Rating: 
Summary: 1 of the Greatest Films Ever Made
Review: 1 of the Greatest Films Ever Made, COLOR OF POMEGRANATE - SAYAT NOVA, appears on endless lists of Top 100 most important films of all time -- and is considered a masterpiece by filmmakers, film professors, film critics, film students, film historians and film legends such as Fellini, Godard and Antonioni. Therefore, the reviews by incompetent users, like the preceding one, matter not!Issue of animal cruelty is nonsense and only demonstrates the reviewer's illiteracy. Comprehensive review of Parajanov's COLOR OF POMEGRANATE (not "pomegranates"), including the quality of DVD, VHS, various prints, alternative versions and the importance of this cinematic jewel, will be published at www.parajanov.com in 2004. http://www.parajanov.com
Rating:
Summary: The Best in cinematography
Review: Arguably the best movie with images in cinematography, Parajanov's "The Color of a Pomegranate" depicts inner life and spiritual quest of Haroutyun Sayadian known as Sayat Nova, Armenian ashough (troubadour). Parajanov takes us through the set of images from Armenian everyday life: wedding at the church, lamb sacrifice, bath house, where a child begins his discovery of the female body... Like enriched colors on a canvas, Sayat Nova's life is presented in images from his childhood work as an apprentice to departing his home and becoming an ashough. Parajanov draws each scene of the movie like a painter with a colorful palette. "Krak es doo, sev e qo hagine"- the lines that repeat time and time again from Sayat Nova's poetry. It's a song about love and about death. What is this? Life of a famous troubadour as Parajanov sees it... or simply his own memories... Yes, it can be and it is widely accepted as one of the most colorful masterpieces in cinematography. But I believe this movie can be felt only by those who have been exposed to the Armenian life and to those who know how symbolic to our nation the colors of pomegranates are... On a more historical note: the movie was shot in 1969 and was originally called "Sayat Nova". Before releasing, Soviet censure cut about 30 minutes from the movie. Parajanov was later lamenting that the work of his life is lost forever. Shortly after coming to the big screen, Parajanov suffered a lot of accusations for portraying religious and alternative thoughts throughout his movie. "Color of Pomegranates" was banned, and Parajanov was sent to the prison for a few years. Such was the life of one of the greatest talents in cinematography...
Rating:
Summary: A dream.
Review: I first saw this film on a PBS Show. It was incredible. I could not believe how beautiful, and poetic, it was.
Then I saw it in a revival theater here in Los Angeles, and again, I was overwhelmed at the power of this film.
Finally, my dream is realized, and I buy the DVD,,,,,
OMIGOD!
The people who did the transfer of this film to DVD, should be barred from ever working in any way again on any art project.
They have absolutely no clue, what they are doing.
The source of the DVD seemed to be an old print that was left in the sun for the last 25 years.
It is a travesty.
DO NOT BUY THIS DVD!
and I love the film.
DO NOT ENCOURAGE THESE PEOPLE, THEY MIGHT DO MORE HARM!
Rating: 
Summary: DO NOT BUY THIS!
Review: I first saw this film on a PBS Show. It was incredible. I could not believe how beautiful, and poetic, it was.
Then I saw it in a revival theater here in Los Angeles, and again, I was overwhelmed at the power of this film.
Finally, my dream is realized, and I buy the DVD,,,,,
OMIGOD!
The people who did the transfer of this film to DVD, should be barred from ever working in any way again on any art project.
They have absolutely no clue, what they are doing.
The source of the DVD seemed to be an old print that was left in the sun for the last 25 years.
It is a travesty.
DO NOT BUY THIS DVD!
and I love the film.
DO NOT ENCOURAGE THESE PEOPLE, THEY MIGHT DO MORE HARM!
Rating:
Summary: A Ridiculous Spectacle of Nonsense
Review: I really wanted to enjoy this movie, as I found Paranjanov's Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors to be fascinatingly otherworldly. I also wanted to expand the internationality of my film collection by adding an Armenian film. I was also interested in learning something about Armenia and the Armenian people. If you have similar interests, do yourself a favor and look elsewhere. I knew this was an "art" film, and I tried desperately to keep an open mind, however I could not stomach watching this without the aid of the FF button. To me this film was quite simply utter trash. I am not easy to offend; for example I really enjoyed Harvey Keitel in the Bad Lieutenant. I think I was most sickened by the scenes (implied or actual) of animal abuse. To be fair, I do think some people can enjoy it, however I think at least three of the following four conditions would have to be met: 1) be a fan of poetry with an interest in Armenia
2) enjoy homo-erotic human mosaic
3) enjoy cruelty to animals
4) enjoy art films with little formal plot structure Tragically, Parajanov was sent to the gulag for making this film, apparently on trumped up charges of homosexuality. Watching this film, its not hard to see where the Soviets got the idea. I wanted to give this film two star in respect for Parajanov, but really one star is sufficiently generous in this case. Perhaps the lesson of this film is that some feelings are better left surpressed. I cannot understand why this Parajanov film is available on DVD but not his far superior Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors.
Rating:
Summary: A Ridiculous Spectacle of Nonsense
Review: I really wanted to enjoy this movie, as I found Paranjanov's Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors to be fascinatingly otherworldly. I also wanted to expand the internationality of my film collection by adding an Armenian film. I was also interested in learning something about Armenia and the Armenian people. If you have similar interests, do yourself a favor and look elsewhere. I knew this was an "art" film, and I tried desperately to keep an open mind, however I could not stomach watching this without the aid of the FF button. To me this film was quite simply utter trash. I am not easy to offend; for example I really enjoyed Harvey Keitel in the Bad Lieutenant. I think I was most sickened by the scenes (implied or actual) of animal abuse. To be fair, I do think some people can enjoy it, however I think at least three of the following four conditions would have to be met: 1) be a fan of poetry with an interest in Armenia
2) enjoy homo-erotic human mosaic
3) enjoy cruelty to animals
4) enjoy art films with little formal plot structure Tragically, Parajanov was sent to the gulag for making this film, apparently on trumped up charges of homosexuality. Watching this film, its not hard to see where the Soviets got the idea. I wanted to give this film two star in respect for Parajanov, but really one star is sufficiently generous in this case. Perhaps the lesson of this film is that some feelings are better left surpressed. I cannot understand why this Parajanov film is available on DVD but not his far superior Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors.
Rating:
Summary: A dream.
Review: Imagine a Byzantine mosaic slowly coming to life. . . . That's the closest I, or anyone else, can come to describing Sergei Paradjanov's *The Color of Pomegranates*, one of the most beautiful, aesthetically severe, and difficult films ever put to the screen. The putative subject of the movie is Armenia's national poet, Sayat Nova, but that would be of interest to Armenians only, I suspect. The rest of us will be stunned by Paradjanov's unmitigated audacity, his shocking originality. It's not going too far to say that this film provides the purest example in cinematic history of the director as "auteur". *Pomegranates* is ONE filmmaker's vision, ONE filmmaker's very dreams come to wondrous life. Essentially a painter using a modern-day art-form like the movies, Paradjanov hangs his film before us like a painting. It's as flat as a canvas, and as two-dimensional as a pre-Renaissance Gothic triptych. The "actors" occasionally move about like puppets attached to unseen strings. There is virtually no dialogue, and the few title cards that mark the passage of the poet's life are generally unhelpful to the uninitiated. What the movie basically proves more than anything else is that our concept of what a movie can be is dictated by our own storytelling styles, our own traditions, and our own fierce fondness for ourselves. If you're willing to broaden your perspectives, and if you're willing to have your notions of aesthetic values redefined, then *The Color of Pomegranates* will be an invigorating challenge for you. All others are advised to steer right clear. .... The better-colored version everyone here is clamoring for is the "sanitized", officially-approved-by-the-Soviet-Union version. THIS version is the version that Paradjanov intended for us to see. Unfortunately, there's no original negative to be found; hence the substandard print. Six-of-one, half-dozen-of-the-other, in terms of what you'd rather see -- the prettier cut, or the "director's cut". Kino elected to give us the director's cut. I think they've done us a great service, here. ...
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful film, good dvd, strange review from Texas
Review: In my opinion the dvd is quite good, it is a miracle that Paradjanov's troubled masterpiece even survived. I agree that the video transfer could have been better but one must remember the bad conditions and problems the film went through. I disagree with the reviewer from Texas who is very negative himself/herself but claims that comments of paradjanov website are negative and I believe the website's point is most appropriate. As far as translation, I find nothing awkward with singular translation of "pomegranate" plus if Paradjanov intended it that way then why modify his title. This is one of my favorite films and I hope more people will see it.
Rating: 
Summary: A most worthy investment...
Review: Kino has finally released THE COLOR OF POMEGRANATES on DVD, together with Ron Holloway's documentary film PARADJANOV: A REQUIEM. I previously reviewed the VHS version of POMEGRANATES, so rather than discuss the content, I'll restrict my comments to the quality of the DVD presentation for that film. The video transfer for THE COLOR OF POMEGRANATES doesn't look bad, especially with the enhanced sharpness of the DVD format, bringing out details and textures that weren't as clear before. Clearly, DVD is the way to go here. Having seen the film in a stunning 35mm print recently, I suspect that the video transfer could be a lot better. Certainly, the Japanese and British videocassettes of the film have richer color. However, to be fair, THE COLOR OF POMEGRANATES has a complicated production and preservation history. From what I understand, the so-called "Director's Cut" (which is in fact just the official Armenian release version) doesn't survive in the original negative. The camera negative was cut to make the Russian version re-edited by Sergei Yutkevitch. This probably explains why the prints I've seen of the Russian version have better color. The version which Kino has released, while it's not quite as strong visually, is clearly closer to what Paradjanov originally intended in terms of content. On the positive side, Kino's video is "windowboxed," meaning that there are black bars around the edges of the film, assuring that you see the maximum possible picture from the original frame. The short film "Hakob Hovnatanian," included as an extra on the DVD, is windowboxed as well. The accompanying documentary film PARADJANOV: A REQUIEM is a mixed bag. Director Ron Holloway combines an interview with Paradjanov with footage from Paradjanov's films, providing a basic overview of his work. Paradjanov loved to show off in front of the camera and speaks in a forthright manner, making him a great interview subject, even if you have to take some of what he says with a grain of salt. For American viewers, one of the virtues of this documentary is its clips from Paradjanov's rarely-seen Ukrainian films made before SHADOWS OF FORGOTTEN ANCESTORS, as well as the unfinished project KIEV FRESCOES. The downside is that the documentary has numerous factual errors and is sloppily put together at times. At one point, when Paradjanov is talking about ASHIK KERIB, Holloway confusingly inserts footage of THE COLOR OF POMEGRANATES. At another point Holloway states (roughly) "Fragments are all that remain of HAKOB HOVNATANIAN and KIEV FRESCOES." This is simply not true. "Hakob Hovnatanian" is a one-reel documentary short, and it survives in its complete form. The surviving material for KIEV FRESCOES is a fifteen minute short, complete with a soundtrack, which Paradjanov himself had edited together from the screen tests to show officials when he was trying to make the film, a kind of sketch to suggest the overall look and feel of the finished product. Paradjanov never got to produce the actual film, but the short survives in its entirety. A little more fact checking on Holloway's would have helped. Still, the documentary is worth seeing on the whole. The visual quality is just fine for films of this type. Kino's DVD of THE COLOR OF POMEGRANATES may not be perfect, but it's more than acceptable, and it's a good deal with the added bonus of the documentary film.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant Film----typically awful Kino DVD.
Review: One really has to dig VERY deep into the metaphorical bag to be able to convincingly say that there are homoerotic undertones to this film. And yes, there is a decapitated ram in one scene, but for all one knows, it could have been a nice piece of taxidermy work. But I suppose anyone touchy enough to be offended at that would find taxidermy itself offensive. Anyway, that's not to say that Color of Pomegranates is for everyone. It's slow, so you need a good attention span, and its compositions are eclectic and mysterious, so you also need a good sense for the mysterious and the beautiful. It doesn't follow a typical narrative structure, so those looking for something to hold on to will be left lost. Mostly, Color is a love letter to Armenia; its culture, religion, language, literature, etc. However, it is also a glimpse into the wonderful mind-world of Paradjanov. Those familiar with Armenia and its culture are likely to be at a loss to categorise this film as well, and will have to sit back with the rest of us and let Paradjanov's dazzling imagery sink in like a fine wine.
I wish Kino would do a better job with their DVD transfers. It's better than the VHS tape, but really, they could have cleaned the film up considerably, as well as offered some special features. The Paradjanov documentary is nice, though it's really presented more as two films on one DVD, rather than as a special feature. Removable subtitles and a new translation would have been nice, too. Kino really needs to give these to Criterion to see what they can dig up. I'm sure it would be spectacular, as usual. Parajanov.com is such a negative reviewer, and is very picky. Color of POMEGRANATE does not translate well in english. It's obvious this is not your first language, so don't make translation suggestions if you aren't experienced. In English, when a color's name is directly ascribed to a common item, rather than given a direct name, that item's plural is used. This is different in other languages, where that item's singular is often used. Thus the title "Color of Pomegranate," while more true to the original language, is awkward compared to the correct English rendition of "Color of Pomegranates."
Chill out and take some translation courses!
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