Customer Reviews

The Great Mr. Handel [VHS]

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Handel's Messiah has been a favorite of millions of people for centuries. It has been sung and performed all over the globe, especially during the Christmas and Easter seasons.

This movie tells the story behind the writing of that masterpiece. The first two thirds sets the context of the man and his struggles. Then most of last third is spent showing what it may have been like to compose that immortal work of art.

At the end there was a short segment of the grand performance of the Hallelujah Chorus.

Out of personal hardships and illness came this amazing work that has endured. A few other people played a huge role in bringing this to past.

There is an indication of how his personal fellowship with God influenced him during this creative process.

Plus the period costumes and antique like sets give a beautiful visual history lesson.

This was the first movie I ever saw. In 1943, my High School in Chichester, Sussex, England used this movie for the only field trip made during my time there. It must have been considered as an excellent educational film. I ordered it now for nostalgic reasons, and because it started a love affair with classical music.

I never knew this 1942 British film existed and while it simplifies Handel's life and implies that the Composer and The Deity co-authored The Messiah, it is an enjoyable curiosity on several points .

The liner notes indicate it was the first Technicolor feature done under natural lighting conditions. The colors in the well preserved DVD transfer print were indeed more "natural" than the hyper-realism you get from Hollywood Technicolor of the same period. The biggest shock came right away in hearing the music performed by a huge orchestra (The London Philharmonic) with a monolithic Mahlerian sound that makes the MET's recent production of his opera Rodelinda seem like the last word in period performance practice.

There is not much music for a film honoring a composer the title itself proclaims as "Great" - mainly because at the time it was made Handel = Messiah and not much else. You get a snippet or two from Faramondo (I think...), Acis and Galatea, and "Ombra mai fu" from Serse - all of it performed as if it were Puccini. Elizabeth Allen is Susannah Cibber, though I couldn't tell who dubbed her singing voice. During Serse the various permutations and extendings of her arms made me think she was going to launch into "Stormy Weather" or "The man (Tree, I suppose in this
case...) that got away."

The first half of the movie held the most interest for me - an amusing summary of the various political machinations Handel, Heidegger, and their opera company got mixed up with, ultimately leading to Handel's fall from fashion and near bankruptcy. The character of Mrs. Cibber becomes the repository for all the Cuzzoni / Bordoni type of Prima Donna Handel had to contend with and therefore it is Mrs. Cibber he threatens to throw out the window while referring to himself as the Devil. She also functions as a sort of protective Muse, looking out for the reclusive, crotchety genius when he is unable to take care of himself.

The movie turns sanctimonious after the bankrupt, now passe Handel suffers a serious illness. Largely through orchestral transcriptions, Messiah begins to take shape in his mind, aided by a series of religious tableaux he imagines while looking through a big picture window . Mrs. Cibber comes back into his life, sings a bit of "He was Despised," we get the Hallelujah chorus, George II stands, and the movie abruptly ends.

Even though he lacked Handel's imposing bulk as seen in many of the contemporary paintings, Wilfrid Lawson maintains a convincing balance between the eccentric and the comedic. It would have been easy to play him with lots of rolled "r's" in Sig Ruman / S.Z. Sakall / Hermann Bing mode, but Lawson never looses sight of Handel's dignity and genius.

All movies should be modeled after this one. The story is clear, concise and does not tax one's attention by providing more information than is needed. The acting is crisp, the direction spot on and the casting could not have been better. Scenes flow effectively and the use of the singing vendors to change from major scene to major scene is well thought out and well executed. Handel, himself, becomes something of a tragic figure because of the opposition of his enemies, including the Prince of Wales himself. Lord Chesterfield, on the other hand, is torn between the desire to be accepted by the society he cherishes belonging to with his strong love of music and his admiration for Handel's genius. All in all a first-rate, five-star production.

Wow! I just saw the last half of this movie on TV tonight and loved it so much I had to find it and buy it! I'm going to buy another for my sister. I saw the part after his illness, and since Messiah is my favorite work of all time, and Handel my favorite composer of all time, I was enthralled! It made me weep through most of the movie (the half I saw) because it speaks so well to his faith and fervor! I know he wrote it in a very short time, and it was an extraordinary accomplishment. I can only believe that God helped him do it!

+JMJ

After viewing this very inspiring and musically and visually beautiful depiction of the life of Handel on EWTN, it was my desire to purchase a copy of the DVD. So, after purchasing a copy I can say that it is one of the best ways to spend a little bit of time being entertained and spiritually uplifted. Being one who is interested in history, learning more about how others have lived their Christian faith and have utilized their God-given gifts and talents for the betterment of mankind, I can say that this production delighted me in all these areas. Though not an expert movie critic, I do submit my thoughts as honestly as possible. This is a life which I would highly recommend that others get to know through the viewing of "The Great Mr. Handel." Entrusting everything always to Jesus through Mary and Joseph, Miss Ronnie

More than anything, "The Great Mr. Handel" serves as a window into a world (1940s Britain) where everything was correct and right, yet encrusted with passé (and just downright wrong) Victorian music legends. Granted, there's been a whole hell of a lot of research on Handel and his era, so the people involved in this film were working with what knowledge they had. As the first reviewer on this page, Stephen C. Charitan mentions, the soundtrack is performed by a Wagnerian-sized orchestra (The London Symphony Orchestra?) even going so far as to employ clashing cymbals during "For Unto Us a Child Is Born", something the real Mr. Handel would have been appalled by. The comparison of the Victorian-era performance practice (say, a herd of lusty, rampaging bulls) with the much streamlined sound of today (a Lamborghini) is startling. The original chorus for "Messiah" consisted of about 16 men and boys, not something akin to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. But such were the tastes of the day 67 years ago.

As movies must from time to time, the action in TGMH is much streamlined. I must take to task the film's outrageous portrayal of poor Georg's spiritual ephiphany. Again, the saccharine religious reverence in the movie was merely appropriate for the time and situation, 1942 and the middle of World War II). In truth, Handel was more of an agnostic than a raving Christian given to tears and *mea culpas*. Ambivalent to religious custom, his enormous talent was more than sufficient to create his singularly perfect oeuvre.

Still, it's a very watchable movie and I highly recommend it, bearing in mind the excesses of the era in which it was produced.

A friend absolutely raved over this film - so I purchased it as a Christmas gift for another friend. Haven't watched it yet myself - will see it after it is opened during holidays! LOL