Antigone (Broadway Theatre Archive)
by Gerald Freedman
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Fritz Weaver, Genevi?ve Bujold, James Naughton, Leah Chandler, Stacy KeachDirector: Gerald Freedman
Brand: Image Entertainment
Editor: Girish Bhargava
Producer: David Griffiths
Producer: Jac Venza
Writer: Jean Anouilh
Writer: Lewis Galantiere
Writer: Sophocles
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 1.0
Format: Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 89 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2001-11-20
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Image Entertainment
Movie Reviews of Antigone (Broadway Theatre Archive)
Movie Review: Great drama, superb performances
Summary: 5 Stars
There are times when people disagree with you on a play, movie or book, but you can understand why they feel differently. Reading some of the negative reviews for this DVD, I have to say I'm a little mystified.
One reviewer complains that this is not the Sophocles play "Antigone." Yes, it's not; it's Jean Anouilh's very free adaptation of it, further adapted into English by Lewis Galantiere. It seems a little silly to attack this for not being Sophocles when the cover says "Jean Anouilh's Antigone." In addition, the amazon editorial review makes it clear that this is Anouillh's play, and the "Product Description" (taken from the back cover of the DVD box) also makes it clear. So it's not as if this DVD is masquerading as the Sophocles play or that amazon is misleading people.
Sophocles wrote a great play but so did Anouilh. Written and first produced during the Nazi occupation of France, it clearly was intended as a protest against the Nazis and even more against the French collaborators, with Creon representing the collaborators and Antigone representing the resistance. This is so obvious that it's a little surprising that the Nazis allowed the play to be performed, even in a censored version.
As one reviewer notes, the technical aspects of the presentation are imperfect. This PBS production dates from 1974 and it was obviously done on a low budget. But I found the sound to be fine except for some very brief moments here and there. Sometimes the picture is a little blurry, but rarely enough to be more than a passing and minor annoyance. (Those who are bothered by the sound here would surely have a more difficult time watching some of the boxed sets of BBC productions of classic plays. Some of those have really problematic sound, much worse than this.)
The production was filmed inside and outside the Juilliard School in Manhattan (which had been recently built). The cool architecture, modern yet somewhat classical, provides perfect settings for this modern adaptation of a classic play.
Trying to figure out why some of the reviewers are so negative, I suppose I can see that the first 40 minutes or so may require a little patience (though I would hardly call it boring). But once you hit the big confrontation between Antigone and Creon, it's riveting, or at least it is for me, straight through to the devastating ending.
That confrontation is where the play is really brilliantly written. Creon is given such eloquent, even moving arguments, in some ways more effective than Antigone's, even though we're clearly supposed to side with Antigone. This adds to the complexity and interest of the scene. That this scene is so riveting is thanks not only to Anouilh's writing but also to the superb performances of Genevieve Bujold and Fritz Weaver, both ideally cast. Both know when to keep it relatively quiet and when to let loose. It's exciting to watch these two first-rate actors go at it, rising to the challenge of their great roles.
One stylized touch is Weaver's hair, clearly artificially gray, long and slightly disheveled, making him look like a sad, melancholy figure. I like this though I can see why another reviewer doesn't.
While the production is dominated by Bujold and Weaver, under Gerald Freedman's direction every member of the cast is excellent, with the great veteran actress Aline MacMahon perhaps the standout as the Nurse.
One of the negative reviewers writes that his class of 10th graders was bored with it, even though they'd been studying the play. I was in 10th grade when I first saw this when it was originally shown in 1974. I'd never read the play but I loved this production and watched it again and again (as PBS used to repeat things frequently back then). So I'd say that if you're an adult (or even a teenager) who loves classic drama, this is a DVD you may well find fascinating and very powerful.
Summary of Antigone (Broadway Theatre Archive)
With fierce originality, this powerful adaptation of the Sophocles tragedy presents a world of honor, treachery and fateful consequences. Acclaimed actress Genevieve Bujold skillfully combines elements of zealotry and idealism in her affecting portrait of Antigone. Jean Anouilh's retelling of "Antigone" stages the inescapably wrenching central confrontation between Antigone and Creon by presenting Bujold and Fritz Weaver seated at a long, executive-suite table--a hallmark of Anouilh's play. The New York Times critic, John J. O'Connor, lauded this "Antigone" as "well acted, well directed and beautifully staged."French playwright Jean Anouilh's modernized version of the classic Greek tragedy Antigone sets the story in the sleek palace of a fascist state ruled by Creon (veteran stage actor Fritz Weaver). His niece Antigone (Genevi?ve Bujold, Dead Ringers) is horrified by Creon's order that the body of her brother--who led a rebellion against the state--be left on the battlefield to rot. When she violates the edict, guards haul her before Creon, who struggles to convince her that his reasons are honorable, despite the ugly consequences, but Antigone remains steadfast, even though her death will result. The great strength of Antigone is that there is no easy solution to the conflict, which leads to disaster for everyone involved. Bujold glows as the obsessed, martyrlike Antigone; Weaver brings passion to Creon's mixture of reason and tyranny; and Stacy Keach (Fat City) plays the narrating Chorus with a weary, ironic detachment. --Bret Fetzer
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