Casanova [2005] [DVD]

A servant girl, herself fallen on hard times, befriends the aged Casanova, now a reclusive librarian in a rich man's household, eking out his days in obscurity, left only with his memories and could-have-beens.

Peter O'Toole plays the aged lothario, David Tennant the rake in his youth. As the action flashes backwards and forwards through time, we discover a different image of Casanova - not a man who systematically seduced and used women, but an educated, talented, not to mention inspired individual who loved women and was loved by them. He is a man fated to love, to be loved, to be fêted and hated, but never quite to find his true love.

His mother is portrayed as an actress who abandoned him in pursuit of her own promiscuous hedonism. The boy is emotionally silenced, but he has a multitude of talents and limitless determination ... not to mention a bit of luck. We follow Casanova as he charms his way into Venetian society ... only to be cast into prison, escape, and pursue a trail of adventures across the courts of Europe.

It's a helter-skelter costume drama which eschews rigid adherence to historical accuracy, injecting elements of a more modern world into its style and portrayal until it becomes a self-parody. Humorous, touching, captivating, with wonderful performances from a very talented ensemble of actors, "Casanova" gives us a fresh, tender portrayal of the character and his times. There is lustiness but no nudity, desire without exploitation, and a cavalcade of astonishing images and impressions of a society on the verge of revolution and cataclysmic change.

And there is a sting in the tail (or tale), as Casanova's own son becomes a monstrous caricature of the father, corrupting his philosophy ... or being corrupted by it. You are left wondering about the real man - did he really love women, was he really a great communicator, or did he cynically manipulate both them and their male dominated societies?

It's a wonderfully entertaining show. Audacious, controversial, Tennant the cheeky chappy, O'Toole more reflective and disillusioned, tempted to rewrite his history, or to exorcise it from record by consigning it to the flames. Ultimately, this is a tragic love story rather than hedonistic romp, tragic yet intensely human. Well worth watching.

I enviously watched the trailers for Casanova when I didn't have access to BBC3 - I thought it looked like an exciting, colourful romp. I waited everso patiently until it was repeated on BBC1 and was not disappointed in the least.

Peter O'Toole is brilliantly cast as the older Casanova, remembering his past and all the women he had ever loved. His portrayal was poignant and sometimes a little scary, but as his quest for Henriette comes to a close you really do feel sorry for the man with so much potential having become a fairly lowly Librarian and object of ridicule.

Laura Fraser is stunning as Henriette - the kind of enigmatic and beautiful woman we all strive unsuccessfully to be! Rose Byrne is the picture of innocence and amused shock at the older man's tales. Both women play their parts beautifully.

Russell T Davies' writing was already known to me to be something special, my particular favourite being 'Queer As Folk'. Again, he manages to give us a lively tale with great one-liners, action, punches and sex - lots of it. The way he explores Jack's fears over falling in love with Bellino is brilliantly done and he doesn't shy away from controversial topics (In fact, such topics are becoming more mainstream and less hidden thanks mainly to people like him).

And finally ... how could I review this without mentioning David Tennant? I can't. That man is such a talented actor, he makes every part his. He is quirky, cheeky and devillishly charming. A previous review said that RTD wanted to steer away from someone conventionally handsome for the part - maybe David Tennant isn't conventionally handsome, but I certainly wouldn't kick him out of bed!

This is a must for any fan of Russell T Davies or David Tennant; they are a winning combination as Doctor Who's tenth incarnation only proves.

Rushed into the shops after its recent screening on B.B.C. Four and One this version written by Russell T Davies sees the classic tale of a charming philanderer brought bang up to date with copious amounts of contemporary wit and energy. It's filmed with vertiginous glee, in fact, at the risk of being arrested by the pun police I'd say it goes like the clappers.
The old Casanova , played with salacious zeal by Peter O Toole, relates his life story to an enraptured Servant who gradually teases out of him the fact his tale of numerous conquests isn't merely a saga of unmitigated lust (Though it's undoubtedly that as well) but has moments of genuine affection and yes god dam it ..Love. Casanova in his pomp is portrayed excellently by David Tennant as a witty charming chancer with the gift of the gab and a smile to make women melt. Events don't always follow the course he intends and though he raises to the very top of Venetian Society, meeting the love of his life, Henriette, along the way and nearly succeeds in wooing her till her wealthy Fiancé sees to it that disgrace follows and so he has to flee and head for pastures new including Paris and London.
Any cast that features the luscious Dervla Kirwan and the excellent Nina Sosanya has a lot going for it but throw in superb cameos from Matt Lucas , Freddie Jones Simon Day and an enrapturing performance from Laura Fraser as Henriette and it would be hard pressed to make this less than watchable . But with stylistic flourishes in the filming , which may annoy fans of more traditional costume dramas , and the decidedly modern vernacular of the script this is costume drama for the 21st Century and to this viewer it's all the better for it. The one surprise is the lack of sex, or rather the lack of graphic sex which is something you would expect from a modern drama but this is a tale told with a twinkle in its bawdy eye so the less than serious, almost saucy postcard approach should really come as no surprise.
Normally I'd rather gargle with brick cleaner than watch some stilted period drama but this was almost a revelation, pacy, funny, colourful and fiendishly entertaining. With this and the return of the excellent new Doctor Who, suddenly T.V. is watchable again.