Bizet: Carmen
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Movie Reviews of Bizet: Carmen
Movie Review: Kauffman makes this worth seeing
Summary: 4 Stars
I'm fairly new to opera so take my review with a grain of salt. I have seen the wonderful Carlos Saura film, Carmen, which is based on the opera. That absolutely blew me away and I heartily recommend it. So I was set for some a high voltage performance here. Perhaps my expectations were too high as I found the first few acts of the opera a little slow. I kept thinking, "Is this the English version of a Frenchman's view of Spaniards?"
I loved the sets and cotumes and found the staging and lighting very lovely. The supporting cast was good. The gypsey group was particularly interesting in that they seemed to have been chosen for their good looks as well as their singing ability. This makes for an enjoyable viewing experience. The children were adorable!
I guess that, after a lifetime of seeing films I am expecting to see attractive people and good acting although I certainly realize that vocal ability is the first thing to consider in an opera star. It was for this reason that I was less than entranced by the performance of Anna Caterina Antonacci. When I was in acting school we were warned against playing one quality over and over. I wish someone would have given Ms. Antonacci this advice. She plays "lusty" over and over. We certainly get the idea especially with her very low cut blouses, but after a while I found her performance boring. I saw nothing of Carmen's real nature---Did she ever really love Don Jose? Why did she lose interest in him? Did she really love Escamillo? Was she capable of loving anyone? She is portrayed as such a one-dimensional stereotype that I really lost interest in her. Probably what annoyed me the most was her constant sneering expression. There were a few brief moments, mostly in the opening scene, in which she showed a full smile and she was truly beautiful then. She is not physically that beautiful; many of the other gypsey girls were a lot prettier, so it seems that she should have shown some sort of sparkle or charisma to get these men to risk their lives for her. I think that this type of "acting" is right for stage performances where projecting large emotions is necessary, but when one films it, we need to see the smaller, more subtle facial expressions. This is what Kauffman did so well and what Antonacci failed to do.
Kauffman was sensational! This is a performer who can act as well as sing. His facial expressions are wonderful, from the beginning when he discounts the antics of the wiley Carmen, throughout the opera as we see him descend into near madness at his passion for her. He was thorougly convincing as a real person, and won my heart so that at the final scene, when he kills Carmen, I wept for him. For her...good riddance. The final scene between the two of them is rivetting, due mostly to his performance.
I fell in love with Ildebrando D'Arcangelo as Figaro in The Marriage of Figaro with Anna Netrebko, so I was pleased to see him here as Escamillo. This role suits his wonderful good looks and deep voice and he plays the part of the dashing toreodor to a tee.
The duel between Don Jose and Esmaillo was one of the best scenes in the opera for me.
The final two acts are when the plots thickens and things heat up so I have to say that I did enjoy it. If there had been a more sympathetic Carmen it would have been a total smash. Maybe Anna Netrebko?
Movie Review: Covent Garden disappoints
Summary: 4 Stars
Having read the fifteen wonderful reviews here, especially the one by 'ravennamoon' which mentions the Agnes Baltsa performance from the Met and the Zeffirelli staged one from the Verona Arena starring Marina Domashenko (both of which I own), I decided to go ahead and purchase this latest one from Covent Garden featuring Anna Caterina Antonacci. This Decca recording is very impressive as are all of the singers. The orchestra from the first beat of the most well known overture in opera to the curtain falling at the end and under the baton of Antonio Pappano is wonderful to listen to. The costumes are colorful and the lighting is exquisite.
Most productions from Covent Garden are generally less spectacular than those from the Met but, in this one, the cost cutting is extremely evident. The same backdrop is present from the beginning of Act 1 to the end of Act 4, whether it is meant to represent the outside of the cigarette factory, the interior of the tavern, a camp on a desolate mountain pass or outside of a bullring. While many designers are able to disguise to a certain extent by set-dressing the fact that the background is the same throughout, this is not present here. On another point, although the chorus and extras are quite large in number and reasonably well choreographed, the presence of only one small donkey and one horse and only a few matadors and toreadors do not create much spectacle during the arrival of the men about to enter the bullring.
I wish that I could be as full of praise as the other reviewers, however, when viewing this opera one is aware that while many of the ingredients are of the highest quality some are not up to the standard that I, as a Brit living overseas, expect from Covent Garden. This is a fine recoding of a good opera that, if a little more money could have been spent, might well have been one of the very best versions of this popular work.
Movie Review: Thumb Up!
Summary: 4 Stars
First of all, the women's choir are great and strong. The Carmen, by Ms. Antonacci is very impressive, even though I have not seeing other's performance. My personal favorite singing is the opera is Toreador. Such a handsome voice. Though, every single singer that I had heard to singing the Toreador Song has sorts of 'tempi' problem. Especially at the very beginning of this song. They are all naturally slowing down probably because need time to open the voice. And the low register are very difficult for them too.
The Conductor, Pappano is one of my favorite conductor for romantic style music. He has fire!
I also really enjoyed their 'Gypsy' dance; They are all very participative.
Enjoy.
Movie Review: Sung in French not in English as stated on Amazon
Summary: 4 Stars
Just beginning to learn about opera, so I won't comment on quality of this performance vs others available. I ordered this version in large part because it was supposed to be in English and hence would aid an opera newbie, but . . .
Be advised although Amazon lists the language as "Language: English (DTS 5.1), English (PCM Stereo)" this is not correct, it is in French (as are most other Carmen versions available on Amazon).
Movie Review: Jonas Kaufman is superb
Summary: 3 Stars
Jonas Kaufman is superb, both in terms of singing and acting. Anna Antonacci looks good and acts well as Carmen, but her singing lacks power. This especially makes the final scene not very satisfactory, despite the fine performance of Jonas. The tension and emotion are missing.
I am not an expert on the different versions of the opera, but noticed that the "market chorus" scene is missing in the final act. The first act duet between Micaela and Don Jose is also shortened.
I have the Agnes Baltsa/Jose Carreras Metropolitan Opera version, in my opinion much better overall than this one. There is so much more intensity and emotions in the final scene that I find myself sitting on the edge of the sofa sometimes.