Cyrano De Bergerac

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Summary: A down-to-earth translation of the greatest love story ever!
Review: Anthony Burgess steps out of his psycodelic shell to bring a down to earth translation of the worlds greatest love story. Rostand created a tale true to the human heart filled with romance and poetry, but it took Anthony Burgess to bring the story to the modern reader. There are no 'thee's' or 'thou's' in this adaption, just natural, modern writing. In essence, Burgess did not translate Rostands classic play, he wrote the story over as a poem. Burgess did Rostand the greatest honour, making Cyrano De Bergerac, a wonderfull romance, and beautiful story accessable to modern audiences

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Summary: You'll just love the characters
Review: Cyrano -loosely based on the actual Savinien Cyrano de Bergerac, an early predecessor of science fiction- is a swordsman for the French King Louis XIII. He is also a man with an extraordinary gift for poetry and versification, as well as the owner of an extremely large nose. He is deeply in love with his cousin Roxanne, but she happens to love Cyrano's friend and colleague, Christian. So, being a good fellow and having a quixotic nature, Cyrano accepts to speak of love to Roxanne, impersonating Christian. Under her window, in the dark, Cyrano recites love poems so well crafted, that Roxanne falls even more in love with Christian, who is the supposed lover. After that, both men leave to fight at war. Roxanne shows up at the siege of Arras, to bring food to the soldiers. There, for reasons I won't spoil here, their love affair comes to an abrupt end, leaving their relationship unfulfilled. What comes next shows the true heroic nature of Cyrano, his strength of character, and his loyalty to his friend, but also to his eternal love for Roxanne. This play, which has originated at least a couple of good movies and several tv interpretations, is a homage to the Romantic spirit so rare in our greedy and selfish times. It is full of beautiful images and scenes, and Rostand's writing is perfect for the task. Read it first, and if you haven't seen the movies, watch them. Cyrano is a grand character that will remain as an epytome of chivalry, loyalty, and emotional strength. Not to forget.

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Summary: Better to Have Loved and Lost....
Review: Cyrano de Bergerac, the character, the play, the legacy, is a timeless literary herald due to its theme. Existence in a contrived reality constitutes a standard motif of Romanticism. Literature itself is able to assume the bittersweet but themed predictability that concrete reality lacks. It pretends no circumstance is too outrageous or too wonderful, seamlessly binding the ruthlessly sinister and the impossibly good. A contrived existence in literature can be interpreted as a dream world in which the character chooses to envelop himself, blocking out society's standards and inverting the impossible. This shadow often sadly results in the opposite of the character's original intentions because it is surreal. The main use of this method by Cyrano is in writing sonnets for Christian's dictation to Roxane. In an abstract way, Cyrano vents his own feelings, but credits his the resulting glory to a handsome protégé. A secondary example is the finality in Roxane's tragic statement upon realizing that it was the dying Cyrano she loved, and not Christian. "I never loved but one man in my life, and I have lost him twice". She has finally allowed the vale of deception to be lifted, finding in its place a life misspent. Not unlike a certain Shakespearean character of the same era, she realizes herself to be a woman who has loved not wisely but well. Shaped by a theme of false reality's ultimately unhappy demise, the play is an extraordinary work magnifying life's complications.

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Summary: NOT THE BEST TRANSFER
Review: CYRANO IS A GREAT MOVIE. THIS IS NOT A GREAT TRANSFER... IF I COULD I WOULD TRY ANOTHER COMPANY FOR THIS DVD. I WILL NOT BUY FROM ALPHA AGAIN.

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Summary: BEST OF THE CYRANOS
Review: Don't buy this DVD. It's all about talk, and you can't hear the muddy copy. PHOOEY!

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Summary: GREAT MOVIE - TERRIBLE DVD!
Review: Don't buy this DVD. It's all about talk, and you can't hear the muddy copy. PHOOEY!

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Summary: The best translation/adaptation of the Rostand classic
Review: Even if you can appreciate the subtleties of the original French, this translation of the Rostand classic breathes a fresh, exciting perspective into the characters. Shunning a strict translation of the original, Burgess weaves a tapestry of elegant English that conforms to the meter of the original without being dogmatic. The result is a masterful adaptation that makes the play approachable to a wider audience while capturing the longing of unrequited love from the original; go ahead and read your favorite passages aloud to really appreciate the playful use of language.

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Summary: CLASSIC STORY, CLASSIC FERRER PERFORMANCE!!
Review: Ferrer, as Rostand's Cyrano, does nothing short of what the author obviously intended. He captures theheartbreak of seemingly unrequited love yet appears not the victim, at all. He maintains a dignity and character I have yet to find in anyliving man, to date. He copes with being an older and wiser soldier by also being a lover of the arts and psychology. He remains strong, loyal, and kind in the face of rejection wanting only to secure happiness for the one he loves despite his obvious pain. A beautiful story, beautifully played and one of my family's favorites for two generations.

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Summary: This is a veritable work of art
Review: Having read the play in high school in 1949, the movie(1950) was a welcome event. The play is great and the movie an awesome portrayal of the Rostand play. Jose Ferrer shall NEVER be eclipsed is this role for which,of course,he won an Oscar.The film was originally made on a "B" movie budget in black and white. Would certainly like to have a colorized version of it if it ever becomes available, no matter what the cost. Had the original been filmed in color it would have been beyond decription. A must for all romantics.I have seen it over 60 times and it always brings a few tears.

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Summary: I love this version! Jose Ferrer is a GOD!!
Review: I absolutely LOVE this film! Everything about it is utterly genius. The cinematography, every actor, and the sets are great! The fact that the film is in balck and white does not detract one bit from enjoying the film, I promise.
Jose Ferrer is a master and I am almost at a loss of words to describe how amazing his embodiment of our hero Cyrano is! Mr. Ferrer astonished me when I saw the film for the first time with his deep commitment to Cyrano's spirit and the level to which he raises the hero is incredible! Often times, Cyrano will be played up to a point where he becomes unreal and just a pompous soldier, but the subtly of Mr. Ferrer's performance gives Cyrano color--so much color that you believe in him 100%.
I'd also like to give credit to Mala Powers and William Prince because they also did amazing jobs with their characters. Ms. Powers, as Roxane, was not some melodramatic ingenue who plays just smiles sweetly or cries--she is a much more convincing Roxane than most of the interpretations I have come across. It was quite a pleasure to watch her work her art...
Mr. Prince did a splendid job with Christian, too. He played his doubt, guilt, and heroic spirit very well, never stepping over the line with his interpretation (yes, there are times where he seems to be playing-up the young lover type, but it's what the character calls for). I'm sure that I haven't finsihed doing justice to Mr. Prince and Ms. Powers, but you still need to be able to read the review in under an hour...
So, yeah! DON'T wait to buy this film! It's incredible in every way! A true masterpiece.