Verdi

An absolute treasure for opera enthusiasts and fans of Verdi(the Sutherland, Bergonzi and Merrill recording of La Traviata was my first complete Verdi listen 10 years ago and I've been a fan since). Not quite as grand as the series on Wagner from the same time-frame, plus Richard Burton gives a performance of a life-time, but Verdi's style, his life and him as a person may be much more accessible. Am a fan of Wagner's music, but he was known as a terrible man(Youtube users never let people forget how he was an Anti-Semetic bigot) and Parsifal especially is exhausting for a first time viewer. Personally first exposure was through the 1983 film of the opera which was admittedly rather too heavy on the symbolism so that could have something to do with it.

Getting onto the point, there is very little wrong with this series. There is however some sloppy dubbing and Burt Lancaster's narration can overbear things(some of his mispronunciations are annoying too). The rest however is fabulous. It is very sumptuously mounted and the photography matches that quality. Nobody really needs to say how good Verdi's music is, fans will argue that his music is some of the best of the entire opera medium, I for one share that opinion. It's even greater when the singing is so good, from some of the best singers ever to sing his music, Pavarotti, Tebaldi, Callas and Nilsson are immediately recognisable and sound incredible.

Verdi is intelligently written, sensitively staged with no over-doing. The composer's story is fascinating and is told in an absorbing way, a way that also shows great enthusiasm for the subject. Any important parts are not skimmed over and have their impact. Ronald Pickup's Verdi is note-perfect and Carla Fracci matches him in a nuanced performance. All the roles are well-done and don't fall into caricature- and it is easy to do that- too much. Overall, an outstanding series that is deserving of a much better DVD release, the Kultur version doesn't really do it justice. 9/10 Bethany Cox

High quality biography! A fantastic, historical, well researched super production. Castellani did a very good job on biography and cinematographic art. The casting is excellent and Ronald Pickup is perfect as Verdi. The musical selection is also superior, and the performance of the interpreters are first class. Very good and famous voices are singing its preferred parts. The operatic performances are well cut. A rich scenario and also a nice review of the theatrical background technology at Verdi's time could be seen on the sunrise in "I Lombardi", the waves and the storms in "Otello", and in waterfalls. They are superb. For Verdi lovers it's a must, but also for non initiates it will be delightful. May be Giuseppina is a little to subservient and a bit away from a real woman. Also the final scenes are a little to long. By the way, the name of the opera is Rigoletto and not Rigaletto.

for the inspired reconstruction of atmosphere of a page from Italy's past. for beautiful performance of Ronald Pickup. for the seduction of a fight for values who impress scene by scene. for the grace of music. and as homage to a great composer who becomes vulnerable, courageous hero of his nation. good introduction to his life. and interesting piece of biographic portrait who use the clichés for large, convincing, powerful image of a personality who becomes symbol of his mother land. and that transforms the film in a manifesto, like the music of Verdi. short, a beautiful film. who could represent a nice surprise for the viewer who prefers this genre.

THE LIFE OF VERDI is a stunning, beautiful and virtually exhaustive (at about 10 hours) chronicle of the life of Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi. Formerly available on the controversial Kultur label, this new DVD release by Acorn Media is a dream come true for people who appreciate composer biographies, historical epics and, especially, this particular film, which was the last film by Italian director/writer Renato Castellani. The transfer is excellent, whereas the previously available print was mediocre at best. This new release looks crisp and does justice to the film's visual artistry--it looks very much like a series of paintings.

Verdi lived a long, rich life and his output was truly amazing, mostly operas--and most of his operas were masterpieces. There are generous allotments of Verdi's glorious music throughout this film and the period detail is lushly evocative of Verdi's life and times. Ronald Pickup is perfect as Verdi. He is probably the only "name" and face that will be familiar to at least some outside of Europe. Pickup has been in countless films and television programs, including several other composer biographies, though here, finally, he plays the title role. Speaking of names, when THE LIFE OF VERDI was shown on PBS way back in the early eighties, Burt Lancaster was the on camera narrator. I recall this very clearly because I remember being enthralled by the series even back then. In this version--perhaps for the better--Lancaster is not seen on camera (his star power was a bit distracting, if I recall). He does, however, continue to narrate in voice-over. Lancaster was a big fan of opera and his enthusiasm bubbles through in his voice, despite some mispronunciations that some will find distracting.

That's a minor observance compared to the beauty and lovingly re-created world that director/writer Castellani presents. Castellani will not be entirely unfamiliar to North American audiences, though your tastes might have to be a bit specialized to recognize his name and style of film making. One of his first films, from 1954, was a version of Romeo & Juliet starring Laurence Harvey and is a gorgeous evocation of Shakespeare's play, if a bit slowly paced. It even has John Gielgud as the Chorus! It took another Italian, Franco Zeffirelli, to bring Italy and Shakespeare to life for a contemporary audience back in 1968.

A few years before making THE LIFE OF VERDI, Castellani turned his attention to another great Italian, Leonardo Da Vinci, in a five part television film that I recall with great fondness, for it really brought Leonardo to life and gave me a deeper appreciation of his incredible achievements.

But back to THE LIFE OF VERDI. Thank you to the distributors of this magnificent film! The time you invest in watching it will pay dividends, for like any great work of art, it will stay with you long afterwards.

each biographic movie is a challenge. for entire artistic team. and for viewer. Verdi is not an exception. and more important than the accuracy of events, music or costumes, landscapes and performances of actors is the atmosphere. far to be a masterpiece, it is a honest good series about the life, the fights, the work, the success and the search of the best musical phrase by one of the essentials Italian composers. a film who not ignores romanticism and old recipes for conquer the public but it preserves and presents the air of a period, the force of characters and a Giuseppe Verdi who is more than a decent sketch. and that details are basis for an admirable job. because the drama and the music and the lights and the landscapes are keys for a beautiful universe episode by episode.