Average Customer Review:
 ( 33 customer reviews )
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
76 of 79 found the following review helpful:
 See what the magic was all aboutSep 23, 2004
By Ivy Lin
Sometimes, first impressions are misleading. When I saw Fonteyn and Nureyev in Swan Lake, I was appalled by the weird ending, Nureyev's interjected solos, the reshuffling of Tchaikovsky's score, and the radical reworking of the Petipa/Ivanov choreography. I didn't see any of the famed Fonteyn/Nureyev chemistry.
But don't make the same mistake I did. Avoid the muddled Swan Lake, and order their Romeo and Juliet today! It's Kenneth MacMillan's production, and the romantic score by Prokofiev is of course beautiful. The corps, unlike the underreheased, cramped Swan Lake corps, have it together. The costumes are lovely.
Most of all, you finally see the Fonteyn/Nureyev magic. Fonteyn is much more suited to Juliet than Odette/Odile, which requires almost superhuman athleticism from the ballerina. As Juliet, Fonteyn's grace and charm more than make up for the fact that at age 46, her leaps aren't as high and her turns aren't the fastest. Except for a few unflattering closeups, she still exudes a remarkable girlishness and wide-eyed innocence. Nureyev is also excellent -- unlike Fonteyn, he was at his peak and his turns and leaps are a sight to behold. He got a late start in ballet (17!) and was often criticized for his "unfinished technique" and sometimes in the film you can see why. For one, he can't seem to control his pirouettes very well -- he can start them, spin, but can't neatly end them turned out in 4th position (a la Baryshnikov). Rudolf sometimes overrotates and "cheats" by quickly putting down his free leg. Nevertheless, the warmth and ardency he exudes more than compensate for technical defects.
But when Margot and Rudi dance together, they are greater than the sum of their parts. For those used to the idealized aloofness of classical ballet, you will be stunned by the intimacy and physicality of Fonteyn and Nureyev. When Nureyev recalled that the two danced with "one body, one soul" it wasnt an exaggeration. It seems like we're peeping in on a private relationship, not a performance. One particularly beautiful moment is when Fonteyn and Nureyev at the very beginning of the balcony scene run around onstage and bump into each other. Their hands touch, and both shake visibly, as if jolted by electricity. Later on, Nureyev lightly brushes his face in Fonteyn's nightgown. I dare say it's hotter than any porn film.
The *only* drawback is the visual quality of the film. There doesnt seem to have been any remastering, and a lot of the film has a grainy look.
54 of 55 found the following review helpful:
The Ballet That Spoiled All Other Ballets For MeApr 30, 2005
By Theodore G. Mihran
Tonight I watched Romeo and Juliet again, this time with two of my granddaughters. I have seen it with my parents, with my wife and three children, and now with my grandchildren. I attended the movie in Washington, in Boston, and in Albany, NY many years ago. This version has become part of my life, as have its stars, Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn. Why I have not reviewed it before, I do not know.
This Royal Ballet version of Romeo and Juliet is so fine, so spectacular, so moving, and so incrediblly beautiful that in my opinion there is no other ballet that can compare with it. First there is the poignantly tragic love story of Shakespeare. Add to it the hauntingly expressive, classic-yet-modern music of Prokofiev. Stir in Kenneth MacMillan's sensitive and exuberant choreography. And as the supreme touch, have it danced by the most exhilarating male dancer who every performed, in partnership with the most delicate and vulnerable ballernina of the past century. Here you have the masterpiece of all masterpieces. A ballet that puts other ballets to shame with their weak plots and lack of emotional substance.
My two favorite scenes are the balcony scene, and the scene where Romeo dances with a lifeless Juliet. The first exudes love and passion, as Nureyev and Fonteyn are transported by their new-found love to a height beyond all measure. In the second, your heart freezes and you strain to hold back tears as Romeo tries to coax the life back into Juliet by dancing with her limp but still graceful form. There are no touchingly valid moments such as these in any other ballet I have seen.
The superb costumes are worthy of a Zefferelli production, although this is not one, of course. The scenery is adequate but not impressive. But most important, all the dancers communicate a vitality that is convincing and contagious. The swordplay is amazing in its complexity and realism. Tybolt's death and his wife's grief are overdone with just the right touch of modernity.
But mainly, Nureyev and Fonteyn bring each scene they dance into brilliant flower. And when they dance together something of the mystery and tragedy of their two very different lives comes to the surface and animates their performance, giving it a realism that communicates their deep emotion for each other.
This is heartfelt and heart-wrenching art. When it finishes, one is exhausted and drained, but also inspired and delighted that this one-of-a-kind performance was recorded so that one may enjoy it over and over again.
38 of 39 found the following review helpful:
 Sometimes magical, but often frustratingMar 14, 2001
By D. M. Seeley
"Ghost Writer"
First, it should be said that every time Fonteyn and Nureyev danced together, there was a chemistry that transcended the choreography. Even with Fonteyn at the close of her amazing career in this production, those qualities of interpretation and connection shine through. Nureyev's dancing is solid, but as with many MacMillan ballets, he spends much time as a display pedestal for his partner. However, when Fonteyn, especially, is on screen, it is impossible to tear your eyes away: she truly was one of the most charismatic dancers of the last century.That said, I must confess to a great deal of frustration with this DVD. There was no effort made to re-master, as far as I can see. Also, as becomes obvious from the intro titles (with the edges chopped off), the coversion from PAL to NTSC was done haphazardly at best. In some scenes, dancers are partially cut-off from view, in others the frame speeds result in an almost jerky quality. Czinner, like many others in the past, tried very hard to turn the ballet production into a movie production, and fails miserably at times. Close-ups are filmed when MacMillan's spectacular corps choreography is occurring, so you miss some wonderful dancing. Often, the effort to capture "drama" for the movie screen ends up detracting terribly. One day, somebody will figure out that the best way to film ballet is to simply plop your camera in the best seat in the house with a wide angle lens and let it run. Would I purchase this again? Certainly. As a bit of history it has great value. However, I see no reason to spend the extra money on the DVD version -- it's no better than film, and the "extras" are nothing that you couldn't find elsewhere, and in a better format ("I am a Dancer", the VHS with Nureyev, comes to mind.) So save your DVD dollars and go for tape on this one.
20 of 20 found the following review helpful:
Nureyev and Fonteyn in a perfect union of dance and dramaFeb 27, 2003
By A Viewer and Reader
In 1965 I saw Nureyev and Fonteyn dance 'Romeo And Juliet' at the Arie Crown Theater in Chicago (I still have the program) and can attest to Maltin's comment that "zoom lens is a poor substitute for live performance". While those gorgeous moments will remain forever with me I would not forgo for an instant the pleasure of viewing what Czinner captured in his 1966 film of this ballet. This is dance drama as only Nureyev and Fonteyn could create it, and I don't believe it has ever been surpassed. MacMillan created his 'Romeo And Juliet' not for Nureyev and Fonteyn but for Lynn Seymour and Christopher Gable, and Gable was bitterly disappointed when his role was given over to Nureyev who didn't hesitate to inject his own changes into the choreography. Nureyev was perfectly cast as a randy Renaissance playboy suddenly entranced by Juliet's demure girlish innocence so perfectly projected by Fonteyn. She was forty-six at the time yet through her dancing she transformed herself into a romantically inspired teenager. The experience of this in the theater was stunning, as one is not diverted by camera close-ups, but even in the film I find myself thoroughly convinced by her portrayal. Of all the ballets that Nureyev and Fonteyn danced together this one most perfectly captured the contrasts in their personas that made their partnership so unique. He has been described as "fire", she as "light", and the synergy between them was unforgetable in this ballet. In his choreography MacMillan does a masterful job of characterizing Romeo who in the opening scene makes a play for Tybalt's girlfriend, Rosaline, dances in abandon with the harlots of the town, and then pursue Rosaline to the Capulet's ball. In contrast we meet Juliet playing with a doll in her anteroom and shying timidly away from her suitor, Paris. But at the ball Juliet plays the mandolin and Romeo, intruding himself, dances for her generating a spellbinding attraction between them that flowers into the balcony scene. Juliet gives herself to him, timidly at first but then freely in an exquisite pas-de-deux by which all subsequent performances by other dancers must be judged. Czinner's film of this ballet is filled with memorable moments; Desmond Doyle's outstanding portrayal of the menacing; treacherous Tybalt; David Blair's rendition of Mercutio's death; Romeo and Juliet's parting pas-de-deux filled with tenderness, longing, and grief (Shakespeare's words, "Oh thinkest thou we shall ever meet again?" fill the moment). But of all it is perhaps the tomb scene that remains the most vivid. Hearing of Juliet's death Romeo invades the Capulet's tomb, dispathes Paris, and mourns over Juliet's body. In Nureyev's lifts of Fonteyn's limp body he recreates a semblance of their balcony and bedroom trysts, pathetically trying to dance life into her once again, until overcome at last he takes poison and dies. Juliet awakens and now it is Fonteyn's turn to match Nureyev's sorrow and desperation as she realizes the tragic consequences of her failed plan. The poignancy of their deaths is so well realized the one felt a sense of relief when at last Rudi and Margo materialized before the curtain to take their tumultous curtain calls. This ballet is a perfect marriage of Prokofiev's sumptuous score, MacMillan's evocative choreography, the exquisite dancing of Nureyev and Fonteyn, and we are most fortunate to have it all preserved in Czinner's film, a "must own" for every lover of dance. One might indeed believe that Rudi defected in June 1961 to dance with Margo but the truth is that he was about to be arrested by the KGB in Paris and sent back to Russia. He threw himself upon the mercy of the French police, escaped, danced with the Cuevas company in Paris, and then with the Royal Danish Ballet. He didn't dance with Fonteyn until February 1962.
16 of 16 found the following review helpful:
Good but we need a new transferMar 06, 2000
By Mak Thorpe
"makthorpe"
According to the screen credits, this was made for film. Thankfully it does not go off on some filmitization experiment. Actually they might have been too conservative for everyone's liking since it looks exactly like a stage production, only with film like camera work. A greater number of people can comment on the ballet itself since it has been on VHS for some time. I will confine my comments mostly to issues with its reproduction. I agree with the Chicago person's comment that the quality of the transfer is not the best, and will go much further. Despite my criticisms, I hope everyone will keep in mind that I would recommend this as a great DVD to own. Unfortunately this DVD was not transferred from the film, but from a video of the film. This means that you will see scan lines and other video artefacts. Either because of this or poor DVD compression, the picture sharpness is muddy, and trails of movement are visible as on the Swan Lake DVD. Other problems that would be easy to restore are inconsistencies between exposures on the frames and frame shake (revealed by static objects appearing to vibrate). Hopefully, the next release will be digitally remastered directly from film with better quality compression, and digital remastering of the audio track to DTS. A plus would be if they restored the film print by removing the dust and scratches. DVD features were not entirely ignored, but could be significantly improved: "Chapter" Indexing: 18 points in the ballet can be accessed. This is much too few. Not just the scenes, but each particular dance should be indexed as with Kultur's Swan Lake DVD. Music History, Ballet Synopsis and Biographies of Nureyev, Fonteyn and Prokofiev have about 10 pages each, in text easily read from a television. There are no language features. At bare minimum, the synopsis for each act should be translated into the typical European languages as well as those of other ballet loving markets such as Chinese. Going further, a ballet commentary as a separate audio track would be especially welcome. Such commentaries are common on great films by Hitchcock or Bergman and could be done cheaply. Commentaries enrich the experience of audiences who are interested in gathering a fuller appreciation of this art form, and both features would pay the producers back since it would extend their market into larger audiences. Credits: Other Dancers: Margo Fonteyn, David Blair, Desmond Doyle, Julia Farrow, Michael Somes, Anthony Dowell, Gerd Larsen, Leslie Edwards, Christopher Newton, Ronald Hynd, Georgina Parkinson, Betty Kavanagh, Derek Rencher and artists of the Royal Ballet under the supervision of John Hart Choreography by Kenneth MacMillan, not Nureyev Scenery and Constumes: Nicholas Georgiadis Music by Royal Opera House Covent Garden Conducted by John Lanchbery Produced and Directed by Paul Czinner
See all 33 customer reviews on Amazon.com
|
based on 33 reviews
![The Phantom of the Opera [Blu-ray]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51RJyWMgvtL._SL75_.jpg "The Phantom of the Opera [Blu-ray]")
