Puccini: Manon Lescaut

Advantages: Massenet's music; lively, earthy staging, wonderful costumes, wigs; evocative lighting; melodramatic intensity.
Disadvantages: Villazón's overwrought acting, constant forte/fortissimo; Dessay's vocal flaring at the top.

..., but his opponent Guillot accuses him of cheating, and summons the police, who arrest both Des Grieux and Manon. Des Grieux is bailed out by his father, while Manon is about to be sent away to New France via the port of Le Havre. Des Grieux, with Lescaut's help and some bribery, rescues Manon from the soldiers' grip, and the two sing their heartrending final scene together. In the end, Manon dies in the arms of her lover, delirious with happiness at recovering his love, while Des Grieux weeps inconsolably at her side. The end. Incidentally, Giacomo Puccini also wrote his own version of the opera, called 'Manon Lescaut' (with the final scene set in Louisiana, USA), although I'm less enamoured of his music than Massenet's. BEAUTIFULLY REALISED, LIVELY, EARTHY PRODUCTION, STAGING I really like the clever way in which time... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

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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Advantages: Another stunning film from Claude Berri
Disadvantages: Subtitles - other than that none.

......I'm hoping you're picking this up from where my Jean de Florette review left off. If not then shame on you, you're doing exactly the same thing I did, which was to watch Manon des Sources before having seen Jean de Florette. Hehe :P In my defence though this was because I was studying Manon des Sources for my French coursework and we simply didn't have time to watch Jean de Florette first. If you do do this, it's preferable to have a rough idea of what happened in the first film, though it won't hinder your understanding of the film terribly if you don't know what happened in the first one. You'll pick up the rough gist of what happened as you go along. So going on the assumption that you haven't read my Jean de Florette review (and just to make sure you were paying attention if you have :P) - a brief history of how this film... Read review

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