edjavega

Reading all the comments here, it looks like this is one of the worst films ever made, and it's absolute rubbish, Shia's character is Jar Jar Binks, etc.

But it's earning a ton of money, and the rankings (7.6) are high, so what does that tell you? That compared to the haters, MOST people came to his movie expecting a fun adventure movie and got it.

Look, the Indiana Jones movies aren't flawless. Even in the previous movies, you had to suspend belief (people melting? someone surviving a fall from a plane just on a craft? a Knight living more than 1,000 years?) and just enjoy the action scenes - and you have them here! Mutt swinging on the vines is real corny but the car chase through the jungle, complete with sword fight, fisticuffs, giant ants, etc. - they are what you can expect from an Indiana Jones movie. And Cate Blanchett is a SUPER villain, Harrison somehow makes it all believable for him to still be an action star at 60 plus, and it's great to see Marion Ravenwood again.

STAR WARS I was a major major disappointment, but this one is NOT. We have wanted to see Harrison Ford suit up as Indy again, and here he has a good cast with him, and yet we bash the movie because it isn't RAIDERS? Nothing can be as much fun as the first Indy Jones movie. But this one is still MUCH MUCH better than any adventure movie out there for the past several years.

Just watch it with an open mind. Don't expect miracles, but fun entertainment for 2 hours and you will get it.

Opera films generally remember and praise the excellent 1982 film version of LA TrAVIATA directed by Franco Zefirelli and starring Plácido Domingo and Teresa Stratas, but few know about this version from the 50's to early 70's.

And it's such a pity as this version features perhaps the best Violetta Valery ever in the stunningly beautiful and talented Anna Moffo, an Italian-American soprano who made her mark in the 60's to early 70's.

The late Moffo's rare combination of beautiful voice, great musical instincts, topnotch acting and gorgeous movie star looks truly made her ideal for this role of all roles for sopranos. In scenes like the Brindisi drinking song sequence, she practically IS Violetta, as composer Guiseppe Verdi must have imagined her! This version obviously does not have the ostentatious and sumptuous look of Zefirelli's version, but the costumes and sets are realistic all the same. The tenor Franco Bonisolli and baritone Gino Bechi are also good in their roles of Alfredo and Germont, though admittedly not as great as the fabulous Plácido Domingo or the veteran Cornell McNeill.

But it is Moffo who is clearly the reason to watch this film. We don't have a filmed version of a Callas performance, and Stratas in the Zefirelli movie looked and acted well, but her singing in that film was unfortunately not up to par for this important role, as she was supposed to have been not in top vocal health when she recorded the music.

Yes, there havebeen legendary sopranos like Renata Tebaldi, Joan Sutherland, Beverley Sills, Monsterrat Caballé, etc. who may have given great musical performances as Violetta, but they were not the actresses that Moffois, to say nothing of Moffo's obvious advantage in being visually believable as a beautiful woman who was the toast of Paris.

The exciting Anna Netrebko is a rising star now, but musically, I still think Moffo (and many other sopranos) are superior.

For the total package, and a performance available on film, this version features the best Violetta of all.