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Danish Edition, PAL/Region 2 DVD: Subtitles: Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish. An exiled magician finds an opportunity for revenge against his enemies muted when his daughter and the son of his chief enemy fall in love in this uniquely structured retelling of the 'The Tempest'.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
An adaptation of Shakespeare's " the tempest",in one great uninterupted monologue by sir John Gielgud , preformed in lavish decor of mute actor's and grand architectural setpieces . It's quite heavy handed, but you have to undergo the experience to be rewarded. Typical "Greenaway" paintinglike shot's are the dvd's price worth.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This film has been very hard to find for a very long time, and the DVD produced by Atlantic is its first release (ever since the film has been shown in cinemas) which comes even close to doing justice to the awe-inspiring images Peter Greenaway has created to accompany Shakespeare's text in this most idiosyncratic adaptation of "The Tempest." There was a gruesome pan-and-scan VHS of this film, and at some point there existed an even more gruesome DVD made directly from that VHS. This, finally, is a proper DVD which restores to the film most of its original grandeur. The only element that still doesn't quite seem to work is the recording of the dialogues, which sounds ever so slightly muffled.
This, however, is not why I give the film only four stars. Slightly muffled sound is a very minor distraction indeed compared to the fact that this film is a true tour de force, which even as I die-hard fan of most of Greenaway's work - including the Tulse Luper Suitcases - I sometimes find rather lengthy. John Gielgud is delivering an impressive performance, but even with a voice as subtly modulated as his, all characters being voiced by the same actor can get monotonous sometimes. And as gorgeous as the baroque settings overflowing with witty details are, most of the scenes taking place in these settings are rather too slow-paced and performed quite flatly by most of the cast. For instance, the comic bits aren't really comic at all, and the romance between Miranda and Ferdinand may be found to lack emotional depth. Then again, emotion is hardly the point here. The images are, and the nice little games that Greenaway is once again playing (for instance, as always with him, there are numerous references to his other works). Once one comes to see this film as a spectacle, more akin to ballet or painting than theatre, one realises that Greenaway's touch is actually quite light. But it takes a good deal of getting used to.
In my opinion, this version cannot be compared to Julie Taymor's more recent adaptation. It is neither better nor worse, it is simply placed quite at the opposite end of the spectrum of how one can approach turning a Shakespeare play into a film. Taymor highlights action, much horseplay, and spectacular wizardry; her film is a cool, smooth, moving, impressive piece of cinema, although sometimes too superficial. Greenaway highlights the exotic, the playful, the quietly beautiful, and the love for libraries; his version is a masterful and complex mediation, although oddly anticlimactic.
This, however, is not why I give the film only four stars. Slightly muffled sound is a very minor distraction indeed compared to the fact that this film is a true tour de force, which even as I die-hard fan of most of Greenaway's work - including the Tulse Luper Suitcases - I sometimes find rather lengthy. John Gielgud is delivering an impressive performance, but even with a voice as subtly modulated as his, all characters being voiced by the same actor can get monotonous sometimes. And as gorgeous as the baroque settings overflowing with witty details are, most of the scenes taking place in these settings are rather too slow-paced and performed quite flatly by most of the cast. For instance, the comic bits aren't really comic at all, and the romance between Miranda and Ferdinand may be found to lack emotional depth. Then again, emotion is hardly the point here. The images are, and the nice little games that Greenaway is once again playing (for instance, as always with him, there are numerous references to his other works). Once one comes to see this film as a spectacle, more akin to ballet or painting than theatre, one realises that Greenaway's touch is actually quite light. But it takes a good deal of getting used to.
In my opinion, this version cannot be compared to Julie Taymor's more recent adaptation. It is neither better nor worse, it is simply placed quite at the opposite end of the spectrum of how one can approach turning a Shakespeare play into a film. Taymor highlights action, much horseplay, and spectacular wizardry; her film is a cool, smooth, moving, impressive piece of cinema, although sometimes too superficial. Greenaway highlights the exotic, the playful, the quietly beautiful, and the love for libraries; his version is a masterful and complex mediation, although oddly anticlimactic.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Unconventional, startling, often grotesque, and genuinely overwhelming, Peter Greenaway's 'Prospero's Books' is one of the most experimental and striking adaptation of Shakespeare's works yet put to film. 'Prospero's Books' uses Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' as it's base, but this isn't an adaptation for the purists. A great deal of the original text is cut from the film, and when used, is often melded in as part of the film's soundtrack (including one of Ariel's most prominent speeches), or else written on screen, as opposed to spoken; in the distinctive caligraphy of Prospero (the protagonist played superbly by John Gielgud's, who puts in a wonderfully measured performance). The film is far more garish and explicit than Shakespeare's original vision. Stomachs unravel to reveal pregnant wombs, nudity is absolutely rife, and even outside of shock value, the physical deformities of the pained Caliban, are often difficult and moving to watch. Whilst Shakespeare's text sometimes feels a little lost within all this visual spectacle - the film's visuals are, as well as stunning on their own merit, often weaved into the plot of 'The Tempest', to reinforce or add meaning. The books of Prospero, which appear in a frame within the frame of the film, and pop up buildings, diagrams, and explorations of the body within them, are a fine example of this.
Though 'Prospero's Books' is excellent, it still falls just short of its aims. A little too much of the text of the original play is lost amidst the visual splendour, and there are some visual experiments which don't always work (such as, in my personal opinion, the relationship between Caliban and the two drunkards), but 'Prospero's Books', even when it fails, still never fails to capture the attention of the viewer. For those looking for a modern, original adaptation of one of Shakespeare's greatest plays, or just for those looking to watch something thoroughly different and eye-catching, I would heartily reccomend Greenaway's 'Prospero's Books'
Though 'Prospero's Books' is excellent, it still falls just short of its aims. A little too much of the text of the original play is lost amidst the visual splendour, and there are some visual experiments which don't always work (such as, in my personal opinion, the relationship between Caliban and the two drunkards), but 'Prospero's Books', even when it fails, still never fails to capture the attention of the viewer. For those looking for a modern, original adaptation of one of Shakespeare's greatest plays, or just for those looking to watch something thoroughly different and eye-catching, I would heartily reccomend Greenaway's 'Prospero's Books'
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