Offenbach: La Belle Hélène
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Felicity Lott, François Le Roux, Michel Sénéchal, Yann BeuronBrand: La Belle
Composer: Jacques Offenbach
Conductor: Marc Minkowski
Orchestra: Les Musiciens du Louvres - Grenoble
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); French (Original Language)
Format: Classical, Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 126 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-06-29
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Kultur Video
Movie Reviews of Offenbach: La Belle Hélène
Movie Review: Delightful Belle Helene
Summary: 5 Stars
Certainly the best Helene I've seen on DVD with almost perfect sound, this production lives up to this style of social satire of upper crust Belle Epoque French society, where an enraged husband's wrath upon finding his wife in bed with a lover is actually taken to task by everyone else for not properly warning her that he was coming home, and therefore the blame for the scandal is entirely his! The director's sense of the ridiculous extended to the fun costuming. I thought Lott's performance was enchanting simply because she is living her dream, and lord knows her Paris is no GQ model either, but they both sing the difficult roles beautifully (she's allowed to use the French version of the score's mezzo aria in Act III, although I really prefer the German version's coloratura tri-partite fireworks), and they include the Act III Patriotic Trio, another favorite. This is social satire at its most stinging, especially if the viewer has familiarized him/herself with the Parisian society of Offenbach's time. The slams at organized, cynical religion are right on target as well. Tempos are fine, attitude is wonderful, what's not to enjoy? Even the subtitles are accurate!
Summary of Offenbach: La Belle Hélène
Staged and costumed by Laurent Pelly, this production Offenbach?s parody of the origins of the Trojan War is a supreme manifestation of his comic genius. It combines a musically superb performance with a stream of visual humour that flows from Pelly?s core idea that the action all takes place in the imagination of a sleeping, sex-starved, suburban housewife. Dame Felicity Lott is magnificent as the woman who dreams of being the most beautiful woman in the world. The production explodes with gaiety and invention throughout and "is as innocently filthy as only the French can manage" (The Times). Lott adds an undeniable elegance and sings with "Mozartian refinement" (Herald Tribune).Similar DVD Movies
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