I couldn't bear to watch the whole DVD--it was too different from one of my favorite books, Virginia Woolf's "To the Lighthouse." Like the recent "adaptation" of John Galsworthy's "The Forsyte Saga," this seemed to have little in common with the literary masterpiece behind it except for the setting, the title, and the names of the characters. Very disappointing!
Sweepingly beautiful photography
Starring two-time British Academy Award winner Kenneth Branagh and Emmy and Golden Globe Winner Rosemary Harris, Virginia Woolf's To The Lighthouse is the 115 minute, full color, visually impressive DVD adaptation of Virginia Woolf's classic novel about treasuring the moments in this mortal world, where war, illness, sudden accident, or the simple passage of time inevitably brings about loss. Sweepingly beautiful photography, and the heartfelt treasure of family and friends sharing a summer before going their separate ways makes for a lasting tale of emotion and love. DVD exclusives include notes about the author, about the cast, and about the novel itself, as well as a variety of discussion topics.
Captures the meloncoly mood of the Virginia Woolf novel
This 1983 British made-for-TV adaptation of Virginia Woolf's novel begins with the Ramsay family vacationing in their summerhouse in Cornwell shortly before WWI. Rosemary Harris plays the mother, the ideal woman of the time, who forgives her husband's outbursts of temper and is loving to her six growing children, summer guests, and neighbors. Michael Gough plays the husband, an educator who is frustrated by the confines of family life, and Kenneth Branagh plays a graduate student with strong political beliefs.
Constant throughout is the six-year old son's request for a trip to the lighthouse, but the weather is never quite right. It's symbolic, of course, as it stands off in the distance, a future adventure that keeps being postponed.
The essence of the Woolf story is well captured although some of the characters were left out. But we get to see a piece of the seemingly idyllic world through the eyes of the family and the resultant effects of the following ten years, which are filled with tragedy. Cinematography is excellent, capturing the mood and beauty of the English countryside. It's a melancholy story that keeps getting sadder as it moves through time. And so, when the coveted trip to the lighthouse actually happens, it seems anticlimactic although this act is the glue that holds the story together.
I watched the first half of this video on one day and the rest of it on the next. In this way, I was able to enjoy the acting and the atmosphere. As I had read the book, there were no surprises and my interest was less in the storyline than how it was presented. This kept me from being bored because the story is really very slow. Virginia Woolf fans will like it. Others might wonder what all the fuss is about. I enjoyed it.
Vanessa Redgrave glows from within as the heroine of this superb adaptation of Virginia Woolf's novel. As Clarissa Dalloway prepares to host a sumptuous party, her mind wanders back to a summer in her youth, when she was courted by an eager young man--a young man whose much older self will come to the very party she's preparing. Mrs. Dalloway moves fluidly between the past and the present, exploring the shifts in perspective and understanding with an unsentimental but graceful eye. What's most stunning is the remarkable interplay between the younger and older actors, who truly seem to be different versions of the same character (the young Clarissa is played by Natascha McElhone). Beautifully directed by Marleen Gorris (Antonia's Line), the movie also features Rupert Graves... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Vanessa Redgrave - Natascha McElhone Director(s): Marleen Gorris DVD Release Date: Released the 13 February 2001 Usually ships within 24 hours
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I completely agree with the previous reviewer, except that, based on Branagh's acting alone, I shall give the film four stars. There. More Info about this DVD Director(s): Peter Barber-Fleming DVD Release Date: Released the 28 October 2003 Usually ships within 24 hours
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You wouldn't think a movie could look like a Vermeer painting, but Girl with a Pearl Earring is filmed with an amazing range of luminous glows that evoke the Dutch artist's masterworks. Of course, it helps that much of the movie centers on Scarlett Johansson (Lost in Translation, Ghost World), whose creamy skin and full lips have a luminosity of their own. Johansson plays Griet, a maid in the household of Johannes Vermeer (Colin Firth, Bridget Jones' Diary, Fever Pitch), who finds herself in a web of jealousy, artistic inspiration, and social machinations. Though the pace is slow, Girl with a Pearl Earring genuinely conveys some sense of an artist's process, as well as offering many chaste yet sensual moments between Firth and Johansson. Also... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Colin Firth - Scarlett Johansson - Tom Wilkinson Director(s): Peter Webber DVD Release Date: Released the 04 May 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Falling neatly into the Enchanted April and Under the Tuscan Sun category, the made-for-HBO My House in Umbria boasts lovely Italian vistas and comforting Englishness. But it begins with a note of violence: on a train rolling through the sunny countryside, a terrorist bomb detonates, killing a handful of passengers. The strangers that survive recuperate at the villa of an eccentric but kindly romance novelist, also a survivor of the blast. She's played by Maggie Smith, who bustles through the role with a pleasing mix of gin and daffodils. Chris Cooper is an uptight American who comes to the villa to pick up his orphaned niece and bristles at the bohemian atmosphere. Director Richard Loncraine maintains the melancholy mood amidst the sun-dappled gardens of Umbria, but... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Richard Loncraine DVD Release Date: Released the 25 November 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Luchino Visconti's adaptation of the Thomas Mann novel is the very definition of sumptuous: the costumes and sets, the special geography of Venice, and the breathtaking cinematography combine to form a heady experience. At the center of this gorgeousness is Aschenbach (Dirk Bogarde in a meticulous performance), a controlled intellectual who unexpectedly finds himself obsessed by the vision of a 14-year-old boy while on a convalescent vacation in 1911. Visconti has turned Aschenbach into a composer, which accounts for the lush excerpts from Mahler on the soundtrack (Bogarde is meant to look like Mahler, too). Even if it tends to hit the nail on the head a little too forcefully, and even if Visconti can test one's patience with lingering looks at crowds at the beach and hotel dining rooms,... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Dirk Bogarde Director(s): Luchino Visconti DVD Release Date: Released the 17 February 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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