: "Fist of Legend", "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon", "The Legend of the Drunken Master", "The Seven Samurai", and anything by Bruce (strictly for the quality of Bruce's technique and forgiving the cheesiness of the films). Have fun!

As far as I can tell, the only thing having to do with Wing-Chun is the title of the movie. It wasn't the worst Kung-Fu movie I've ever seen, but if you're looking for authentic Wing-Chun action, avoid this movie.

this movies is just half decent........

can anybody tell me what this movie is really about ?????????

(cheesy FF and choppy fight scenes)