Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Years ago in my Junior High School we did in an amateurish way what Raul DaSilva did here with the Rime Of The Ancient Mariner. The art class was encouraged to draw Halloween style pictures of ghosts and goblins and all things that go bump in the night. The drawings were then used in a film to Danse Macabre. My own insignificant efforts were part of it.

What DaSilva did here is exactly what we did, but in a most professional and entertaining manner. Using illustrations and some sea cinematography he fashioned a short film based on Samuel Taylor Coleridge's celebrated poem. Topping it all off is the narration by Michael Redgrave which gave life and meaning to Coleridge's occasionally obscure references.

This project was the farewell performance even though it is only auditory of Michael Redgrave. He lived another ten years before the ravages of Parkinson's Disease claimed him. It was a fitting if not traditional role to go out on. Certainly Redgrave knew he could not do any more after this, even the disease might well have betrayed his voice.

I've got to dedicate this review to Robert Seiden music teacher and Philip Tritt art teacher. In a profession that attracts at times some time serving slugs and I had my share of them, these two really took the job seriously. If you're still around I hope you get to read this review and I hope you're big fans of Michael Redgrave.

The Ancient Mariner is a truly classic piece of work, as the original poem was/is. The context/setting with the old mariner himself is fine, clear, and without pretense. The artistic work that accompanies the reading of the poem fits perfectly the time/period of the setting and of the work itself, carrying the audience into the period with a still, yet moving accompaniment, using excellent still-movement strategies only well conquered by the pre-MTV era producers and much less apparent in more current works. (MTV brought to television and video a static movement that races through, often irrelevant cuts, from theme to theme without forward movement and without clear relationships to theme or storyline.) The voice, intonation and vitality of Redgrave's reading brings this touching poem to life with all its fear, strife and pain. In addition, the smooth movement of the video emphasizes the cadence and occasional monotone (in this case a positive mood under the theme of the story itself)of the author's rendition of the ancient mariner's sad and spooky tale. This is a must for any love of classic poetry, the sea, a tall tale, that almost rings true, and a story that has left a lasting impact on our world and culture. Who does not understand the meaning of an "albatross"? or the concept of "water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink?" A truly fine experience. Thank you Mr. DaSilva for bringing this to life for us, never to be forgotten.

I highly recommend this video to individuals, public libraries and for high school and college classic literature classes. This is an excellent film in which creative visualization of a classic poem makes it come alive. We feel the dynamics of the Samuel Taylor Coleridge's words as spoken by the Ancient Mariner. It is as if we are both the listener and the Mariner. When the dead albatross falls from the Mariner's neck, we too are transformed through love in our hearts and understanding of our fellow humans. We hope for a better outcome to the struggles we now face in our own world of war and violence. Director Raul daSilva did an outstanding job in making this poem not only understandable but also to arouse our sensitivity. The incorporation of Doré's illustrations, visual effects of colors, the well-chosen classical music and sounds of the sea all enhanced our senses and deepened our emotional experience with the poem. BRAVO to daSilva and his team. Well done!!

1st watched 9/14/2001 - 6 out of 10(Dir-Raul de Silva): Interesting adaptation of poetry on film, as well as a short documentary on the poet(Samuel Coleridge) in the 1st half of this video. Not quite as breathtaking as it could have been if they had decided to actually make a movie about this, but this is definetly a different art form and it should be valued as that and not compared to a movie rendition. Redgrave keeps you captivated by his consistent influctuations in his voice in the parts that needed it. The animation was ok but not spectacular but it did give you a little help in following the story if you don't happen to be a good listener of olde English(like myself). All in all this is a different and interesting viewing experience, which is always good to have when you've watched hundred of movies like myself.

Recently, a friend and I were discussing educational and ethical influences when we were growing up in the 1950's versus today. She mentioned Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who, in 1798, wrote The Rime of The Ancient Mariner. Both of us had been required to recite parts of the epic poem in high school and in English Literature courses in college. My friend said, "Its messages even might be called metaphysical within today's context."

We tried reciting it and only remembered bits and pieces. (I have problems remembering Dr. Seuss.) I said I'd get two copies of the poem so each could read it. That was easy enough, but I was extremely surprised to find it had been made into a film. We looked forward to watching the film to see how it had been interpreted. After all, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner isn't exactly light reading. After each had read the poem, we watched the film together.

We considered the film a remarkable achievement, especially considering it was made in the 1970's, before computers, before the so-called "Ken Burns effect," and before special effects too often began compensating for a lack of substance. Particularly noteworthy are the 19th and 20th century illustrations culled from "lesser known artists," such as Willy Pogany, the early Hollywood designer.

The film is narrated by Sir Michael Redgrave, whom had taught the poem when he was a schoolmaster, adding a tone of authority and credibility in remaining true to the poem.

Its mastery is in the layers of subtle messages, conveyed without "instructing," or becoming an oppressive and obvious morality tale. We found it such a refreshing change from today's 'in your face' and 'clobber them over the head' mentality. Most of today's morality messages in film are two-dimensional: extreme violence, murder and mayhem mark the bad. The bad are really, really, bad, and good are super heroes. It is as if human character lacked any nuance. The Rime of The Ancient Mariner is a celebration of the individual, of character, of an appreciation for celebrating all the richness life has to offer, within the larger context of humanity, i.e., man's capacity to give to others.

Proud of ourselves for having found this "unknown" gem, we then learned it had won the top award in its category five out of six times at "name" international film festivals. Another surprise was learning the film's director, Raul daSilva, is a recognized authority on early animation, and authored six award winning books about film.

This film's message is just as relevant today, if not more so, than when Coleridge penned the original epic poem and when Raul daSilva translated it to film. If I still was teaching high school, which I did for five years, I'd grab this one and show it to all my students. There's a level of richness here that naturally leads to discussion about the big and important issues all of us face, whether in 1798, 1978, or today--in fact, as long as humanity has a spiritual component.

Highly recommended.