Tribute to Jerome Robbins [Blu-ray]

See 09March2012 Update; the rest, for the record
Note this blu ray is shown under Product Description as being region B/2 encoded which means it will NOT play in most US/Canada machines (which are region A/1). Amazon normally displays such information prominently. They failed to do so here.

HOWEVER if one looks at the rear of the box, one can see the imprint of the seal denoting the blu-ray to be region free. European sites show the blu-ray being region 0, that is, region free.

So, it seems Amazon probably made a mistake in the Product Description. I called them and the people on the phone have no product access, they see what we see. So, what is one to do?

UPDATE 09March2012: Amazon has corrected its entry to note that it is indeed a region-free blu ray. I got it in Amazon France and it is beautiful. The performances are exquisite even if, good as the Paris Opera Ballet soloists are in the Ravel, the eloquent Maire-Agnès Gillot and Florian Magnenet, they do not erase memories of Suzanne...

A Fantastic Tribute to Jerome Robbins
'Tribute to Jerome Robbins' contains some excellent ballets by Jerome Robbins; En Sol, In the Night, and The Concert. This is one of the most perfect collections of his genius, showing one of his lighter ballets, an emotional and genius one, and finally, a comedic one. The music, a collection of Ravel and Chopin, is played exquisitely. The first of these ballets, En Sol, is a Broadway musical-esque balletic scene of a day at the beach, with somewhat abstract scenery and costumes. The ballet is fun, exciting, light-hearted, and touching. Ravel's music stunningly fits into every single movement of Robbins' dance. Marie-Agnès Gillot is excellent here, as well. The next ballet by Robbins is In the Night, a testament to his genius. It is emotionally complex, yet so simple and effective - an amazing effect for the viewer. The ballet is based on the structure of Les Sylphides - to the music of Chopin, in a series of 'atmospheric variations'. The scenery is of a starry night sky, with...

A Great Tribute to a Great Choreographer.
We don't see much of Jerome Robbins in ballet discography. Perhaps he has been overshadowed by his colleague, George Balanchine, or he has been too often considered only a movie musical choreographer. But Jerome Robbins has made great contributions to serious(and comically serious!) ballet. We see three of his ballets in this recording of a live performance: one to the music of Ravel, and two to the music of Chopin. These ballets feature many solos and small groupings including pas de deux. Each ballet is wonderfully danced by Etoiles of the Paris Opera Ballet, along with dancers of lesser rank(but not lesser talent!) One interesting aspect of this performance is that we actually have Etoiles partnered by not only Premier Danseurs, but also Sujets, Coryphees, and Quadrilles. (The ranks of the Paris Opera Ballet from the highest to the lowest are: Etoile, Premier Danseur or Premiere Danseuse, Sujet, Coryphee, and Quadrille.) That is unusual for the Paris Opera Ballet, but I love to see...

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The Brief Complete Collection

LONDON COURTROOM AND PRIVATE LAW ACTION APLENTY
A barrister's life and cases in a contemporary London setting. It's as good as and very like the period legal-drama of Rumpole of the Bailey: Complete Series Megaset and Garrow's Law: Series One but showing modern crime & modern times. Each episode has a primary plot/case but also multiple cases added, chamber relationships, and plots in barrister Farmer's personal life. Plus humor. It's all there.

Henry Farmer (Alan Davies-Jonathan Creek) is a gambler, divorcee, bad dad, speech defective, debtor, biker, & obviously lawyer. All these characteristics adding up to believability of Davies portrayal. There is a number of chamber office people from barristers to clerk that appear in every episode, including Linda Bassett (Lark Rise to Candleford: The Complete Season...

Another reason that British TV crime dramas hold our attention - great personal lives of the main characters.
This series, which only ran for eight episodes, is another fine British crime series being distributed in the US by Acorn Media. (These are the same folks who distribute the "New Tricks" series, which is still my favorite.). Produced by Carlton Television, one of the largest producers of TV shows in the UK (and now part of the larger ITV commercial network) in 2004, the series follows criminal attorney Henry Farmer as he both defends and, sometimes prosecutes, cases in the London court system.

My fellow reviewer, "Doc" Wolf, has outlined the eight episodes for you, so I won't rehash that. What made this series most interesting for me - and I hope others - that, line many of fine British crime shows, the actual crime cases take a back seat to the series character's own lives. Farmer is separated from his wife (who is raising their 12 year old son) and is having an "affair" with a woman whose husband is terminally ill (and is fully aware of the affair because he wants her to...

Loved This !
I just finished watching this series last evening and enjoyed every bit of it. Why oh why was The Brief ended so soon ??? Alan Davies is wonderful as the very kind, endearing and slightly flawed (gambles too much) lawyer. I really ended up wanting to see much more and wish it would have gone on a lot longer !!

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Music Masters Collection

Maybe
Three video clips from German TV , lots of swirling backgrounds and colours but lots of Live Deep Purple too.This release could be considered worth the purchase price for the version of No,no,no alone, where Richie Blackmore shows he is a very underated player indeed as he kicks this tune along with consumate ease. He just makes playing the guitar look effortless.The version of Highway star suffers a little from Ian Gillan fooling around with the lyrics and tune but both this and Hallelujah are sure to be of interest to Purple fans.
The DVD jukebox would have been better without the cheap and uninspiring advertising that almost ruins Emerson Lake and Palmer and stops me from watching more than 10 seconds of any one else.Shoddy.

3 stars for 3 songs, but the price and material is right
Ok, so you may pass this one up because there's only 3 Purple tunes, and let's face it, "Hallelujah" isn't one of their best. But, it IS the first song the classic Mk II lineup recorded and its a never before released promo at that. You know, it shows where they began, and that's real rock'n'roll history for sure. If its any consolation, Gillan's vocals are superlative and this opened the doors to his 'Jesus Christ Superstar' fame. The other two songs, "No No No" and "Highway Star" are real interesting with the former, in this version, given a helluva fun treatment that lays waste to the plodding 'Fireball' version. It just oozes confident attitude and slides on a slippery bedstone of Purple funkiness, the kind that fit their sound to a tee. Gillan improvises effotlessly with Blackmore, spouting off amusing asides. They in the pocket! As for "Highway", we get to see the band fearlessly rip through an incomplete version that's still very close to the 'Machine Head' version in many...

Nice vintage clips!
I would've given this "5 stars" but there's only 3 songs on it! [More please! -- heh heh].

You get a big fancy menu on this DVD that let's you see "Highway Star" or "No, No, No" or "Hallelujah", which were all from the German [pre-MTV days!] show "BEAT CLUB".

That show probably had the best use of 'chroma-key' & 'luma-key' effects [almost comical!] but by 1970, when the show went colour, the band's started PERFORMING their songs & NOT 'myming' [with few exceptions like "The Nice" & "Humble Pie" who performed LIVE on BEAT CLUB in B&W 1969] it depended on the BAND.

"Highway Star" & "No, No, No" are both ROCKIN' LIVE no-nonsense performances! [Yeah!] Both are in colour & look like they were shot the same session[?]

"Hallelujah" in THIS DVD uses a BEAUTIFUL 'stereo audio track' they re-sync'd with the original B&W TV appearance, which was a 'myme' job in the first place.

I first saw "Hallelujah" on a TV series called "The Golden Age...

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Good Grades FAST Study Skills Program

Improved Study Skills, Helpful Tips
This is a great study skills program! I felt like I was in Professor Straub's own study skills class. I needed to learn some new strategies to cope with school, plus I have nieces and nephews and these tips will be invaluable for them as well. I'll certainly be able to pass on what I have learned.

If you need one-on-one attention, definitely consider taking a study skills course at your local college, but if that's not feasible then this program is the next best thing.

Time management and taking tests have always been a challenge for me, and now I have better strategies to handle both. I've bought a few books in past on this same topic, but seeing and hearing it on video is a much better option in my opinion.

great study skills product
Going back to school later in life was a challenge and remembering how to study was sometime I needed to relearn. This product helped me quickly and efficiently. I also have a child in junior high and here study habits are typical so I was looking for something that could help both of us. I watched the first two dvd's and couldn't believe how many things I didn't know about studying.

It was easy for me to learn and implement these techniques but for my daughter this was more difficult, so I decided to chunk it down into small bites. We'd watch a section together, talk about what we would try (as we are both in school) then give it a week to try out a new trick or technique. It was fun as we both shared experiences from the week. I really wish professor Scott had a program for k-6 kids (he may, but I haven't found it yet) but for older learners this have been invaluable.



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Broken Blade: Complete Collection [Blu-ray]

When the story is so good, it just can't be told in a single season...
What you are looking at here is such an anime. Each episode is literally a movie itself. The series was not released all at once in Japan but over many months. Very similar in that respect to Katanagatari.

How I would categorize this show is a dirty mecha. Mechs are not overly glamorized or well fashioned. Combat is brutal and they are not like others where they stand there and take punishment while looking cool. People do die and often in gory ways. While the camera cuts away on most of them, it leaves enough to the imagination where you'd know it would hurt.

The storyline itself is about an invasion based on a need for Quartz. So, in other words, resources. But there is a lot of background to the plot that may slightly confuse you if you spend too long thinking about it. Resources isn't the only reason they are invading. Most of the answers are revealed during the course of the other films. A lot of bad blood has taken place between the nations and what makes...

a mechwarriors dream come true
For anyone out their who wished their was a mechwarrior movie out their look know further then this film collection. I really enjoyed this 6 part movie their is good story good charactor development the story starts with a boy named rygod he gets summoned by the king of his nation to pilot a new mecha that he uncovers but it also turns out that he and the king and queen are good friends. One thing i would like to say is that i'am so glad that hollywood is not the only choice for movie making. The japanese film industy and the indepentent film industies can also make really good films as well. through it seems that indie films have gotten more popular it would be nice to see more people give them a chance. Because they do not know what their missing

Looks great, ends... was that really the ending?
For those who aren't in the know, this series of animated "films" (all of which, as Sentai Filmworks is doing their best to assure you, are included herein) is based upon an ongoing comic series which is probably going to wind up being "cancelled" before it can ever find its way to either an appropriate or satisfactory (what satisfies the critic rarely sits with the fan, and vice-versa) ending.

Just in case I didn't already scare you off with the title, this review itself essentially amounts to an unapologetic spoiling of Broken Blade's (non-)ending since I can easily imagine how one might feel cheated after purchasing this "complete collection" without fully understanding its nature. Then again, since this set has already dropped down to nearly half its MSRP a mere two months after release (that is as of 20120521) perhaps the only thing left for a perspective buyer to consider is whether or not you'll feel like you've wasted your time. Hopefully I can help you make that...

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Maigret - Set 1

Bruno Cremer IS Maigret
When I first saw Maigret - after having read several of the Simenon books - I instantly recognized that the producers had captured the essence of the mysteries and had found in Bruno Cremer the perfect actor to portray the enigmatic French detective. It's a joy to see this series again in a remastered edition, especially when mysteries rely increasingly on forensics, technology & special effects to support the plot. Here, in the tradition of good old-fashioned detective work, the story is revealed through Maigret's masterful comprehension of the facts and manipulation of the people he meets, quietly assessing and judging, seemingly without sympathy. The sympathy comes from the dignity of the writing and directing, which humanely never allow the archetypal characters of post-war France from descending into cartoon representations. The stories are intriguing and the atmospheric productions are full of memorable images evocative of the time period. When Bruno Cremer died about two years...

masterful
Yes, Bruno Cremer IS Maigret. Reading these mystery stories many decades ago, I was struck by the fact that atmosphere was everything. No high speed car chases, no shootouts in the bedroom. Maigret interacts with myriad characters relying on his experience, empathy and intuition. Some relevant history is unearthed and the case is solved. Sometimes a person will end up in jail, sometimes not. Either way justice and the viewer's sense of appropriateness is served. These shows perfectly capture the stories, every character, even the most minor feels correct. One hopes all 4 series which I have seen on Region 2 DVD's are made available in the U.S.
Incidently, the Michael Gambon version is excellent too, but very different, far more English in its sensibility (Gambon takes the ministry stairs two at a time, Cremer seems to take them one half at a time. Cremer speaks on the phone to his wife in each episode but she almost never appears, with Gambon, the wife is often...

an excellent portrayal of Maigret
These episodes are very true to Simenon and what I imagined when I read the books long ago. Bruno Cremer is a very good actor and perfect for the part. What I didn't notice when I bought this series was that it was in French. The English subtitles come on automatically and I couldn't find a way to get rid of them, but I needed them anyway. My high school French classes were also long ago. If you are a Simenon fan you will love these mysteries.

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The Fades: Season One [Blu-ray]

Teen Angst, Ghostly Apparitions, And Apocalyptic Mayhem Populate The Six Episodes Of This British Supernatural Thriller
Jack Thorne, who wrote for the daring and original UK series "Skins," brings teen angst to a whole new level in the supernatural thriller "The Fades." This six part endeavor takes familiar elements from many different genres and cobbles them together in a rather new and inventive way. Someone described the show to me as an updated zombie tale, and while certainly influenced by the undead phenomenon in many ways--this program incorporates a more convoluted mythology. It's what I would essentially describe as everything-but-the-kitchen-sink plotting. In addition to zombie lore, you might see large touches of "The Sixth Sense" and Buffy as easy comparison points. But you've also got apocalyptic drama, awkward teenage comedy, religious undertones, and superhero themes all wrapped up in a hip and pop culture obsessed package. If anything, the show borders on being overstuffed with good ideas and, at the beginning, I wasn't sure that things were going to gel satisfactorily. There is so much...

Why?
This was an excellent series. Why it wasn't picked up for a second season I'll never understand. Excellent production vaules couldn't look better. Cast & storyline still worth buying as just a one off series.

Great Show!!!
I just happened to come across this title by accident, and it looked interesting enough to buy on dvd. I loved it. Such a fun, yet creepy series. I hope that BBC opts for a second season, so fans get more of The Fades.

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Here Come The Brides: Season Two

Gang way all, Here Come the Brides!
It's so wonderful to hear this show is finally coming out in DVD. No one will be disappointed. HCTB was one of the best and brightest on television. It was around when TV was true entertainment. Now if only they would release The rest of The Big Valley I would be one happy TV viewer. Bravo to the powers that be for the decision to release this wonderful show! My pre-order is in!

Finally:Season 2 of Here Come The Brides
It has been a very long wait but it is finally here. The release of Season 2 of Here Come The Brides! They don't make shows like this anymore. It should have gone on for more than 2 seasons. The cast was great, the stories were very entertaining. I cannot wait to sit watch and Jason, Joshua, Jeremy, Lottie, Clancy, Aron, Candy, and Biddie all over again.....

ABOUT TIME!
This was an awesome show, that was over way before it's time! We have been waiting a long time for this to come out!

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Top Gear: Complete Season 17 [Blu-ray]

This show keeps getting better and better!
You've gotta love the British humor. Anyone who can appreciate cars in the slightest can enjoy this show, in my opinion. I love how Hammond starts out the series with a "BANG", pun intended!

Good for fans
This is a compilation of a recent season of Top Gear. It contains some content that is edited out of BBC America or YouTube broadcasts.

TopNotch
What more can we say to these chaps, they are true to their audience and are bloody fantastic hosts'. There is no other motoring show like UK/TopGear. The choice of cars and other type of vehicles they review have always been top-notch, the machines always take center stage.

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Aida

He and Berti bear the new Aida standard.
Having viewed and re-viewed this DVD, I have come to conclusion that in terms of current Verdian singers, there is simply too few that could out-sing Marco Berti or Hui He, respectively the Radames and Aida in this performance.
In the opening Celeste Aida, Berti pours forth in a timbre with just the right amount of squillo and lyricism that one seldom hears these days (for the past decade). Here and there, very sparingly, one tight high note creeps in, but only fleetingly and undamagingly. Here is a true Verdian tenor, who luckily, has his voice 'saved' until his 50th year (he's born in 1962 January) for the real big roles and who has not 'squandered' his vocal goods in the earlier years. He is now truly ripe for the Verdian roles like Radames in 'Aida', Gustavo in 'Un Ballo', Mantua in 'Rigoletto', Ernani, Steffilio, if not Alfredo in 'La Traviata' or Manrico in 'Il Trovatore'. One certainly hope that Berti can be more dramatically alert in his acting, but with a good...

Four star (+) for a sterling cast with a shimmering Hui He as Aida.
This DVD of Aida is probably one of the most even in terms of singing that one could find on the market, spanning from the days of the great Luciano Pavarotti, given that even Pav in his time did NOT have as good an Aida as one could probably find here in Hui He.
In the major supporting role, Amneris is sung by veteran mezzo-soprano Luciana D'Intino, who reprises this role since the late 1980's with Cheryl Studer as Aida.
While Hui He may not be most verbally incisive Aida, her performance here sets her way above many other lyrical spinto sopranos who have undertaken this role: Maria Chiara, Cheryl Studer, Violetta Urmana, and more lately Sondra Radvanovsky, though not yet recorded.
Hui He's impassioned performance of this role is fully enhanced by her shimmering lirico spinto voice, which is fully lyrical without the slightest edginess that marrs other spinto sopranos like Urmana and Radvanovsky. Yet her timbre is at the same full-bodied and rich throughout all...

Beautiful!
This is done so beautifully! Beautiful voices, wonderful acting, especially by the female lead. I have watched this over and over - and cry every time! So beautiful.

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Enemies of the People (2 Disc Special Edition)

A brilliant piece
This is a brilliant, thoughtful study of a massively terrible event which is overwhelming in its scope. Even now, the young people in Cambodia are forgetting about this time-partially because evidently some of the perpetrators are still in power. It is never solved, truly-the whys of this tragedy.
The narrator takes us though a journey with gentleness, graciousness-remarkable in the face of what he personally experienced. Highly recommend this dvd...just watch it.

Buying This Historic Documentary Encourages Reconciliation
Leaders around the world still are sorting out the aftermath of the vast crimes against humanity that swept through Cambodia in the 1970s. As recently as spring 2012, U.S. and Cambodian officials made front-page news by trying to reconcile the theft of a priceless Cambodian statue that apparently was stolen in the mid-1970s and wound up in a Sotheby's auction.

Even more important than sorting out reparations from cultural crimes in that era, the first of the Khmer Rouge war criminals was not convicted until 2010 and human-rights investigations continue in Cambodia to this day. Many investigators and journalists--like those you will meet in the historic video record in `Enemies of the People'--are still working to pierce the veil of secrecy about what happened during the bloody reign of Khmer Rouge terror. In that era, countless Cambodians who are alive today were brutally tortured--and 2 million Cambodians were murdered. (Some estimates place the death toll lower or...

One of the most important documentaries ever produced
The Khmer Rouge's reign in Cambodia, has a notorious notch in history's timeline. But, unlike, say Nazi Germany, it is not as studied; the psychology of how neighbor turns against neighbor. This outrageous few years is not the stuff of museums and American history classes. Many do not even know what happened. Those who do still ask why.

Approximately one quarter of the population lost their lives; one quarter - that is not a misprint. Men, women and children. The Khmer Rouge regime murdered over a neighboring country's political movements, (Vietnam), and the paranoia that grew within two of Cambodia's leaders that "infiltrators" would take down their new communist regime.

After executing any high-level officials the two felt may be party resisters they took aim at farmers and workers. Villagers considered traitors (without trial or proof) were put to death.

Thet Sambath, who lost his father, mother and brother to the Khmer Rouge has become a...

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Die Entfuehrung Aus Dem Serail [Blu-ray]

Extraordinary version of an underrated Mozart opera
There's an in-built difficulty in Mozart's earliest 'mature' comic opera that every modern opera stage director must consider a challenge - the long passages of unaccompanied spoken dialogue and recitative that are scattered throughout. Yes, the actual drama of Die Entführung Aus Dem Serail is a bit silly too and the libretto isn't the most sophisticated, but even if you manage to make the plot work dramatically (having good singers can help gloss over the inconsistencies which is certainly the case here), you're still left with those lulls between Mozart's beautiful musical passages that can potentially kill the opera dead in its tracks. This production by Christof Loy at the Liceu in Barcelona, aided and abetted by an outstanding cast and an exhilarating performance of the score from the Liceu orchestra under Ivor Bolton, crucially takes account of those weaknesses, and if the result is still not entirely convincing, it's nonetheless still one of the best versions of this...

An outstanding version of Mozart's early 'singspiel' - a distinctly different art-form from his later operas
Mozart wrote this work at the age of 25 having just left the service of the Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg and at the start of his freelance career as a musician. The work's commission was to be for the Emperor's own National Singspiel company as opposed to a commission for an opera, an important distinction as this turns the work into more of a play with singing than an opera (essentially a sung play).

This performance of Mozart's Singspiel, most importantly therefore, includes the whole of the dialogue. It is only by doing this of course that the work is able to make proper dramatic sense. Too often the dialogue is heavily cut. Consequently, in those cases, the whole concept of a Singspiel with its emphasis on the spoken word, as opposed to opera where the emphasis is on the sung word, is lost. No such errors are made here and this production generates great dramatic impact.

Of course, simply restoring the dialogue and failing to act it would also fail. In this...

Loy's second production of same opera on DVD with Damrau, who outdid herself!
There was a 2004 German production of this difficult to stage singspiel:
Konstanze - Diana Damrau
Blonde - Kerstin Avemo
Belmonte - Daniel Kirch
Pedrill - Peter Marsh
Osmin - Jaco Huijpen
Bassa Selim - Christoph Quest
With the exception of Damrau and Quest, the other protagonists are all new in this 2010 Liceu production. Belmonte was Christoph Strehl, and Blonde of Olga Pereyatko, Pedrillo of Norbet Ernst and with Franz Josef Selig as Osmin.
The character of Bassa Selim is a speaking role without singing, and Quest and Damrau acted with impeccable skill, while Damrau tackles the fiendishly demanding arias of konstanze at the same time.
The 2004 performance was on Youtube for some years already, and I first caught glimpse of Damrau's performance of the extended version 'Marten aller Arten' on Youtube and was totally bowed over by her superlative performance then. I got the DVD right away in order not to miss such 'great stuff'.
In...

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French Fields Complete Collection

Funny and delightful series, now available on Amazon.
We used to watch this series on PBS and were delighted when it came out on DVD. It is a well written and well acted series. The Brits seem to have a knack for being both funny and satirical. We have purchased the entire series, including Fresh Fields. Thanks for the laughs. It's nice to watch a comedy without bad language and inuendos.

Lucky people
What a wonderful situation to be in! The best of 2 worlds...city living and then the fabulous french countryside and oh, that lovely farmhouse.

Fresh Humor From a Not so Odd Couple. Convincing relationship.
Funny mid-life couple in love, not badgering each other. Their day, he an accountant, she (40) on the constant search of new creative outlets. Hester (Julia McKenzie-`Miss Marple' `Cranford') surviveS plots of activity & adventure. William (Anton Rodgers-`Lillie' `Affairs of the Heart') saves the day or plays along. Always a surprise laugh to end each episode. Sonja is a cameo, but son-in-law Peter (Philip Bird) returns as does daughter/wife Emma, but she is played by 2 different gals.
Very family oriented, with some fun play with words on risque topics, and a new French neighbor (Pamela Salem) a sexy gal who used ample episodes to slowly reveal. There's a maid (Valerie Lush) nobody understands--just shake your head, smile, like the cast and move on. Viewers of FRESH FIELDS quickly become enamored with the new cast and Hester's strawberry gray hair. "FRESH" London scenes convert to "FRENCH" vistas, quite appealing. I would recommend watching Sets one and two of "FRESH FIELDS"...

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Lulu - Alban Berg - Blu-ray

Perfect!!!
Lulu is a very complex work. This DVD makes justice to all of the complexness of the work: musical and dramatic. First of all: Christine Schäfer. Since Teresa Stratas she is the most impressive singer to play this difficult role. As she is a genuine coloratura , Schäfer can handle with all these crazy cadenzas with naturality. And her personification of Lulu is as ambigous as Wedekind( the play ' s writer) has though. But it isn' t only Schäfer that is fantastic in this DVD. Wolfgang Schöne is a convincent Schon and Jack the riper.Stephan Drakulich as The Painter and the Neger is very sexy and exciting . The old wagnerian bass-baritone Norman Bailey is a moving and repulsive Schigolch (and yet in a very good voice).Alwa, one of the most demanding tenor roles in all lyric repertoire, is very well sung by David Kuebler, and his naive looking is very moving during all the performance.Kathryn Harries as Geschwitz is fantastic too. Her final singing is a golden key for...

Hair Raising - a Perfect Performance
I cannot say enough good about Glyndebourne's 1996 production of Berg's

opera recently (and finally) released on video here in the States.

Initially I believed I'd be disappointed in this unit set. Wrong. A tall,

brick semi-circular wall of red brick with offset white bricks that extend

as necessary into beams, creating an angular stage wide staircase joining

otherwise impossible to use doorways, etc. A bare floor with 3 or 4

concentric circles revolves (sometimes in opposite directions) as necessary

denoting scene changes etc. At its direct center is a vast round hole.

This circular concept is fascinatingly explored bookending Lulu's going

full circle - beginning and ending in the gutter. Interesting too watching

her rise from this hole (a really great visual) in her first scene to

sinking permanently into it in the final. Once again the team of Graham...

A winner
Lulu is not an easy opera to get to know. It is written in a twelve tone style (serial) invented by Arnold Schoenberg. But Berg's serial music is easier to listen to than Schoenberg and many parts of Lulu are beautiful in their own way.
This DVD is a perfect way to get acquainted with the score. It is a perfect performance and Christine Schafer has both the vocal resources for this difficult part as well as the looks and acting ability for this femme fatale. The rest of the cast are fully up to her.
The production is pretty bare: a brick wall with a stairway up to two doors, a wooden floor and chairs. But don't let that steer you off. The important thing in Lulu is passion, and it is here in spades.

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Daniel Barenboim plays Liszt Piano Concertos [Blu-ray]

Brilliant but cool
A strange program selection indeed: there is Wagner's fairly unmemorable "Faust" overture, flanking Liszt's flamboyant 2nd piano concerto with the intimate (but arguably misplaced) Siegfried Idyll, followed by the heroic 1st piano concerto and a couple of (most welcome) encores. A major intent of this production was obviously to showcase Daniel Barenboim's undisputable mastery of these technically demanding, at their time revolutionary, but musically not always satisfying bravura pieces. The concert was recorded live in June 2011 in Essen in the excellent sound and video one has come to expect from Accentus. The Berlin Staatskapelle under Pierre Boulez performs marvelously, Boulez his stoic self with minimalist gestures, but always on top of this repertoire which might not be overly close to his own heart. First Concert Master Wolf-Dieter Batzdorf offers many an encouraging smile during the proceedings, and the important solo parts of all musicians - including the triangle - are...

good performances of average repertoire
I must confess I only bought this because there was nothing else new to buy. Why is there so little orchestral repertoire being released. Is nobody buying this stuff?

I haven't deliberately listened to these Lizst concerti for decades (just on the radio in the car). After watching this disc, I remember why! I do like Lizst, but either in solo piano or purely orchestral. These concertos have some good moments, but basically they are for pianists who enjoy this kind of bombast.

Barenboim has apparently set his mind on recording everything ever written by everybody, whether piano, orchestra or both! Let me say, I am an admirer of his, for example, his Elgar/Brahms disc with the BPO or his terrific Mahler 9. But I just wonder when you put out so much stuff, how much of it can be excellent? There are rumors of the last six Bruckner symphonies, all done within a week, being readied for release, with this Berlin Staatskapelle. I suppose I shouldn't complain, with so...



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Fellini, Jazz & Co. [Blu-ray]

Exceptional in every way
Even in the context of the long series of annual concerts from the Waldbuhne with the Berlin Philharmonic, this latest edition from 2011 must surely rank as one of the most joyous. This is in no small part due to the absolutely infectious enthusiasm of the conductor, Riccardo Chailly, who not only brings a totally professional comprehension to the scores and their delivery, he also adds that special extra ingredient - pure magic!

The title, 'Fellini, Jazz & Co', is correct in emphasising the film music element of this concert. This is a particularly true description of Nino Rota's film role as he collaborated as the composer of choice for the film director, Fellini. Chailly and the BPO give a fine performance of Rota's suite that he created from the music he previously wrote for Fellini's film, La Strada (1954). Shostakovich's Suite No. 2 for Jazz Orchestra, also known as the Suite for Variety orchestra, is also largely made up of extracts from various films for which he...

Fellini Jazz & CO. Berliner Philharmoniker / Riccardo Chailly
This Bluray is magnificent and worth collecting. This is a must for any library of great works. It includes Shostakovich Suite No.2 / Nino Rota "La Strada Ballet Suite / Ottorino Respighi's Fountain of Rome ~ Pines of Rome ~ Danza / Paul Linke Berliner Luft. It is a remarkable 1080i HD / Region Code Worldwide ?PCM 2. sound / Wide format with 105 minutes of rich music and background.

Latest addition to my Desert Island Discs list
I'm so grateful for EuroArts Blu-rays that perfectly capture exceptional orchestral performances most of us would otherwise never have the chance to experience, much less re-experience. Just how difficult it is to achieve this level of perfection is evident when you watch a Blu-ray like the one of Tchaikovsky: Symphonies Nos.4-6 [Blu-ray]. No matter how stellar the performance is, when the visual quality and direction are inferior (as they are on that disc), the magic is lost and you might as well be listening to a CD.

EuroArts' sources don't always get it right either. For example, inconsistent camerawork mars Achucarro & Rattle: Nights in The Gardens of Spain [Blu-ray]. It's amazing, though, how often EuroArts is able to capture lightning in a bottle -- providing what I consider a fully immersive experience of a definitive...

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Aida [Blu-ray]

Not a 'star' studded cast, but a truly sterling performance.
I find little to fault the conducting of Zubin Mehta in this Florence Aida production. Mehta knows the stuff inside out, and he paces the dramatic nuances with real circumspection.
The sets are elegant, if not outright grandiose. Particularly worthy of mention is the lighting and make-up for the singers.
In the vocal cast, D'Intino as Amneris is to be considered as a late reprisal, the former one being made on DVD in 1996! While not as vocally fresh as she then was, her singing is still a tour de force in the category of Verdian mezzo-soprano.
As the hero Radames, Berti sings everything right. Not nearly one single instance of vocal misjudgment could be evident. That said, his voice is not the most beautiful of Verdian tenors, but his characterisation is still fully convincing.
As Amonasro, Maestri is perhaps the most vocally (and visually) convincing member of the male cast. Prestia as Ramfis runs close to him in the low male-voice category.
In the title...

Looks fabulous, but lacking where it counts
Aida is a tricky opera to stage effectively. It doesn't hold up well to modernisation or revisionism, demanding a very specific mood and setting that one messes with at one's peril. I've seen it done before in a Risorgimento updating to Verdi's time and in Robert Wilson's particular minimalist style, both of which were interesting, but neither were entirely successful. On the other hand, a traditional approach to Aida requires both a big stage to match the grandeur of Verdi's compositions of ceremonial marches through ancient monuments, and not everyone has the budget to go for the Full Zeffirelli. Even then however, the lack of dramatic incident and the demands placed on the singers mean that even a traditional setting can be rather static. Directed by Turkish-Italian filmmaker Ferzan Ozpetek, the Florence production of Aida, recorded here in 2011, tends towards the traditional and looks marvellous, but in how it approaches those other considerable challenges that a staging of...

Disappointing Staging and Acting
I found this production to be almost unbearably static -- it's very much a stand-pose--and-deliver performance, and Zubin Mehta seems totally bored and perfuctory. The Triumphal March gets very short shrift compared to other productions. There is one very astonishing effect at the very end of the opera having to do with the entombed lovers. I won't reveal it here, lest I spoil it for first-time viewers, but it's something I haven't seen so dramatically realized in other productions. I only wish the rest of the production had been nearly as arresting. I'm still looking for a rewarding blu-ray Aida.

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Kekkaishi Set 4

The Set Gives A Nice Conclusion To the Anime Series Though The Manga Is Still Going
While the manga of the series is still going on this set gives a decent closure to the story arc in the anime series to not disappoint anyone. The set shows us the episodes where Yoshimori still dealing with grief over the death of a comrade finds his feelings split between revenge and protection as he tries to find a way to get to his friends killer the ayakashi Kaguro and to do that he need to fins a way into the spiritual world where the ayakashi reside. The animation and soundtrack are just the same throughout the series so there's really know need to worry about poor animation and the like. The voice cast are great both for the subbed and dubbed as the casts did a great job in their character roles, the extras sadly aren't the greatest though just the usual trailers and some advertisements. So if you already have the other sets of this enjoyable series then here's the final set needed to complete your collection of this enjoyable series....

A Great Finish
After the death of Gen, Yoshimori is determined to become strong enough to kill Kaguro. Meanwhile, the Night Troops come to Karasumori to defend it along side Yoshimori and Tokine. The Ayakshi make one final attempt to take Karasumori. During the fight, Yoshimori allows himself to be captured. He hopes that this will give him the opportunity to fight Kaguro one last time. The thing that he didn't count on was Tokine following behind him. In Kakuboro they experience many strange, difficult, and unexpected eventualities.

This anime got better after every episode. The animation, voice acting, and soundtrack are all the same quality as in the previous sets. This volume gives some of the back stories for all of the main Ayakashi. This makes the story a lot more interesting. This is the most intense volume in terms of violence and language. It's still pretty PG though. This is one of those rare animes that doesn't rely on fan service and violence to keep your attention. This show...

Anime was Good
its came in good condition with no problem it is an excellent anime and it was amazing to watch and see

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Poliuto

Idiotic Staging and Costumes
The singers, orchestra, acting were all outstanding! But, the staging and costumes were ridiculous. The person who did this interpretation probably thought he was a genius, but really demeaned the entire performance. The main characters were dressed like NAZIs who escaped to Argentina. The Roman citizens were dressed like factory workers from the old Soviet Union. I do not think it would have been difficult to find more appropriate costumes, even on a tight budget. How about the tea service? Was it English, could not have been Japanese. Surprised they did not have Japanese Geisha girls serving tea between Servo and Paulina.

I thought that the singers did an exceptional job in acting, focusing on the content of the story and ignoring the idiotic surroundings. They had a few Roman costumes to let you know it was Roman in theme. It would not have taken much to make the scenes look more compatible with the story. What goes on in the heads of these people who do this? They must...

The only choice
This is the only choice for a DVD of this opera, and, fortunately, it's not a bad one.

Gregory Kunde is excellent in the title role. He looks a bit long in the tooth and grey in the head to be an ideal hero, but his singing is splendid and his acting good. He's especially effective in his big second act scena. My reaction to the Paolina of Paoletta Marrocu is more mixed. Hers is a very distinctive voice which she manages with excellent technique. Some of her singing is very fine indeed, but some lines are more etched in acid than limned with honey. Nevertheless, I enjoyed her performance very much, and I'm sure that I'll return to this DVD again. Simone del Savio was more routine than remarkable as Severo. Adrea Papi as Callistene was the weak link in the casting: an odd vocal tone accompanied by incessant grimaces.

The orchestra and chorus of the Bergamo Music Festival perform capably. The production itself is an odd mishmash of ancient and modern...



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Mission Impossible: The '88 & '89 TV Seasons

So good!!!
Love the M.I. Force from the very begining and this continuation (during the eighties) was just as intriging and sophisticated as the original series; Peter Graves is the reason I bought it, loved his leadership. I rate this DVD-Set 5 stars and a must to close out your collection of the Mission Impossible Series. Ah, such fond memories with suspense and the feeling for a new TV series!

Packaging Could be BETTER!
I love the Mission Impossible series older and newer versions. I was excited to complete my collection of the series. However, this is a review on a return and replace item. The first set of dvds I received the container for the dvds was crushed. This allowed the dvds to move around during shipment. I sent that set back and was sent a replacement set. Wouldn't you know it...the same thing. It occurs to me the packaging is just gonna suck no matter how many times I return and replace. Packaging construction is shoddy. Other than that no issues.

Great videos from Amazon
Love Mission Impossible shows they are great and have always been I wish the real government was as moral as these guys and gals

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