Doctor Faustus

Rating:
Summary: Not a great film, but quite interesting on many levels
Review: Would you sell your soul to the devil for all you desire? Doctor Faustus (Richard Burton) would. His desire? The woman with "...the face that launched 1,000 ships..." (Helen of Troy - Elizabeth Taylor). The Burtons produced this film version following their appearance in the stage version at Burton's alum, Oxford University. And, the film utilizes most of the Oxford players as well. The play, written by Christopher Marlowe (no Shakespeare he), centers around the opening line of this review. It would be difficult to resist such a sale with Elizabeth Taylor as the temptation. Despite several limitations, most notably budget, this film is quite intriquing. Mostly because of Taylor. Although she does not speak one word, appearing only as "visions" and "temptations", she is simply breathtakingly beautiful, even if somewhat zoftig. And, the music written by Mario Nascimbene, particularly "Helen's Theme", is nothing short of haunting. The film itself is nothing extrordinary, but Taylor, her costumes, and the music make it all worthwhile for me.