Customer Reviews

Puccini

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

 

 

This is an entertaining biography of the Italian libertine who gave us the great operas LA BOHEME, MADAMA BUTTERFLY, TOSCA and TURANDOT. Gabriele Ferzetti is competent as Giacomo Ferzetti. The stunning Swede Märta Torén, who left the USA after tiring of being type cast as a woman of mystery, plays the long-suffering wife of the composer and actually ages in this movie. (In real life, she died suddenly at age 31.) Nadia Gray portrays one of Puccini's lovers. The voices of Beniamino Gigli and other noted Italian opera singers of the era are heard throughout. Till a studio decides to produce a film with more depth and scope on this great Italian composer, like Columbia's SONG WITHOUT END on Franz Liszt, this French-Italian production will have to do.

I was expecting Post War Italian Cinema grandeur. I was hoping to see a gorgeous Technicolor production, with the sweep and passion of Puccini's music. Imagine my surprise and great dismay, to discover that every actor in this definitely Italian Film, was speaking American English! Badly dubbed English! How bad? You'd swear that microphones were set up on sound stages in the Bronx, or Brooklyn, Queens or New Jersey. I have nothing against those places, but honestly, why couldn't we have heard the original Italian actor's voices?? I was frantic to find a way to hear the film in Italian, thinking there might be subtitles. No such luck.
I thought, "Is the dubbing really that irritating? Can I give it another try?" So I did. Less than 20 minutes later I was done. Had I known in advance that the movie is dubbed, I never would have purchased it. I'm doing the rest of you a favor in letting you know. Maybe some day Kino or someone else will relaese it properly!

Abysmal mastering on the DVD I saw places the reels way out of order. The only thing to do is to fast forward to the performance sequences and ignore the drama completely. Incoherent is the nice word. Shame on the publisher.

I really likes the story. The acting was pretty good for its time. It would be great if they made a remake of it. You can tell it was a sort of low budget. I was pleased with the accuracy of the story. Be sure to get out your kleenex and have all your music from Puccini ready cause you'll want to listen to "Nessun Dorma" right off!

Entertaining;but a stretch of facts. For a film that,s over 50 yrs,the production,especially cinematography is excellent.

Do NOT purchase this DVD - it is a very poor biography of the master. I bought it for my mother who loves Puccini's music and she was very disappointed with it as well. Don't waste your money.