Black Orpheus - Criterion Collection

Starring:Maria Alice, Elizeth Cardoso, Aurino Cassiano, Alexandro Constantino, Arlete Costa, Ademar Da Silva, Marpessa Dawn, Waldemar De Souza, Jorge Dos Santos, LÃ©a Garcia, Fausto Guerzoni, Afonso Marinho, Esther Mellinger, Breno Mello, Eunice Mendes, Zeni Pereira, Maria de Lourdes (II), Lourdes de Oliveira, Agostinho dos Santos
Studio: Criterion
Product Type: DVD

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Marcel Camus's 1959 update of the Greek myth features an all-black cast and a story set in the frenetic energy of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. Orpheus, a trolley car conductor and superb samba dancer, is engaged to Mira but in love with Eurydice. For his change of heart, Orpheus and his new doomed lover are pursued by a vengeful Mira and a determined Death through the feverish Carnival night. Camus at once demystifies and remystifies the old story, shifting not only its location but its tone and context, forcing a reevaluation of the legend as a more passionate, pulsing, sensual experience. The film is really one-of-a-kind, an absolute whirl that barely needs words. --Tom Keogh

Description

1960 Academy Award Winner and winner of the Palme d'Or at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival, Marcel Camus' Black Orpheus retells the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice against the madness of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. With its magnificent color photography and lively soundtrack, this film brought the infectious bossa nova beat to the United States. Criterion is proud to present the extended international version of Black Orpheus in a gorgeous new transfer.

Customer Reviews:

Best foreign film 1960.......2007-06-27

This is one of the most beautiful romantic movies I have ever seen.
The cinematography is very poetic and the culture is rich and people are gorgeous!

Black Orpheus.......2007-06-25

Marcel Camus's rich, vibrant film takes your breath away. The dazzling ritual of Carnival is captured in a swirl of breathtaking color and kinetic energy. The actors are uniformly excellent, with Dawn's Eurydice a particular stand-out, and Camus manages to build considerable suspense as the tragic tale plays out. A.C. Jobim and Luis Bonfa's pulsating soundtrack helped launch the Bossa Nova craze at the dawn of the sixties.

Beautiful is an understatement...I can't put it in words.......2007-06-11

Very touching and unforgettable film! I am so thankful it is now available on DVD. This is truly a love story beyond Romeo and Juliet...It is not just about death but about life, love and the rebirth of life. It encompasses so many emotions and feeling and the physical beauty in the film by the actors is breathtaking! :) I fell in love with Orpheus. True love is never ending. If you have never been in love this film with make you believe and if you have ever loved and lost this film will make you remember and if you are currently in love this film with make you appreciate your love so much more!!!
Truly Amazing Film!!!

SHORT ON STORY; LONG ON STYLE AND PERCUSSION.......2007-04-23

I had seen BLACK ORPHEUS (1959) in the late 1980s, and remembered being underwhelmed, but I procured a copy from my library to see it again as I've just discovered that I've been in love with Bossa Nova music most of my life. (A long story and not worth retelling.) But my impression of the film remains mostly unchanged.

BLACK ORPHEUS is of course based upon the Greek myth in which Orpheus - the offspring of the god Apollo and Calliope - is able to tame beasts and alter nature with his music, but is unable to save his true love. In this movie, the "beasts" are represented by roosters, goats, kittens, song birds, and puppy dogs (they ALL taste like chicken), and the manipulation of nature is the belief amongst the poor children residing in the hills above Rio de Janeiro that the sound of Orpheus' guitar and songs cause the rising of the sun.

The story takes place in the days leading up to Rio's famous Carnival, and thus, the sights and sounds of that festive event just explode on the screen. The cinematography is a delight, featuring imaginative camera angles, compositions, and movements, and gorgeous panoramic shots above and around Rio de Janeiro. I have very little desire to travel outside of the U.S. (Egypt and The Holy Land being my dream destinations), and other than a couple of misadventures South-Of-The-Border, I've stayed "home." (The accommodations in a Mexican calaboose leave EVERYTHING to be desired - another long story not worth retelling ... or reliving.) But my second viewing of BLACK ORPHEUS has convinced me that an all-expenses-paid trip to Rio offered by a wealthy Brazilian woman desiring a (tired & old) kept man/love slave isn't something I would automatically reject. ; ) Additionally, this is one of the most colorful movies I've ever seen; there's enough color on the screen to turn Walt Disney from blue to green with envy in his cryogenic tube!

Most of the acting is of the amateur variety and it's apparent (in ANY language). BLACK ORPHEUS sports two of the more annoying female film characters in my recent memory: Mira (played by Lourdes de Oliveira) and Serafina (played by Lea Garcia). But despite the non-professional status of their performances, Breno Mello (as Orpheus) and Marpessa Dawn (as Eurydice) are watchable: Mello for his charisma and handsome looks, and Dawn for her innocent charm and exotic attractiveness (pretty features and dark skin dressed in a crisp, virginal white dress. Yikes! Put me on her dance card!)

Orpheus' true love, Eurydice, is pursued by a mysterious man (the personification of Death) throughout the picture, but nobody - including Eurydice - bothers to inquire why. (Ah, them Greek myths - never overburdened by genuine character motivations.) And there are a few other problems: during the Carnival, it goes abruptly from morning light to the black of night while we're in the midst of a single dance (man, the days are short in Rio, and when its sun falls, it falls FAST!), and the story (what there is of it) periodically bogs down in excessive lingering over some sequences. (Say what you will about what a moral cesspool the U.S.A. has become, but when we tell stories well on the silver screen - an increasingly uncommon occurrence in recent decades - no country tells `em better.)

The truth (according to Stephen T.) is that, really, unless the viewer is paying their admission fee to vicariously experience Rio's Carnival and/or to enjoy the complex rhythms of the Bossa Nova beat and the simple beauty of composer ANTONIO CARLOS JOBIM's melodic lines, there isn't a great deal of reason to spend 107 minutes with BLACK ORPHEUS. The score, however, is the main attraction here, and the payoff is rewarding if you're a fan of Brazil's great music. (I myself would be willing to view this movie yet again someday.)

I'll add that the final scene wherein three small children begin to reprise the Orpheus/Eurydice story theme while the sun rises to illuminate them gave me a wistful, inarticulate joy - a kind of Saudade. Their enthusiasm was infectious, making a lovely ending to a so-so movie. But of course, we know that ultimately Enduring True Love, the "Happily Ever After", will slip through their hands like a ... well, like a myth ... as it does to us all. (But I suppose that for me, living in Rio and listening to Bossa Nova daily as a wealthy Brazilian woman's kept man/love slave would be the next best thing.)

GOT BOSSA NOVA?
Bossa Nova for Lovers
Nova Bossa: Red Hot on Verve

Colorful.......2007-04-10

Colorful and joyous, this movie is a pure pleasure to watch. Not only is it beautiful, but the mythical story and characters are excellent as well.

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