Evita

Rating:
Summary: Alan Parker captures the spirit & quality of the stage show
Review: Many watched this film to see if its lead actress would fail. Madonna-bashing was a popular sport, especially for her acting performances. There is nothing wrong with her performance here, either as an actress or singer (even though she can be seen breathing when she is supposed to be lying dead in her coffin). The real revelation, though is Jonathan Pryce. We all knew he could act from films like Brazil and Breaking Glass, but here he shows he is also quite a good singer. It's clear that he did all his own songs himself, and some of the charisma he injects into the role of Peron rubs off on his singing performance. This is also true of Madonna, who singing isn't up to Judy Covington's original, but she just seems so right for the role, especially when the excellent period make-up and clothes are added. Jimmy Nail has fun as Magaldi, and Banderas (probably hiding from Madonna after her comments in In Bed With Madonna!) works well as the modified Che, no longer representing Che Guevara but now a metaphor for the Argentinean workers.

Parker manages some amazing feats, securing the use of the genuine Casa Rosada to film the balcony scenes, as well as the services of hundreds of Argentineans to play the grieving public. These give the director impressive distance shots to balance his subtle close-ups, reflecting the huge impact that this very personal story made on one country. Parker sticks to the original narrative of the musical without additional dialogue, retaining Rice and Lloyd-Webber's spirit. The sound quality is spectacular, the THX or surround giving us the full dynamic range of the orchestra. The additional song 'You Must Love Me' shows that Rice and Lloyd-Webber haven't lost their touch, and Madonna's idea of transferring 'Another Suitcase In Another Hall' to her character is spot on.

Rating:
Summary: Live Fast, Die Young, Leave Behind a Good-Looking Corpse
Review: Madonna was well-chosen for the title role of this musical. She is a promiscuous bottle blonde who lost a parent when young, just like the illustrious former First Lady of Argentina.
Eva Peron was a woman who lived fast, died young, left behind a good-looking corpse, and a smashing wardrobe. This film emphasizes at least two of those aspects of Evita's life. Jonathan Pryce bears little resemblance to the real Juan Peron, but he can carry a tune. He never appears to be the menacing dictator that Peron was known to have been, but when he confronts his teenage mistress(sympathetically played by Andrea Corr), or Eva's terminal illness, he comes across as a sheepish little boy who was caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
Victoria Sus captures the streetwise persona that must have been Juana Ibarguren. While the contempt that the widow of Eva's father must have had for her and her five children is understandable, it should be remembered that Eva's mother did what she had to do to survive at a time when women had fewer options. If there is anything to be said for Eva's contraversial rise to power, she did give Argentinian women the vote, which would help to lessen the chances of their having to prostitute themselves in order to survive as she and her mother did.
Antonio Banderas wears many different hats as fellow Argentinian, Che Guevara, who in fact, never met Eva Peron. His subtle tone is quite suitable for rock operas and in fact, it reminds me a little of Ted Neely's singing in "Jesus Christ, Superstar", another Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. His mannerisms are mocking and unsymapthetic as he mixes in with all elements of Argentine society, trying to get the scoop on this young woman who has taken her country by storm.
There is a noticeable change in lyrics where certain numbers are concerned. When the song, "And the Money Kept Rolling In" is played, a very important stanza about the Perons' fleecing of their nation's treasury is left out. I have wondered if the producers of this film had to strike a deal with the Argentinian government to leave that stanza out in order to film in a country where Eva is still so revered. Earlier, Eva's lines in "Peron's Latest Flame" are changed from "Is that the extent of your interest in me? It shows how futile acting must be." to" Acting is limiting. The lines not mine. That's no help to the Argentine." But it's great how Lloyd-Webber recreates the two groups most opposed to Eva's rise to power in that song by making the military officers shout their lyrics as military officers would when giving or responding to commands, and the aristocracy sing theirs in a ringing chorale to express their highbrow mannerisms.
Jimmy Nail is given the other standout performance as Eva's first lover, Agustin Magaldi. He has a pleasant voice, but somehow an audience would get the impression that he wasn't all that great a singer. Julian Littman does bear a close resemblance to Eva's devoted brother, Juan.The most comically pathetic character is, perhaps Marcelo Alejandro Marcelli's beautiful-eyed Huevo, the photographer who helps Eva land her first gig as a professional model, only to find himself being spurned by her as she goes on to more advantageous conquests.
The film doesn't capture everything accurately. But it's quite a musical. At once, it is solemn, majestic, passionate, riveting, rollicking, funny,and dignified. It never lets up for a moment as it captures the fire, color and spirit of both its title character and of her beloved Argentina in the early part of the 20th century.

Rating:
Summary: A Superb Musical Motion Picture.
Review: This star-studded motion picture is not only famous in U.S. and Europe, but is also famous around the world for it's breathtaking scenes, musical features and at most times, the way it really reflects the many ways of life and it's consequences. Starring Madonna and Antonio Banderas, it also features a short part of Andrea Corr, who played the role of Mr. Juan Peron's 16 year old mistress. As she is my idol, I really favour this movie. Also, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's musical idea was popular again the second time around after 'The Commitments', in which Alan Parker was director and Andrea Corr was the lead actress. Wholly, Madonna and Antonio Banderas acted superbly by blending into the scenes like they were really Eva Peron and Che'. A simply fantastic movie.

Rating:
Summary: Lets Hear It For the Rainbow Tour...
Review: This Movie Is My New Favorite - I Thought It was -much- Better Than The Stage Production - Though that May Have Just Been Me. I Disagree With Most Critics, And I Believe that The Emotional Bonds with the Characters Become very Strong, If You Listen to all the words. My Favorite Character, Personally, Was Che [Something to Be Gushed on In A Moment], But I Felt a Link With all of the Characters - I felt Their Moods Through their Music,
Heard Their Words Through the wonderously Poetic Lyrics. It's a beautiful, Beautiful Movie - The Musically Adept Don't need No Stinkin Lines. :D

Among My favorite Scenes Are "Goodnight And Thank You", Which I Thought was Utterly hillarious, "Waltz For Eva And Che" Which is commended For Not only it's Content, But It's Cinematography, And that Absolutely divine Scene At The end Where Che Kisses Eva's Coffin. I Can Almost Feel His Respect And Unexpressed Desire In that One - The scene 'Lament', Is Not Only Consisting of Eva Lamenting Her Shortened Life, But Che, Lamenting what Could Have Been Between the two, If it only werent for their sharp contrast Of Lives And Opinions.

And Che - Antonio Banderas Is the Best Che I Have Seen to date. He Took the Role And Made it his Own, Guiding Us through What would Have been an otherwise incoherent, 2 hour music Video, While Still keeping with character. On Hearing that he Had the Role, I Was Wary To the quality of Music - But the Man Can sing. God, he Can sing. Not Only could he sing the role, But he Kept it Light, Unforced, and In A Bitterly Cynical Tone that Che Had To Have. His accent was never a Problem for me - I Thought it added to the Role. And, Damn, He Looked the part. He Looked perfect for the part.

*cough* Madonna And Johnathan Pryce Were also Awesome - the entire Movie was perfectly cast, From Che To Magaldi To Peron's Mistress. I Watch this Movie 20 times A Day, No Joke, And I Love it more each time. My Only Problem Now, As A Newly Prescribed Eva And Che Shipper, Is Where to find some fanfic. >.<

Rating:
Summary: Powerful...One of my alltime favourites
Review: A very powerful adaptation of the Weber and Rice Musical
It is not a stage adaptation but has been made into an electrifying movie
It begins with the announcement of Eva Peron's passing at a movie theater and then we get a glimpse into Evita's early life of poverty and rejection. The political passions and earthshaking national event s at the time are brilliantly portrayed .I was not a fan of Madonna's until I saw Evita and that gave me a great new admiration for the singer
Superb portrayals by Antonio Banderas and Jonathan Pryce and a Cameo appearance by Andrea Corr (of the Irish band ,the Corrs)
I was glued to my chair throughout and immediately wanted the music for keeps so I shortly afterwards went out and bought the soundtrack

Rating:
Summary: VIVA EVITA
Review: The film is outstanding and the songs are very good, Madonna played the part of Eva Peron very well .I recormend this film to all fans of the star,and if your not a fan of Madonna you will be once you have seen EVITA .

Rating:
Summary: Worth It to Watch!
Review: I own the VHS of this movie and I enjoyed it very much (seen it about 4 times already). I usually don't care for musicals very much, but when I watched this movie, I enjoyed it and learned alot about Evita at the same time (even though it wasn't exactly correct). I enjoyed the music too...two of my favorites in this movie is "A New Argentina" and "Another Suitcase in Another Hall". I already know Madonna's singing (ever since I was a teen in the 1980s), but Antonio Bandaras' singing is surprising....he is great in it! If you enjoy musicials, or Madonna, Antonio, or Jonathan Pryce, you will love this movie! :) I enjoyed it alot myself.

Rating:
Summary: Don't Cry For Me... I'll be alright.
Review: Evita has had a very bumpy ride from stage to screen. For twenty years the film version of the highly successful stage musical (which has its own rocky history) has been booted around from studio to studio with long stays at Paramount studios until finally figuratively settling with Disney. The film version of Evita was now coined "The Most Famous Movie Never Made." Finally, Alan Parker (Mississippi Burning, Fame) was signed and would bring the film to fruition. But who to play Evita? Patti LuPone? Elaine Paige? Well, by the time the film went into production they were both more than 20 years older than Eva Duarte. Still, that did not stop the stage/Patti LuPone/Elaine Page fanatics from complaining when they were not cast. In my opinion, they could easily have portrayed the part but would have to have been digitally manipulated to look the correct age (Think Jar Jar Binks.) At various stops in the journey, many actresses were rumored to be attached: Meryl Streep, Michelle Pfeiffer and even Barbra Streisand (See Jar Jar Binks joke). But, in the meantime Madonna began a backdoor campaign to win herself the coveted role. Upon casting, she spent much time working on her vocal abilities and while she may be just an 'also ran' during the more difficult portions of the score, her work paid off. Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber (film works include "Jesus Christ Superstar", the scores to "The Odessa File" and "Gumshoe") and lyricist Tim Rice (film works "Jesus Christ Superstar","Aladdin" and "The Lion King") were to get together and compose a new song or two. They pulled it together just long enough to compose "You Must Love Me" which would go on to win the Oscar for best new song. The film finally made it's way to the screen and enjoyed good success. Madonna was overlooked(?) for an Oscar even though she did receive many other acting awards. But the film itself did take home the best song Oscar.

Rating:
Summary: E xcuse Me, Theatre Purists
Review: Evita is an absolutely wonderful spectacle to behold. Andrew Lloyd Webber's music is, as always, fantastic, contemporary, and (a very good feature) completely addictive. See Evita once, and you must see it again, memorize the words, dye your hair blonde, and practice singing to low E. I love Andrew Lloyd Webber's music--he tests the limits of the human voice, and makes it interesting with vocal extremes (SQUEAK to RUMBLE). However, Andrew also gives all of us girls a break from having to take the high parts all the time, and usually writes most of his girls pretty low, and all of his guys in the VERY HIGH (For a male) range. Madonna was great!!! She gives hope to all of those altos out there! In a way, Evita's story reflects her own, because Madonna didn't exactly start out on top, and neither did Evita. Both women had the qualities of acting like celebrities before they achieved stardom. Also, I have heard (because I have not seen the stage version yet) that Evita was played with a more manipulative edge in the stage version. I have read parts of Evita's biography, and her true personality was not like that. Madonna becomes Evita perfectly by playing her more sincerely, which is more fitting to the real Eva Peron. I had no idea that Antonio Banderas could sing as well as he does. His style of singing does not lead you to believe that the songs are very hard at all, and that anybody can do it. (When you actually try, even for me--a female--singing the way he does on such high notes is pretty hard). His portrayal of Che is complex and does not confuse you with the complexity. You can practically hear his thoughts aloud when he is walking up to kiss Evita's coffin: "I could have loved you, but so much separated us in life that nothing was possible.", which may be part of why he hated her (sorry, a more diluted word escapes me at the moment). I, personally, had no problem with the accent, as I have heard some theatre purists complain about it. I believe Che may have respected Evita, even if he did not agree with her, and I think this movie shows that anyone has to, because of what she did. She was not totally good or totally bad. She was a human being, just like you and me, but she fought her way to the top, and you must admire her for that. This movie did this great woman in Argentine and world history justice. P.S. Look for me one day playing Evita, because that has become my No. 1 role on my Most Wanted Musicals list.

Rating:
Summary: "Oh, but it's sad when a love affair dies..."
Review: My parents went to see this movie in theatres & then they bought it on DVD. I didn't like it at first but once I sat down to watch it I LOVED IT!!!!!! I thought the best song was "Goodnight and Thank You". My favourite character was Che, portrayed by Antonio Banderas. Che acts like a narrarator to this story, giving his feelings on a different character's actions. YOU MUST SEE THIS DVD IF YOU LIKE MUSICALS!!!