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| The Red Violin | 
 enlarge | Director: François Girard
Actors: Carlo Cecchi, Irene Grazioli, Anita Laurenzi, Tommaso Puntelli, Samuele Amighetti
Studio: Lions Gate
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.98
Buy New: $6.43
You Save: $8.55 (57%)
New (48) Used (17) from $6.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  269 reviews
Sales Rank: 1370
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dvd-video, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), French (Original Language), German (Original Language), Italian (Original Language)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 130
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.4 x 0.5
MPN: D8312D
ISBN: 1588177653
UPC: 031398831228
EAN: 9781588177650
ASIN: B00008RV1S
Theatrical Release Date: June 11, 1999
Release Date: May 20, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: ******BRAND NEW****** THE SOURCE FOR RARE MEDIA, THOUSANDS OF CUSTOMERS SATISFIED, AND OVER 250 000 ITEMS IN STOCK, BUY FROM A TRUSTED SOURCE, ESTABLISHED SINCE 1998 - INETVIDEO ~~~
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Amazon.com
Mounted in high lavish style, from the opening strains to coda, The Red Violin pays homage to the careful uses of color and composition without bothering to support these qualities with any real substance. Oh, it's a class act on the surface all the way, while failing on nearly every other level to convince. The story tells the story, revealing precious little else. The 17th-century Cremonese instrument-maker Niccolo Bussotti finishes his final violin with a curious red varnish, the secret of which spans the film, yet will come as a surprise only to the very sleepy. The odd voyage of this unique violin through history is then explored from one episode to the next, from child prodigy to gypsies to Victorian virtuoso to a clandestine enclave of art lovers in Shanghai during the Cultural Revolution. This is all framed by the violin's rediscovery in present day by instrument appraiser Charles Morritz (Samuel L. Jackson), for whom the perfect instrument strikes a resonant chord. The main scheme of the film, an object connecting a number of seemingly disparate stories, has been used many times, most notably in Max Ophuls's La Ronde. But while this approach is employed elsewhere to cause one scene to reverberate against another, The Red Violin is content to leave each episode thematically unconnected with any of the others. On the decorative level, the film may satisfy many viewers with its sensuous attention to tone and detail, as well as its eclectic and expertly performed score. But as narrative it is very slight. Just pierce the pretty crust of this puff pastry and gaze in wonder at the pocket of air within. --Jim Gay
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| Customer Reviews: Read 264 more reviews...
 Pretty Vignettes, Nothing More July 2, 2008
16 out of 16 found this review helpful
I came to this film backwards, from the experience of the Red Violin Concerto composed by John Corigliano, on the basis of the musical theme he contributed to the movie. The concerto is a vigorous, dramatic piece of music, with even a bit of emotional profundity about it, so I was expecting a movie of some depth. I have to say, I was disappointed. This is a sprawling edisodic melodrama, set in Renaissance Italy, Rococo Austria, Victorian England, and Maoist China, and when bow comes to string it's a movie about an art thief who succeeds, with no apologies. Now it's not every day that I get to practice my Italian, German, and Mandarin all in one sitting, so that's worth one star. The Italian and Austrian sets were beautiful, so there's another star. The "monastery" in the Alps was in reality a castle where I've spent time, so one star more for nostalgia. The depiction of China during the Cultural Revolution was mortally vivid, so there's a fourth star. However, the whole thing stalled unmercifully for lack of anything approaching suspense or drama, so I'm deducting one star, leaving three.
By all means, listen to the CD of the full Red Violin Concerto, as performed by Joshua Bell. It's a work of art.
 A Great Story Done in an Original and Most interesting Way June 12, 2008
This movie should have received multiple Academy Awards, but alas, I guess there werte not enough explosions in the movie. The story of a wonderful instrument, and all the lives it touched over the centuries, is one of my favorite moviers ever.
 Worth watching and maybe even buying April 27, 2008
I don't buy many DVDs, but I own this one. I typically prefer to purchase comedies, but this is a pretty good drama/saga. I don't think it was as good as The Green Mile, American Beauty, Shawshank Redemtion or other top notch dramas that I have seen. However, I found it as good or better than movies like Pollack, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, No Man's Land, and a few other off the high volume path. If you don't know any of the movies I have mentioned and you are looking for something with a typical Hollywood theme, then this movie is not for you. This movie is more like a bunch of little stories (little dramas) woven into two larger stories (the origin of the violin and the story of the violin being auctioned off). The mini-stories do not typically have happy endings, there is a lot of tragedy. There is a sense of justice implied by the actual ending of the film, but I would not call it a happy tale and it is not particularly ethical or moral. I know, it doesn't read like an endorsement, but I do think that this is a good film and worth watching more than once.
The Red Violin Movie April 26, 2008
I love this movie which traces a violin built in the middle ages through all the different owners which have have heard it being played and had to possess it at all costs. The tragic story of the violin makers' wife (which I won't reveal here) is woven throughout the story of the violin. Beautifully filmed. I would highly recommend this movie.
Wonderful film, wonderful soundtrack April 12, 2008
An engrossing film about the "life" of a fine, Italian violin through the centuries. Joshua Bell solos in the soundtrack.
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