Rating: 
Summary: A Butterfly in a Cage
Review: "I am like the goddess of the moon,
the little goddess of the moon
who comes down by night on the bridge of the sky." ~ButterflyI love this romantic escape into a fantasy world of dreamy opera and sometimes the singing can literally make you heady. I fell completely in love with this story after listening to a 1987 London recording from the library. The story begins near Nagasaki, although this movie was filmed in Tunisia. A Japanese house, terrace and garden is situated on a hill overlooking the harbor. There is a sense of serenity and peace, but this does not fully represent the future. Lieutenant Pinkerton (Richard Troxell) is selecting a home and Goro brings him into the house to show him all the benefits of the house. He in turn thinks the house is "as delicate as a puff of wind." Which could rather be used to describe his commitment to his new bride, Butterfly (Ying Huang). We can't quite figure out why this naval officer wants to buy a bride when he is just going to leave her trapped in a beautiful cage for three years. Is this not the entire fantasy of the knight who rescues a woman and then puts her in a tower? Yet, here the knight and the maiden don't seem to share the same commitment to one another and when the knight leaves, he seems to forget to even send a note back to the maiden. The love duets are magnificent and beyond compare. The world literally dissolves when you watch this movie. The letter scene gives you hope and yet the sheer tragedy of the situation reaches new levels when Butterfly tosses Sharpless out of the house due to his heartless comments about her accepting a proposal from Yamadori. I also love Butterfly's sweet innocence when she asks when the robin builds his nest in her husband's country, because in her country it has built a nest three times and she can't understand why her husband has not returned. He promised he would return when the robin was building his nest. Butterfly has many opportunities to escape her cage with a variety of suitors, yet stays completely faithful. She lives with her maid, Suzuki. They almost run out of money while waiting for Pinkerton to return. When she realized Pinkerton has finally returned, she takes flower petals (peach-blossom, violet, jasmine) and strews them all over the house. She then falls asleep, exhausted from waiting up all night. "Oh, the bitter fragrance
of these flowers
spreads in my heart like poison.
Unchanged is the room
where our love blossomed.
But the chill of death is here.
My picture...
Three years have passed
and she has counted the days and the hours!" ~Pinkerton "Madame Butterfly" is an exquisite and faithful cinematic adaptation of Giacomo Puccini's Opera "Madama Butterfly" set in Japan in 1904. It is really a heart-wrenching story of a young geisha who sacrifices her religion, family and life with a more suitable partner, like Prince Yamadori, while she waits for Lieutenant Pinkerton to return. Unfortunately, a rash decision does not allow her heart to heal. This movie is just mesmerizing, heart breaking and terribly romantic. If you want to create a romantic atmosphere, watch on a rainy afternoon with a jasmine scented candle and jasmine tea. You can find the following items here at Amazon: Jasmine Yin Hao Tea, One Dozen Jasmine Honey Votive Candles, Jasmine Sensual Body Massage Oil, Butterfly Notebook, Crackler Butterfly "cat toy," Water color butterfly rug, Tiffany Butterfly Light, Butterfly Serenity Sphere, Lenox Butterfly Meadow Enamel-Coated Steel Tea Kettle and a Butterfly Cookie Cutter. ~TheRebeccaReview.com
Rating:
Summary: Is Cio Cio San an indigenous character?
Review: A friend of me, who is an expert antropologist, said that the similitudes between the japanese women and the Nahuatl women from Mexico are so evident, that he theorizes that they have the same origin. Both Nahuatl and Japanese languages sound very similar. But the amazing thing about this wonderful opera is that the loving behaviour of Cio Cio San a.k.a. Madama Butterfly and the love and shy glances to his beloved, are the same that the nahuatl women take to their husbands. Is a mistery, which makes more captivating, this absolutely wonderful movie. Huang is a so tender, yet powerful Butterfly that makes you smile, cry and reflect at the same time. She deserves an Academy award for this splendid performance. And the director: Wonder how he finds that absolute perfection in directing a chinese woman to perform a lovely japanese girl? The orchestra is wonderful too. Troxell makes an easy going Pinkerton sound perfect. It's an easy gospel, but full of deep perfections.
Rating:
Summary: Delicious, Haunting
Review: A powerful and moving interpretation with a singularly convincing cinematic style.
Rating:
Summary: Very Beautiful
Review: A very lovely film. Ms. Ying Huang is a very touching Butterfly, and Troxell makes a great Pinkerton, he has just the right smile for this role. Magnificently filmed with some effects not possible on an operatic stage-like looking out onto a real seascape horizon when Butterfly awaits Pinkerton's return. Ying Huang's portrayal of Butterfly will break your heart-she captures Butterfly's sense of young innocence very well and does a very fine job acting out her hope and anguish. Finally, a Butterfly who looks almost young enough for the role she is portraying! Suzuki is also well portrayed here. The Humming Chorus is set to early black and white footage of Japan to great effect. The subtitles are well done, and the drama is tastefully presented. I first learned about this opera when I was viewing a biographical video of Shoghi Effendi, and his wife recounted that he really enjoyed the opera Madame Butterfly. Then I listened to CD's and fell in love with Puccini operas and most other operas too, but no CD will equal this integrated audio AND visual presentation. I feel like this film gave me a better appreciation of those great arias and choruses. They take on a new meaning. The operatic and cinematic elements were well integrated, and the cast was terrific. A truly magnificent opera, a great production, and an outstanding film. Very highly recommended! I hope more movies of such exceptional quality are produced from great operas.
Rating:
Summary: Butterflies on the brain!
Review: As a musical-theater enthusiast unfamiliar with the opera world, I stumbled across this production almost by accident when a visit to a ballet performance of Butterfly sent me scuttling thru the local libraries in search of Puccini's original opera. Used to thinking of opera as somewhat "stuffy", I was unprepared for what I found- I was completely caught off guard by the quality of the acting, and the power of the music. Within 5 minutes I had nearly forgotten I was watching classical opera in a foreign language with subtitles, and thought I was seeing yet another of my favorite musicals (believe me, from someone as enamored of Les Mis as myself, that is VERY high praise!) And the more I watch it, the more I notice of the care and detailing the actors and director put into this performance (try watching the consul Sharpless- carefully- right before he has to answer Butterfly's question about when robins build their nest). I think it would be nearly impossible to find another version so accessible to non-opera people like myself. More seasoned opera lovers may, perhaps, criticize the singing; I personally cannot hear why. Huang may be light, but she holds her own against the best "Butterflies" out there; and no other Sharpless I've heard even comes close to Cowan's. Having since compared this with a number of other versions (including Scotto and Freni), I have found no other version yet that more closely captures, for me, the essence of these characters; the carefree, irresponsible charm and rogueishness of Pinkerton, the compassionate gallantry of Sharpless, the innocent naivete and heartbreaking vulnerability of Butterfly. "B-List singers", indeed! There are a few decisions the director made, which other reviewers here have touched on, that I didn't quite understand: having the Bonze (Butterfly's uncle, a Buddhist priest) come in as a kind of flying ghost; using footage of old (pre-war) Nagasaki for the dream sequence during the Humming Chorus; and some of the changes made in the staging of the final sequence. Then, there was also just a bit more focus on the matchmaker, Goro, than I felt the role called for (he was even present in one scene near the end where he had no lines and did not seem to belong) But overall I would say this was a very excellent production. Since seeing it I have become rather obsessed; you might say I have Butterflies on the brain! ***One note on the review below by Paul Smith Carter; I believe this must be a review of the WRONG Butterfly, since *Huang* NOT Raina, here sings the title role.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful and touching
Review: Despite some puzzling directorial choices - in an otherwise realistic staging, the Bonze flies in and out like a menacing Peter Pan, and the Humming Chorus is accompanied by irrelevant archival silent film footage - this is beautifully and affectionately presented. Ying Huang has said herself that her voice is too light to sing this taxing role live, but onscreen her performance is definitive: she captures every aspect of this bewitching character, and her performance deepens as Butterfly attains maturity. She is well-matched by the handsome Richard Troxell as her Pinkerton, who gives a more sympathetic portrayal of this odious character than is customary. As her maid/friend/confidante Suzuki, Ning Liang is perfect, and Jing Ma Fan is simply spectacular in the small but pivotal role of Goro. Once seen, this film is not easily forgotten. Have Kleenex at hand, though....
Rating: 
Summary: Puzzling choices
Review: Fabulous filmed rendition of the opera! Beautiful visuals! But, most of all, I'm thrilled to have discovered Ying Huang who's performance is beautiful, sensitive, and her voice gorgeous (delicate, sweet yet masterful without that "Southerland screech" that so many sopranos have. The first time I watched it, I did so for days! :-)
Rating:
Summary: Fabulous... Captivating... Sensitive
Review: Fabulous filmed rendition of the opera! Beautiful visuals! But, most of all, I'm thrilled to have discovered Ying Huang who's performance is beautiful, sensitive, and her voice gorgeous (delicate, sweet yet masterful without that "Southerland screech" that so many sopranos have. The first time I watched it, I did so for days! :-)
Rating:
Summary: And The Geisha Sang: The Best Butterfly Ever !!!
Review: French director Frederic Mitterand's gorgeous and melancholy movie makes the best version of Puccini's most famous opera. This movie is so well-made, so perfect, that after seeing it, you will be a true lover of opera. Filmed in Nagasaki, Japan, the beauty of the landscape in sprawling panoramic views in the springtime make for a beautiful setting. Authentic Japanese kimono and dress, as well as Japanese houses complete with sliding doors make it very realistic. Visually, cinematically, it's a masterpiece. Now as far as sound. While more than one critic may call it a poor quality Madame Butterfly, with the wrong cast, especially in soprano Ying Huang, there are many reasons that this is not true. In addition, as a movie, there are advantages over stage versions. We SEE subtle things, like Madame Butterfly's portrait of Jesus showing she has accepted Catholicism and renounced her faith. We see in the wedding scene how furious and powerful her uncle is who disowns her (flying in white robes like something out of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, a very Asian motif). We see how the house Butterfly lives in is both beautiful, surrounded by spring flowers, but also an isolated little dream cage, a world entirely of her own making since she has been deceived in a false marriage with Pinkerton. The ending is so moving, if you don't cry, you miss the point of the movie.
This IS the Madame Butterfly as it should be sung and acted. Purists among the opera-loving world prefer to keep traditional, conventional staging and casting. Butterfly has been sung by the heavy, dramatic divas from Maria Callas, Mirella Freni, Reneta Tebaldi, Renata Scotto, among others. The role of B.F. Pinkerton is a prize-winning performance for the tenor who can sing it well, and many have sung it in their glorious careers- Luciano Pavoratti, Placido Domingo, and many others. However, this opera is not merely a tenor-and-soprano tragic romance. It's not Wagner's Tristan and Isolde which withou a doubt calls for a heavy tenor and soprano. In the case of Butterfly, she is FIFTEEN years old. Heavier voices make her sound older and melodramatic. She is supposed to come off as naive mostly. If she's dramatic, it should not be overdone. She's bold, she's spirited, she's only a full character when she's in love, and this is throughout the entire opera. It is her love for Pinkerton that has driven her to find a new religion (presumably Pinkerton's Catholic or Christian faith) and abandon her ancestral faith, to the cost of being disowned by her own family. In Ying Huang, we have the real Madame Butterfly. Her light voice can still deliver the dramatic lines and perfectly characterize a frail, love-sick Geisha of an inexperienced age.
Ying Huang as Butterfly, Richard Troxell as Pinkerton (doing a slightly lesser performance than the heroine. One would have wished they could have casted Domingo as Pinkerton but by this time in 1996 he was much older or unavailable for the role. I feel that Troxell's voice is not passionate enough. He is cast simply because he's a good looking man. But it works in the biggest part of his character - his image as a Yankee playboy who merely takes Butterfly's love for granted. The singers in the roles of Susuki and the Consul man are doing a fine job. This is a great movie that ought to be in every opera lovers' collection.
Rating:
Summary: Simply Beautiful
Review: Having seen a few movie versions of operas, such as Bizet's "Carmen" and Verdi's "La Traviata" (Placido Domingo), I expected a lot from this video. I, however, was unprepared for how beautiful this production would be. If you have even a passing interest in opera, buy this video. And while you are at it, buy the movie version of Carmen with Placido Domingo & Julia Migenes-Johnson. You will treasure them for years.
|
