Lehár: (Das) Land des Lächelns

Advantages: The best submarine drama to date
Disadvantages: Very long

...It was only after watching my newly acquired copy of U-571 the other day that prompted me to dust-off my DVD of Das Boot (Director’s Cut) and give it another look. In the past, this movie has been seen in several formats. Serialised on BBC2 and in standard movie length being two of them. The DVD version runs for 200 minutes – and that’s just the movie! I suspect that this is closer in length to the TV mini-series in content than the normal movie. The advantage of the DVD format, is that you can hear the soundtrack dubbed into English, or for the purist, in German with or without English* subtitles, which is, of course, much closer to the original. Tip – If you speak any German, see if you can spot the points where the somewhat primmer English subtitles deviate from the more lavatorial German dialogue... Read review

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Advantages: Beautiful, imposing and impressive medieval castle
Disadvantages: Slightly difficult to get to independently

...Syria is fast developing a tourist industry then it may be better to visit sooner rather than later but regardless this is one place that deserves its reputation as a breathtaking sight and cannot fail to impress even those most jaded of medieval ruins explorers. This is a castle that was intended to display the power of the western crusaders and intimidate any who stood in their way as well as display the wealth and grandeur of the knights in contrast to the sometimes ragged mob who accompanied them to the holy land and to impress local lords. It succeeds in all of these and remains after 8 centuries a compelling and awing sight. Practicalities: Admission: £S300 adults, £S15 (as with much of Syria it is well worth having a student card as the discount is huge! Currently £1=£S75) Getting There: Krak des Chevaliers is near Homs in Syria... Read review

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Advantages: Even more emotional and an excellent continuation of the story
Disadvantages: Darker than the first film

...So here's the concluding part of my Jean De Florette / Manon Des Sources review. I'm hoping you've read that one first; if not, go back and read it! This won't make sense unless you've read that one first, just as watching Manon Des Sources won't make much sense unless you've first watched Jean De Florette. They're two parts of the same story, and really, this is just the second part of the same review. Also, I have to warn you, it's virtually impossible to give any analysis of this film without revealing the major plot details of the first film, but I'll try my best not to ruin it. So, Manon Des Sources. Again, it's directed by Claude Berri, adapted from the novel by Marcel Pagnol, and stars Yves Montand and Daniel Auteuil. This was released in the same year as the other, 1986, and this was also nominated for Best Foreign... Read review

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