
The
Liberator (2014/Cohen
Media Blu-ray)/Beauty &
The Beast/Belarbi/Theatre Du Capitole Ballet
(2005 aka La Bete et La
Belle/Opus Arte
Blu-ray)/Richard Strauss
Also Sparch Zarathustra/Andris Nelsons (2014)/Der Rosenkavalier/R.
Strauss/Franz Wexler-Most
(2014)/Last Songs/Letzte
Lieder/R. Strauss/C. Thielemann
(2014/Unitel Classica/C Major Blu-rays)/Verdi:
Don Carlo/Gianandrea Noseda
(2013/Opus Arte/Naxos Blu-ray)
Picture:
B/B/B-/B-/B-/B- Sound: B+/B/B/B/B/B- Extras: C+/C/C/C/C/C
Main Programs: C+/B-/B-/B/B-/B-
Here's
a set of foreign and historical Blu-ray releases including music
strengths that seemed to go together...
Gustavo
Dudamel's The
Liberator
(2014) is
our only feature film, though not drama, ambitious in its production
about telling and showing the story on how Simon Boulivar (Edgar
Ramirez in perfect casting) created a military campaign against many
powers that be in trying to unite Latin America and stop the
oppression of many a regime. He was very successful, but in the end,
he had to be stopped. How this happened is still a matter of debate
and the two-hour film decides to only go so far in dealing with those
questions, filling the lack of investigation with a character study
that plays more like a biopic. As a result, it does none of the
things it could have excelled at well under the circumstances.
The
cast is really good, including U.S. actor Danny Huston, the
production design, locales and costume design show money is in the
film and it is shot on film. Despite not adding up to what it could
or should have and having a few cliched scenes, there are more than a
few sequences and scenes that work enough to give this one a look and
it is a refreshingly ambitious epic versus action films with too much
CGI. Those interested should check it out.
Extras
include a Director's Introduction by Gustavo
Dudamel, a
Making Of featurette and an Original Theatrical Trailer.
Now
for other arts. We have
the Ballet du Capitole at the Theatre
Du Capitole with a new version of Beauty
& The Beast
that is neither based on the animated Disney hit or melodramatic TV
shows (a recent remake/revival was not as successful as the older hit
with Linda Hamilton and Ron Pearlman) staged and choreographed by
Kader Belarbito decent effect. Running 105 minutes, it weaves in
music by Louis-Claude Daquin, Joseph Haydn, Gyorgy Ligeti and Maurice
Ravel straight form the mythos. It may be a little long and a bit
uneven, but it succeeds more than not and is worth a look, especially
as an alternative to recent versions noted.
The
next three releases feature music by Richard
Strauss, starting with Andris Nelsons version of Also
Sparch Zarathustra
which I thought sped up the composition a bit and did not pay off
like his work usually does, reviewed often elsewhere on this site.
He fares a little better on Macbeth,
Op. 23
and Till
Eulenspiegels Lustige Streiche, Op. 28
and this runs only 80 minutes, so it is short overall, but decent.
Then
we have the third version of Strauss' Der
Rosenkavalier
we have ever covered followed by our raves for these two versions...
Fabio
Luisi/Medici Arts
Blu-ray
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/7880/Richard+Strauss%E2%80%99+Der+Rosenkavalier
Andrew
Litton/Opera Australia
Blu-ray
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/12150/Gluck:+Iphigenie+en+Aulide/Iphigenie+en+Tauride
Though
not as strong as those, this Franz Wexler-Moss/C Major/Unitel
Classica edition is our best classical entry on this list and not
just because of the material, but because the cast is solid
throughout. Fans should compare all three versions and go all out,
but I would not totally count this one out just because we rate it a
little lower. Interesting production all around.
Finally
we have Last
Songs
(aka
Letzte Lieder)
handled by no less than another genius, Christian Thielemann, running
103 minutes and featuring soprano Anja Harteros singing on the title
selection and Malven,
Strauss' last composition, orchestrated here by Wolfgang Rihm. Eine
Alpensinfonie rounds out the set which is decent if not delivering a
home run. I don't mean to be heard on Thielemann, but he is so good,
I have very high expectations and this is not the title I would
recommend as an introduction to him though it is solid. Still, worth
a listen and a little better than the Also
Sparch Zarathustra
release above.
Finally
we have Giuseppi Verdi's Don
Carlo
from 2013 conducted effectively by Gianandrea Noseda in the classic
four-act father-son battle with tenor Ramon Vargas and Ludovic Tezier
in this revival by Director Hugo de Ana. Hard to believe we have
never really covered this work before and it is well-known enough,
but it runs 217 minutes and has some trouble justifying it length,
yet that is the work in its full presentation and we give them credit
for no abridgments.
Extras
for all five classical releases include multi-lingual illustrated
booklet for each respective programs, with Beast
and Carlo
adding cast Gallery sections and trailers also show up.
The
1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image on Liberator
is shot on 35mm film with Arricam cameras that often produce great
results, though the best shots stand out against ones that look good
to really good. This means it is not spectacular throughout, but has
its moments. Some
of it has its color downplayed, which works against it at times.
The
1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer on Beast
is the second-best presentation with the most stable of the HD-shoots
including good color, detail and depth for a stagebound production.
Carlo
is in the same format, but is a little weaker with some motion blur
problems that the rest of the Blu-rays here in 1080i 1.78 X 1 digital
High Definition image transfer presentations that simply show the
limits of the older HD cameras despite some good shooting by the
respective cameramen.
As
for sound, the DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 Spanish lossless mix on
Liberator
is very impressive throughout with the best sound on an
Spanish-language film I have ever heard outside of Guillermo del
Toro's films. The recording is very clear and deep, then the sound
really kicks in during battle scenes and the soundfield is
exceptional all the way.
Most
of the classical releases
here are in DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.0 lossless mixes, but only
Carlo
suffers with its restrictive soundfield and range. Songs
and Beast
have DTS-HD
MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mixes with solid soundfields, but
nothing here can touch Liberator.
All five classical titles also have PCM 2.0 Stereo mixes for simpler
set-ups and playback, but none can match the DTS-MA multi-channel
versions of the same music.
-
Nicholas Sheffo