The Magic Flute (2006)

Calificación de los usuarios:

6.4/10   

Director:

Kenneth Branagh

Escritores:

Emanuel Schikaneder (libretto)
Kenneth Branagh (adapted for the screen by)

Fecha de Lanzamiento:

13 diciembre 2006 (France)

Género:

Música

Plot:

A prince and his companion battle evil forces to rescue a princess. |

Plot Keywords:

Persecution | Fictional War | Escape | Opera

Premios:

1 win

Comentarios de los usuarios:

Commendable for what it attempts even if it never engaged me beyond the superficial

Reparto

Joseph Kaiser	...	Tamino
Amy Carson	...	Pamina
René Pape	...	Sarastro
Lyubov Petrova	...	Queen of the Night
Benjamin Jay Davis	...	Papageno
Silvia Moi	...	Papagena
Tom Randle	...	Monostatos
Ben Uttley	...	Priest
Teuta Koço	...	First Lady
Louise Callinan	...	Second Lady
Kim-Marie Woodhouse	...	Third Lady
Rodney Clarke	...	First Officer
Charne Rochford	...	Second Officer
Peter Wedd	...	First Armed Man
Keel Watson	...	Second Armed Man

También conocida como:

La flûte enchantée (France)
La flauta mágica (Argentina) (Spain) [es]

Duración:

135 min

País:

UK | France

Idioma:

Inglés

Color:

Color

Relación de Aspecto:

2.35 : 1

Clasificación:

Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Norway:7 | Ireland:PG | Finland:K-7 | Netherlands:6 | Argentina:13 | Chile:Y7

Locaciones de Filmación:

Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Compañía:

Idéale Audience

Trivialidades:

The 'singing sandbags' in the rainy trench are digitised impositions of the faces of the two Armed Men, Keel Watson and Peter Wedd.

Conexiones de Película:

Version of The Magic Flute (1977)

Banda de Sonido:

The Magic Flute

Commendable for what it attempts even if it never engaged me beyond the superficial

When a soldier is near-fatally wounded in battle, he is recovered by three women and wakes to find himself in a strange land. Here he sees a beautiful woman that he is instantly besotted with. However when he learns that the woman has been kidnapped by the evil Queen of the Night, he sets out with a new companion to rescue her.

OK so this flopped in the cinemas but did anyone expect otherwise? Branagh may have sold Shakespeare to the masses but opera is not as generally accepted as an art form; most of us see Shakespeare as of value (even if we never go to the theatre) but yet things like opera and ballet still have the air of snobbery about them. Despite this though I was interested in this enough to put it on my rental list. Coming to it to see what it offers me helped me I think because I was in the middle of two extremes that I think reject this film. On one hand we have those that reject the film for being opera and hard to follow. On the other hand are those that cannot believe the opera has been "sullied". The truth for me is somewhere in the middle because the film is not as good as it could have been but is not a failure either.

The music is the selling point of course and Mozart is treated well with really well delivered music throughout. To the untrained ear it contains recognisable emotion and beauty and it was this that held me. Juts as well really because the plot is hard to follow – something I found strange from the man who has delivered Shakespeare with such clarity and accessibility. The lyrics may be English but many of them are rendered almost indecipherable by the nature of the singing. This doesn't affect the music but it does affect the story-telling and makes it almost easier to listen to than watch at times. This isn't ever totally true though because Branagh does do the best he can with a limited budget. His sets and effects have a consistently "unreal" quality which feels like a cross between a film and a filmed opera. Sometimes it gets a bit tiresome (too many elevated/elevating shots) but mostly it works.

The cast are all OK: really good in regards giving "stage" performances but on film it doesn't totally work and mostly they add to the feeling of watching a stage performance through a camera. This isn't a fantastic film by any means then, but it is not a deserving flop either. Instead it is an interesting attempt at something different that has strengths in the music and creativity but never really engaged me beyond the superficial trimmings.