Stars: Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, Ruggero Raimondi, Royal Opera House Orchestra, Royal Opera Chorus

Director: Benoit Jacquot

Summary: A film version of Puccini's opera Tosca sung in Italian. Musical direction by Antonio Pappano.

French director Benoit Jacquot (A SINGLE GIRL) adapts the famous opera by Giacomo Puccini in his film TOSCA. The stunningly dramatic opera stars--Angela Gheorghiu as Floria Tosca, Roberto Alagna as Mario Cavaradossi, and Ruggero Raimondi as Baron Scarpia--who steal the show with their intense vocal range and fiery acting. The film cuts back and forth between black and white photography that shows the singers and a full orchestra recording the opera in a studio, and color photography that shows the costumed presentation, act by act, with several different sets. Mario (Alagna) is painting a portrait on the wall of the chapel, inspired by a fair-haired beauty who he has just seen praying below. When his girlfriend, the possessive Diva Tosca (Gheorghiu) pays him a surprise visit, he must reassert his love for her, trying to ease her worries and her jealousy at seeing the painting. However, that night when a prisoner escapes, Mario is a suspected accomplice and he is wanted by the police. The evil Baron Scarpia (Raimondi) lies to Tosca, telling her that Mario ran off with the fair-haired beauty, and using her jealousy to get her to aid the police in his capture.
This film was included in the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema 2002 festival organized by the Film Society of Lincoln Center in New York City.

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Benoit Jacquot's filmed Toscatreads a fine line between operatic staginess and cinematic contrivance. As per the libretto, each act takes place in a single setting, but with the singers here miming to a pre-recorded soundtrack. Jacquot freely reminds us of the conceit with cutaways to the recording session itself--revealing conductor, orchestra and soloists at work--thus a bridge is made between the on-screen action and the music-making itself, and the inherent duality of any opera production is laid refreshingly bare. The same cannot be said for the director's decision to interpolate spoken dialogue over the music in key places--a distraction not an enhancement.

Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna are glamorous and attractive enough to make the most of their Hollywood-style close-ups; their singing easily bears similar close scrutiny--as anyone who owns the CD soundtrack album will surely already know. If Alagna lacks a little power as Cavaradossi on record, his charismatic screen presence happily compensates; Gheorghiu is both vocally and physically almost ideal as Tosca. Ruggero Raimondi's Scarpia completes an outstanding trio, and in the pit (or, rather, in the studio) conductor Antonio Pappano handles the drama of Puccini's score without missing a single nuance. Both musically and visually, then, this is a Toscato treasure.

On the DVD:Toscaon disc looks vibrant in this warm, widescreen picture accompanied by a DTS 5.1 soundtrack. Three filmed interviews--with Gheorghiu, Pappano and Jacquot--provide some insight into the making of this production. --Mark Walker

Aspect Ratio:	16:9 Wide Screen
Main Language:	Italian
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Soprano Angela Gheorghiu Discusses Her Role, Director Benoit Jacquot Discusses His Creation, Antonio Pappano Discusses The Music Of Puccini For The Opera, Illustrated Booklet With Biographies In English And Spanish
Subtitles:	English
Year:	2002
Release Date:	June 30, 2003
Runtime:	141 minutes
Certification:	Exempt.
Catalogue Number:	O A 0883 D
Keywords:	Music, Subtitled, Opera, Wide, Screen, Works, Italian, Puccini, Stage, Tosca, Classical, Performing, Operetta, Arts
Genre:	Music/Performing Arts