La Boheme: The Film

This film version of La Boheme is gorgeous! The cinematography is beautiful and tasteful, and the singing is all top-notch, crowned by a performance by Anna Netrebko as Mimi. Her voice has luster and charisma, and her acting is right on the money. Rolando Villazón's only fault, vocally, is that he is not Pavarotti; otherwise, he is among the very best tenors today, having a beautiful, powerful, and passionate voice, and impeccable technique. His acting was just a tad over the top for a film, but it would have played perfectly in the opera house.In a way, my review should stop here. I recommend this wholeheartedly to the most discriminating of opera lovers; and this is the first mainstream opera that I have seen on Blu-ray that can stand up to the competition in all formats. As always, however, there are a few caveats that perhaps should be mentioned.This is opera as film, not simply a film of a staged production, although it was inspired by the two principals' on-stage performances together. The reader/shopper probably already knows whether or not he or she likes opera presented in movie format, so I will not discuss the pros and cons, except to make two observations specific to this film: (1) this is, for much of the time, not a lip-sync job for the principals, which is unusual for opera-on-film, and (2) the director used only very sparingly (twice, I think) the device wherein singers' voices are heard without their moving their lips (as is done sometimes for day-dream sequences). In this case the main use for it was to show Mimi's inner thoughts when she would have been too weak to have sung them in real life. Returning to the first point, however, lip-syncing was used for some of the characters, in which photogenic actors were seen but opera singers were heard. There is also some lip-syncing by the principals when it was impractical to record the voices on the set. The bonus materials mention the difficulties inherent in keeping the singers in sync with the orchestra, which was recorded in a separate studio at another time. The final result, however, is excellent; and on the whole, I'd say that this transformation of opera to the movies is less jarring than most.Among the 71 minutes of extras, the director, Robert Dornhelm speaks about several of the choices he made, big and small. The most important choice he made was to keep things traditional; there is no attempt to update the setting, costumes, or circumstances in order to pander to more modern, or simply restless, tastes. He wisely realized that straying from the original concept would have only taken it downhill. He had also made a version of the film in which there was somewhat extensive use of CGI and other special effects but ended up using almost none in the final cut. A few scenes are shown in black-and-white, an effect that mostly worked well and for which the justification was rather obvious; but there was one mostly black-and-white scene, in which a stand of flowers was deliberately singled out for color. While it was effective, and pleasantly reminded me of a famous scene from a Fellini movie, I did not feel that it was organic to the mood here--it was distracting, but only for a second or two, as it caused me to pause to contemplate its "meaning"; on the other hand, it could be considered a good thing that the director threw us something additional to chew on. In any case this was a rare exception within a production that is distinguished by its lack of tricks, an homage to the time-tested genius of Puccini.Musically, one could hardly desire more. In the beginning of the first act, the tempi may have been ever so slightly fast, and I was afraid that the conductor was going to take a somewhat business-like, let's-get-this-thing-over-with, tack; but that did not last long at all; there was plenty of good 'ole romantic wallowing in tears to come. Indeed, the quick pace of the first few moments was consistent with the vision of the film director, who conceded that the first act is the most difficult to bring off, and who opted to bring out its more humorous aspects; sparing us any unnecessarily-early hint of the pathos to come.The only other nit picking is to mention a couple of minor (almost theoretical) shortcomings in the final product:(1) The highest-tech soundtrack available on this Blu-ray is Dolby 5.1. (There is also "Dolby 2.0," and I am not quite sure what that means -- 2-channel PCM encoded for Dolby Pro Logic, maybe, for the benefit of older receivers that cannot process a digital input?) Many operatic and concert DVDs provide DTS 5.1 as a sometimes preferable option; and of course Blu-ray often offers further enhancements to these formats, including the possibility of 5, 6, or 7 uncompressed audio channels. As something of a long-time audiophile and techno-geek, I have to mention this lack of state-of-the-art-edness; but I also have to say that it makes virtually no difference. Yes, it is conceivable that a more detailed audio could have been attained, but to what point? This Dolby 5.1 soundtrack is beautiful and perfectly fits the look of the film. For that matter, it would also have been possible to capture a more starkly detailed picture through the use of direct video, but the softer images of cinematic film better suit the mood. None of this, however, is to deny the superiority of the Blu-ray edition of this film versus the DVD; "softness" is one thing, a DVD's 5.5-times loss of detail is quite another, if one is watching on a large screen.(2) Kultur provides no booklet, and the jacket almost requires one to use a magnifying glass to find the name of the orchestra and conductor (both of whom contributed greatly to the overall high standard of musical performance). The only readily visible credits are to Netrebko, Villazón, and Dornhelm. As to the absence of program notes, the justification, no doubt, is that there is an abundance of information in the rolling credits, as well as in the generous bonus features; and of course, the optional subtitles mostly do away with any need for printing the libretto. However, on this latter point, the subtitles were not perfect; and it would have been nice to have had a printed copy of the original Italian. In addition, there are times one would like to refer to notes rather than having to put the Blu-ray in the machine, wait for all the preliminaries to pass, and then scan through for the sought-after factoid.

The director, Robert Dornhelm (whose immediately previous contribution to classical-music filmmaking was a fine Karajan documentary released for the maestro's centenary), comes armed with many ideas about how to "open out" BOHÈME for cinematic purposes, and to put his stamp on it. During the opening Rodolfo/Marcello exchanges, we glimpse Mimì in her room, eavesdropping. Dornhelm returns to her a little later as she considers her course of action. Later she lingers in the hallway, waiting for the other Bohemians to clear out. By the time she actually confronts Rodolfo, we understand she has had her cap set for him for some time. This idea would be unwieldy in a stage production, of course; but having seen it perpetrated here, I see no gain whatsoever, and am grateful it has not occurred to any director in my prior experience. Does Dornhelm imagine that Mimì becomes more interesting and "modern" if she's made calculating and shrewd? Hasn't the first meeting in the dark between these two simple people always been touching in part *because* of the element of chance, and the heroine's sweet artlessness? Whatever the case, in Dornhelm's film, the two young lovers do make it to bed following their first famous duet. How long Rodolfo's friends are kept waiting at Café Momus, and what the amount of time might say about our poet's prowess, at least are left to the imagination.The inspirations keep coming. As Schaunard tells the story of his day, we see it in flashback (black and white except for the bright colors of the Englishman's ill-fated parrot). At the start of Act IV, the beginning of Marcello and Rodolfo's scene is moved to the street; they continue their conversation as they walk to their flat. There are more remembrances, adjustments, overlays, composites, even modest visual effects (ersatz clouds whizzing by, glimpsed through the loft's windows). The film is all "touches" and "notions" -- a surfeit of them -- and the finished product is clunky, labored, and ultimately unmoving, because more important work has been left undone. If Dornhelm has any gift at all for directing actors, it is well hidden here: with one exception, the cast's performances range from anonymous to embarrassing.The exception is Anna Netrebko, whose physical performance as Mimì is subtle, conscientious, and perfectly scaled to the camera. That beguiling dark lyric voice is in fine shape, and the part suits her well -- better than the florid music of the bel canto heroines she often essays. Her partner, Rolando Villazón as Rodolfo, pops his eyes, gestures broadly, and puts on a show of frightful overacting. He can be guilty of the same things on stage, and probably even in his daily life. But live theater is a different medium with its own rules and reasonable allowances, and Villazón has demonstrated for directors such as Vincent Paterson (MANON) that he can rein himself in when the material and the production call for it. Here, he's at his big-projecting stagiest against a would-be naturalistic milieu, with a female lead who is more camera-savvy, and it all makes for a terribly uncomfortable fit. I am not sure where the recording of the soundtrack fell within the chronology of Villazón's 2007 vocal crisis, his attempted comeback, and his 2009 vocal crisis, but knowledge of his struggles makes his tentative or hard-pressed moments stand out in sharper relief. His future remains uncertain at this writing, and it will be a great shame if this tenor, who began so promisingly, lives down to the gloomiest predictions circulating. There are long stretches of attractive and persuasive singing here, but he cannot be said to sound at his best, and he and Netrebko do not demonstrate their vaunted chemistry as much as one anticipates. Their passionate display near the end of Act I is a sterile and choreographed affair, not helped by the director's silly camera angles, which suggest a parody of a perfume ad.Among the rest of the cast, Vitalij Kowaljow (a surly Colline) and Nicole Cabell (Musetta, more comic minx than alluring siren) do well with the Coat Song and the inescapable Waltz, respectively. George von Bergen acts the Marcello sung by Boaz Daniel; Adrian Erod stands in for Stéphane Degout's Schaunard -- none makes a striking impression. The talented conductor Bertrand de Billy, leading the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, is only workmanlike here; it is not a reading long on poetry, affection, or individuality, nor one evincing the greatest sensitivity to the singers.Technical shortcomings are as numerous as directorial gimmicks: post-synchronization is little better than that seen in Ponelle's opera films of almost 40 years ago. The blocking is rudimentary and the editing jagged, most of all in Act I. On the basis of this DVD, I would have guessed the film to be two decades older than it is; the quality is muted and dingy, and I hope it looked better in theaters. (If it did, the transfer has been botched by the DVD label, Kultur...which would be no surprise. I dread to see their name attached to anything I plan to buy, and have previously suggested their slogan be "When You're Glad To Get It At All" or "Kultur DVD: Striving For Adequacy Since 1997.") The translation provided in the optional English subtitles is so heavily condensed as to be barely adequate. In protecting viewers from having to read more than a few words at a time, and neglecting to translate lines deemed "nonessential," the responsible parties have deprived us English speakers of much humor, detail, and verbal nuance.In fairness, there are things here that do work: I believe Act III comes off the best, because Dornhelm is at his least fussy there, Villazón is relatively restrained, Netrebko as touching as ever; and amidst this confluence, we hit one of several patches of Puccini that are close to bulletproof. Still, one can do better. For Netrebko and Villazón together, stick with the Virgin L'ELISIR D'AMORE or the DG MANON. For a film of BOHÈME, the 1967 Karajan/Zeffirelli (on DG) is more interestingly conducted and overall better sung (it even has the better Mimì -- Netrebko is an exotic and intriguing visitor to this musical world, but the young Mirella Freni actually lived there). The 1967 too has shortcomings, but Dornhelm's film duplicates them all, with fewer compensations. For a DVD of BOHÈME in general, go with one of the Met performances available on DG, with the slightly later Stratas/Carreras having an edge on the Scotto/Pavarotti. An honorable mention goes to the 1989 San Francisco performance (Kultur again, alas), a late-career reteaming of Freni and Pavarotti in a beautiful and perceptive Francesca Zambello production. Dornhelm's film should have been able to stand alongside any of these, but it is a major disappointment: as artificial as Mimì's embroidered flowers, and little more fragrant.

Talented vocalists, great value worth the price, especially if fan of La Boheme. My wife and I have seen around the world 39 times from the 1st yr we met.

Muy mal porque el disco vino con el audio desfasado y que muchas veces se iba, tuve que regresarlo. Tratándose de un producto de ópera (música), es inconcebible.

役者さん達の歌声も演技も素晴らしいですが時々安っぽいPVみたいな演出が入るのが私は少し苦手です。音が小さいのでTVの音量をマックスまで上げないといけないのと、英語字幕のタイミングが遅い上にかなりはしょってあるのが残念です。

Villazon sometimes shows the comical side and makes some Mr. Bean expressions, which I like.Netrebko makes it quite obvious that she blows the candle out herself before knocking on Villazon's door.The lipsyncing looks natural. The 'real' snow and environment/costume/makeup make it more convincing, except maybe the toy vendor scene which seems a bit too realistic for me.The parrot flashback scene was funny. I like all the characters/singers in this film, especially Netrebko.

NHKの放送で鑑賞した。オーディオ音声に不満はあるが映像はきれいです。

Most opera movies have disappointed me. There are a few exceptions where beautiful images and great filming add to the opera, such as Joseph Losey’s Don Giovanni Don Giovanni , Franco Zefirelli’s La Traviatta, Francesco Rosi’s Carmen Carmen (Widescreen) [Import ]. This filmed version of Puccini's La Boheme is unfortunately not an exception. Despite excellent performances by Anna Netrebko and Rolando Villazon, this movie does not offer anything more than an average stage performance would. The movement of the actors’ lips movement and the sound are barely synchronized. The images and the decors are mediocre. I do not doubt that Netrebko and Villazon not only have the personality, but also the voice quality and the dramatic aptitude to give a memorable performance as Mimi and Rodolfo. They have a few outstanding duos. Even when dying, Anna Netrebko is beautiful! Nicole Cabell is a superb Musette. Unfortunately, this production is not worthy of their talent.As a footnote, I cannot understand the lack of respect of the producers of this DVD for their customers (and for the artists). There is no printed information at all on the musical production, except for the names of the two stars. It is only through the credits at the end of the movie that one finds out that the orchestra and choirs are those of the Bavarian Radio. I then also found out that several of the actors of the movie are not the singers. I still do not know who the conductor is! Don GiovanniCarmen (Widescreen) [Import