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Martine Carol stars as notorious 19th century Mexican circus performer Lola Montes, who in her heyday counted among her lovers the crowned heads of France, Italy, Poland, and Russia. The film dwells upon Lolas' extended affairs with King Ludwig of Bavaria (Anton Walbrook) and composer Franz Liszt (Will Quadflieg). We learn of these various amours in flashback form, for the film is framed by a prologue and epilogue in a tawdry New Orleans circus, where an old and faded Lola is exploited by a slimy nickel-and-dime ringmaster.<br /><br />Special Features <br /><br />Lola Montes Revisted - A documentary on the making of the film<br />Commentary by Susan White, author of 'The Cinema Of Max Ophuls'
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United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: LANGUAGES: French ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (2.35:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Commentary, Documentary, Interactive Menu, Making Of, Remastered, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: Max Ophuls' final film (and his only movie in color) is a cinematic tour-de-force masquerading as a biography, in this case a dazzling fictionalized life of the notorious 19th century dancer, actress, and courtesan. A still beautiful, but weary and disillusioned (and, as we later discover, ailing) Lola Montes (Martine Carol) is first seen as the featured attraction at a seedy American circus, appearing at the center of a series of various tableaux depicting the scandalous events for which she is known. With a strangely sincere yet sinister and manipulative ringmaster (Peter Ustinov) providing color commentary, some of it very ironic on two or more levels, the movie flows between these staged recreations in the circus and the events as recalled by the subject. In a series of dissolves, the film takes us through her girlhood with her mother, interrupted when her mother's lover (Ivan Desni) becomes attached to the daughter; her unhappy marriage and its aftermath; romances with composer Franz Liszt (Will Quadflieg), abduction by a Russian general (in the arms of Cossacks, no less); her affairs across the landscape of Europe with men great and notable; her thwarted aspirations as a dancer; and her romance with King Ludwig I (Anton Walbrook) of Bavaria, which led to her being made Countess of Landsfeld, and, later, to his abdication. The gracefulness of Ophuls' cyclical narrative, and the transitions between the recalled elegance of the locales, and the people with whom her romances and affairs took place, and the seediness of the circus -- where she is also compelled, in the course of performing, to perform as an aeria...Lola Montez ( The Fall of Lola Montes ) ( The Sins of Lola Montes )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I bought "Lola Montes: The Restored Edition [1955] [DVD]" The English subtitles are hardcoded onto the movie and also over the lower black border. These are not regular DVD subtitles (vobsub). You cannot switch them off. This is an incredibly stupid and annoying thing to do, especially on what is claimed to be a "Restored Edition", so the restoration is also something of a careless mutilation. Aside from that the picture and sound quality is quite good. The term "restored" in this case refers to lost footage which was found and reincorporated (it had been cut by the studio/distributor against the director's wishes). Don't expect the kind of flawless picture you get on some other films where "restored" refers to restoring the image and/or sound quality, as in recent restorations of North by North West, The Red Shoes, Black Narcissus etc. or you'll be sorely disappointed.
edit: I just saw some of the Criterion Collection edition of this movie. The subtitles on the Criterion edition are not hard coded. The picture is flawless. The sound is superb. It makes me realise just how *incredibly* poor this supposedly restored DVD actually is. What a rip off. Lousy print, lousy sound, stupid clumsy subtitling ruining the movie. If I could give it 0 stars I would. I've bought some really terrible DVDs of classic movies, a lot of OK or unobjectionable ones and a few that are genuinely restored to a high standard, well presented and technically excellent. This one is a genuine stinker, being so bad that it ruins the experience of simply watching and enjoying the film.
edit: I just saw some of the Criterion Collection edition of this movie. The subtitles on the Criterion edition are not hard coded. The picture is flawless. The sound is superb. It makes me realise just how *incredibly* poor this supposedly restored DVD actually is. What a rip off. Lousy print, lousy sound, stupid clumsy subtitling ruining the movie. If I could give it 0 stars I would. I've bought some really terrible DVDs of classic movies, a lot of OK or unobjectionable ones and a few that are genuinely restored to a high standard, well presented and technically excellent. This one is a genuine stinker, being so bad that it ruins the experience of simply watching and enjoying the film.
22 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I first saw this on TV about 20 years ago, and was delighted to see that it had appeared on DVD. My memory hadn't let me down. This is an amazing film, full of stunning images, vast crowd scenes, subtle use of EastmanColour, amazing fluid camera movement, low-key naturalistic acting, and wonderful performances.
Lola Montez was an 'adventuress', who, in this lightly fictionalised account of her life, has ended up in a circus, re-enacting key scenes from her life. In flashback, we see what really happended, starting with an unhappy marriage, her career as a dancer, and affairs with Liszt and the King of Bavaria (Anton Walbrook), the latter causing a revolution! Lola is played by Martine Carol, a wonderful French actress, and the ring-master in the circus scenes is a youthful Peter Ustinov. Mention must also be made of Auric's music, which captures the mood exactly.
This film is truly astonishing in its lavish detail and epic flair, and I can't recommend it highly enough.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This is one of THE great movies of all time, and the culmination of Ophuls' career, and a movie one can watch time and time again. Working in Technicolor for the first time, and with his largest ever budget, Ophuls produced a stunningly beautiful and poignant version of the scandalous career of Lola Montes, the most famous courtesan of her time, without once overstepping the bounds of immaculate good taste(to the despair of his producers who were hoping for a saucy crowd-pleaser along the line of "Caroline Cherie" with the same star).Everything about the movie, the breathtaking camera work, and marvellous design, reveals Ophuls as one of the great artists of the cinema, and this restored version enables one to guage the full extent of his artistry.Numerous scenes,notably the first flashback to the episode in the coach with Franz Liszt, and the episode of the sea voyage as a young girl, are to be seen here in fuller versions than hitherto available. Special mention must be made of Georges Auric's superb score. Extras include fascinating information on the making of the movie (initially intended for Christian-Jaque)from Ophuls' collaborators.
A DVD to treasure.
A DVD to treasure.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
sublime
visually spectacular for all the right reasons - to reflect character rather than empty show - this should be seen by any lover of cinema. Read more
Published 22 months ago by 72trails of smoke
excelent plus
this movie is excelent as all the french produntions of max ophuls also la ronde the digital print and sound very well done
Published on 29 Oct 2009 by Carlos Parot Delsahut
Genius in colour
This is the last film made by Ophuls - a true genius of the cinema whose work becomes better and more moving with each decade that passes. Read more
Published on 25 July 2009 by James
Max Ophuls cinematic look at the famous courtesan
"Lola Montes" tells the story of the famous courtesan, played by Martine Carol, who became a circus novelty because she was ill and had nowhere else to go. Read more
Published on 13 April 2005
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