DVD : Adams: Doctor Atomic |
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Rating:  - * Great singing, Beautiful music, horrible filming ... This production is 95% very, very close-up full face shots. There are no, zero, full stage shots. Very Occasionally there is a full body shot. There is absolutely no sense of theater at all. This opera could have been filmed in an 8 x 12 foot room. No sense of space exists. DAS BOOT had more wide shots. Even the dance sequences, by famed choreographer Lucinda Childs, are shown in half body, never in full ensamble. There were close-ups that showed only an EYE, full screen. The average cut away was about every two seconds. The camera never lingered on a singer for more than a second or two. The fine chorus was shown, guess what, as only full face individuals. Gerald Finley was excellent, but did we have to see him in extreme close-up ALL THE TIME. Paul Newman he's not. We have scene after scene of Kitty Openheimer SLEEPING in close-up. There is even a close-up of a plastic baby doll. This Video is a shame. A wonderful performance ruined by totally inept filming. The video jacket credits the director, Peter Sellers, as the TV director. He must be incompetent or playing a joke on us. Wait for the Mets HD filming to become available. Rating:  - * Finley's aria is fantastic, but it's in the wrong opera ... When a local theater subscribed to the Metropolitan Opera's HD LIVE series and broadcast DR. ATOMIC on November 8th I decided I shouldn't miss it. I'm not a fan of Adams, but the subject matter is so important, and it had been brought to my doorstep... DR. ATOMIC has its moments. The first act builds up to a tremendous aria, Gerald Finley singing "Batter My Heart," one of the Holy Sonnets of John Donne, as the character of Robert Oppenheimer. The first scene is the assembled throng of Manhattan Project workers. I was decidedly underwhelmed. The second scene is a love scene with Oppenheimer and his wife Kitty -- much better, with Finley in fine form. Then back to the bomb, with the test blast impending and a rainstorm, building tension. Finally, the Faustian scene with Oppenheimer singing to God. The problem with this is that Oppenheimer was Jewish, and not observant. Yes, he did in fact use Donne's sonnet for the name of the Trinity Test Site in southern New Mexico, but this discrepancy undercut the power of the most powerful scene in DR. ATOMIC for me. The second act I found to be poorly conceived. The weather and the delay in the test, which took place July 16th, 1945, drives the action, which strikes me as a small and mundane aspect of such a literally earth-shattering series of events. The best part of Act II is Kitty, who in real life was a committed leftist and opponent of the Project, and who in the opera symbolizes the human conscience as well as the archetypal Woman standing against the deadly plans of the men, generals and scientists alike. I was not at all convinced by the addition of a Noble Savage role for the Indian maid Pasqualita and a gallery of impassive male Indians in full regalia. The ending is weak, with a pointed message about Hiroshima and Nagasaki, yes, (148,000 people were killed immediately by the only two atomic bombs ever to have been used in war, and 340,000 including those killed later by radiation poisoning and other effects), but not nearly as effective as the ending of Act I. Of course the Met's production is not the same original Peter Sellars staging as in this DVD of the Netherlands Opera. I haven't stressed those details, only the basic plot elements. Finley continues in his role as Oppenheimer -- he has sung the part in every production so far, in San Francisco, Amsterdam, Chicago and New York. As far as Adams's position as a leading American composer, I remain underwhelmed. Minimalism has become merely one element in his eclectic but tonal style, now a sort of audience-friendly PoMo Lite, an acceptable badge of hipness, and Adams continually strives to be a contemporary composer for those who don't like New Music. Rating:  - * Finley alone worth watching ... This is an excellant production. If you don't like modern, dissonent opera, then this might not be for you. The production is powerfully done and the singing and symphonic quality top notch. Rating: - * Is it History or Opera? ... Thanks for the history lesson, Tom, but Holy Cow! If the only acknowledgment of the music you heard today is "While the score is certainly engaging and momentous at times.." and your best recommendation is to forget the opera and read a book chronicling the Manhattan Project, why did you spend the money to go to the opera? Like any theater piece, opera is at its best dealing with human passions and the conflicts which arise between people in relationship to each other. Words, music and visuals combine to create a vivid metaphor for the human condition, and perfect historical accuracy need not be part of the equation. The hopes and fears of the scientists as they struggle with creating a device they hope will save lives but may indeed pose the threat of annihilation; the personality conflicts between two scientists working toward the same goal while harboring different personal agendas; the costs that single-minded dedication to an urgent goal may exact on a precious personal relationship; the contrast between hard concrete left-mind science and mysterious, numinous native spirituality; and above all, the struggle of a sensitive and artistic temperament to reconcile his sense of beauity and love with the monstrosity he has created--these are the business of opera, and Doctor Atomic is a riveting exploration of those issues. Adams' music reflects these struggles magnificently, flowing through them all, from love and passion to lurking menace and fear, like a river. I, too, was in the theater today for Doctor Atomic, and I was knocked flat by the electrifying scene at the end of Act I, as Oppenheimer, alone with his creation as it looms over him, writhes in an agony of conscience over what he has done. The historical record supports this idea, and you can see it there on his face in any portrait of the man even if he didn't really stand there alone in the moonlight. But even if it wasn't real fact, it is a perfect way for the artist to illustrate one of the major cosmic themes of the opera and of our day. Any viewer/listener with the equipment to allow the music, poetry, and images to work their triple magic on one's conscious and unconscious being would have to be struck dumb by the power of that scene. This is great theater--cosmic questions made real in the passions of human beings--so, who cares about history at a moment like that? On that level, Doctor Atomic is a work of genius which takes one's breath away. I've read my World War II history as well, and it has enriched my experience of this opera; for example, I am inspired to revisit the historical record to see if my memory of the characters of Oppenheimer and Teller should be adjusted because of the surprisingly different angle on their personalities and conflicts which the opera presents. But that's only an interesting sidelight compared with the overwhelming emotional experience of surrendering to the sights, sounds and words of great human passions, illustrated as only a great opera can do. If these live transmissions by the Met can help people learn to park their preconceived ideas at the door for a couple of hours and open themselves to such powerful experiences, they have done their job. Leave the history books next to your easy chair for some other cold day in front of the fire. Rating: - * Almost perfect ... The plot is based on the last days of the Manhattan project, but in fact the greatness of this opera is the portraying of the human struggles of the people involved in the project. The plot itself is the reason to get into those very human emotions and struggle, so the full accuracy of the plot doesn't seem to me of crucial importance. The best music is for those internal looking moments, with the necessary "actions" to put everything in perspective (sounds familiar?). Some of the tense moments in the plot are for music only, masterly composed by John Adams. I have the feeling the production is over played which sometimes disturbs and distracts. In addition, some of the close-ups (for the DVD) are over-dramatic veering the attention from the poetry and the music. The music and the lyrics are beautiful and strong enough. It doesn't need over-acting and distractions like people moving fast on the scene. The last scene of first act is impressive, in particular when Oppenheimer silhouette raises his hand and finger to the "Gadget" (God?)... but there is no finger responding this time. Remembering that all music (and opera) was once new, this DVD is recommended for all Opera lovers and enthusiasts. |
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