Most Helpful Customer Reviews
39 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Surprisingly Faithful Adaptation, highly recommended, October 17, 2004
Luis Buñuel (1900-1983) is celebrated today as "the father of cinematic Surrealism" for creating subversive classics from the beginning of his career, L' Âge d'or (1930), until the end, That Obscure Object of Desire (1977). What a shock to discover, then, that his only English-language film, the once all-but-lost Robinson Crusoe (1954), is a straightforward adventure tale with all of the fun and social comment of the timeless Daniel Defoe novel but with nary a sliced eyeball to be found.
I'm certain ya'll know the story, and the film is faithful: Rob is shipwrecked on a tropical island, saves what he can from the ship before it goes down, and spends most of the rest of the 17th century dodging wild animals, cannibals, and pirates before hooking up with his man Friday.
In the early sequences, we see that Crusoe is all but helpless, not even able to build a fire with no servants to help him. Over the years, he not only perseveres, but triumphs over his environment, building a quite satisfactory fortress of solitude. The loneliness gets to him, though, particularly once his dog dies - "I learned to master everything on my island - except myself!" he ruminates. In a masterful scene, he dreams of his father, who chides him for going off to sea; in another, he feeds some small ants to some big ones, which means something, but don't ask me what. Once he rescues Friday from the cannibals, he gains - not a friend, but a servant, and when his suspicions of Friday get the best of him, Crusoe clamps him in leg irons he rescued from the wreck (he was on a slaving mission, although why he'd want to carry heavy chains from the sinking ship is anybody's guess). Eventually, he comes to recognize Friday as an equal, albeit a lesser one, which leads to a delightful argument about God and the devil between Crusoe and Friday, and if Hitchcock made Psycho just so he could film the shower scene, I can see Buñuel (product of a strict religious upbringing) making Crusoe just for this scene.
A major feather in the proverbial cap for VCI Entertainment, Robinson Crusoe is treated to a brilliant restoration and even includes a few worthwhile extras: the trailer, a poster gallery, an audio interview with Crusoe star Dan O'Herlihy (an Oscar nominee in the role; he lost to Brando in On The Waterfront), and an insert copy of the pressbook. There's also a "before and after" restoration featurette, so you can appreciate how much work went into the digitally remastered edition. Highly recommended.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The other Bunuel, May 7, 2005
I'm not sure why this DVD has received lackluster reviews, but I suspect it's due to disappointment from fans of Bunuel's more surreal masterpieces at the two ends of his career (his collaborations with Dali c. 1930, and the last 9 or 10 films of his old age). Still, people shouldn't dismiss Robinson Crusoe. It has much in common stylistically with other movies of his Mexican period, notably Los Olvidados (1950) and Nazarin (1959) but especially his adaptation of Wuthering Heights made just before Robinson Crusoe. There's a directness and simplicity to these films that is deceiving -- and, like I said, disappointing to fans of Bunuel's more flamboyant stuff. I wouldn't call Robinson Crusoe a masterpiece along the lines of The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie or Belle de Jour, but it's interesting and entertaining. (For several interesting reviews, check out the ones on IMDb. On this page, I think "Laughing Gravy" and M. Lucas have hit the nail on the head.)
If you're not a Bunuel fan, then the movie stands on its own pretty well -- mainly because of its surprising faithfulness to Defoe's novel. Huge chunks of Defoe's prose are preserved intact as narration, which I never found annoying. This DVD would make a wonderful teaching aid for high school English classes. (In fact, Bunuel would probably have found it amusing that one of his films can be found in the Family Entertainment section of many video stores.) And O'Herlihy, who has to carry the movie single-handedly for about half the running time, is quite good. His Oscar nomination was well-deserved.
As others have said, VCI's presentation is very nice. There are several minor instances of "ghosting" (mild blurriness caused by the transfer to DVD). Considering that the original negative no longer exists and that Pathe Color was a cheap alternative to Technicolor, I'd say they've done as good a job on the restoration as they could. The long audio interview with the late Dan O'Herlihy is a solid extra.
In summation, I'd say that, if you're interested in this title, it's worth a purchase, especially at it's reasonable listing price. (Even if you end up hating it, you can always donate your copy to a school.) O'Herlihy's performance and the script's faithfulness to the source make this movie respectable entertainment; the presence of Bunuel as director adds an extra layer for viewers searching for "more." And VCI serves everything up with class.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A hidden traesure !, August 26, 2004
Dan O'Herlihy was nominated as best actor for this glorious performance as Robinson Crusoe in this exceptional approach given for the master Luis Buñuel .
This second period of Buñuel stage we will watch the transition from the surrealistic mood to the cruel irony and awful realism in all the filmography . The mexican atmosphere was a tremendous support to Luis for developing two of his most artistic triumphs as Nazarin and the timeless gem Viridiana. The following films are too of this period: Los Olvidados , El Bruto and El .
You must to keep in mind this period meant to Buñuel a deep ideas exchange with famous thinkers and writers as Octavio Paz and Carlos Fuentes .
In Robinson , we enjoy the disventures of this character in a lone island trying to get the return ticket . But meanwhile in his long long stage he meets to a native and the relationship will be the pretext to Buñuel to load with ironic situations and acid black humor a lot of issues .
Try to get this admirable work . One of the most unknown works of this brilliant and unique spanish director .
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
