cruiseabout

A heady mix of sex, violence, murder and police brutality, this film is apparently based on a real-life Brazilian crime case. The film is technically faulty, with fuzzy focus, washed colour, poor sound, and abrupt editing, however this adds to the voyeuristic sensation the viewer feels. The two teenage lovers are vulnerably youthful, and their nude sex scenes uninhibited and at times quite startling, for example when Toninho, shortly after first meeting Sandra, quickly strips naked and proceeds to fondle and force himself upon her. The violence is no less confronting, and parallel with the story of the two ill-fated lovers is the account of a police investigation into a series of murders which Sandra's estranged father, Galvao, is conducting. I don't wish to give any more of the story away, but for those who would enjoy a vivid and authentic look at the sordid underbelly of Rio's demi-monde, it would be hard to go past this disturbing study.

Life in a mountain village is changed forever when the courier who brings the weekly movie to the local cinema, the centre of the close-knit community's social life, is killed in a road accident.

The townsfolk, cut off from the wider world by the snows of winter, are unaware of the profound changes that are occurring. Communism is coming to an end in their country, but they are are completely unaware of the upheavals beyond the mountain ranges that encompass their tiny world. The local innkeeper discovers a pile of discarded film scraps in the cellar, and enlists a local teenage boy, who loves the cinema, to assemble "films" out of the disparate pieces. Slowly this boy, Ladu, played by Matej Matejka, who at the beginning of the film seemed just another callow youth among the characters, assumes the role of the main character in the plot, with very special talents that are just starting to become realised. The films that he creates, utilising such disparate elements as "La Grande Illusion", "La Bete Humaine" and the silent classics, "Cabinet of Dr. Caligari", "Die Nibelungen" and "Battleship Potemkin", cause a revolutionary reaction amongst the simple villagers that mirror in a small way the wider revolution that is going on, unbeknown to them, in the wider context. From here the plot elements become unpredictable and fascinating, as Ladu observes the unrest he has created. A fine film, well told, photographed and acted: highly recommended.

Ernst Marischka's film was one of the first Austrian features shot in colour, and assembles some of the most renowned actors of the time. Last seen in cinemas in 1957, the feature was presumed lost for almost 40 years, until a misplaced negative was discovered at the Austrian Film Archives. After electronic enhancement of the picture quality and soundtrack, television viewers were able to see Opera Ball in all it's original visual and musical splendour in 1998.

Opera Ball is a delightful throwback to the gaudy over-embellished European musicals of the era, lavishly costumed and produced, and bursting with favourite musical themes of former times. The story, concerning the supposed infidelities of three couples, is a little corny and old-hat, but the exuberance and attractiveness of the enthusiastic young cast, some funny moments from a handful of old timers, the lavish settings and lilting music, and above all the stunning Agfacolor photography (which puts most modern colour processes to shame) combine to create a most pleasant entertainment.