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Pardon the awkward subject heading, but . . .
http://filmlinc.com/wrt/onsale/charltonheston/elcid.html
New York-area Rozsa fans! Here's your (second-to-) last FSM-Message-Board heads-up! Don't miss a rare chance to hear this glorious score in its original context at a first-class venue (and please post any impressions below).
Here's hoping the print's as nice as the theater is!
I'm not going to be able to make the Labor Day screening (tonight, Monday, at 6:30pm) but still plan to go Thursday (2:30pm).
Seeya there!
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So . . .
How was the print?
How was the crowd?
Was there any Paul Francis Webster stuff to be heard?
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"Does Radio City Music Hall screen movies still?"
Not for twenty years.
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Thanks!
Too bad about the attendance, but at least I need not worry about whether to order tickets in advance.
Did you get a look at any of the others in their Heston series, or are you planning to?
I may stay in town to see "Earthquake" after "El Cid" on Thursday, just to hear Williams' score . . .
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If I can get out of work early on Thursday, that's where I'll be!!!
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The music (and presumably everything else) was in stereo? Are you sure? That was not the case for the much-touted 1990s restoration, so it would be surprising if a stereophonic print turned up today.
I saw the 'restoration' version in a small eastside NYC Theatre in the 90's. Presentation was nowhere near the original as shown at the Warner during it's Roadshow run. That said I recall the print and presentation in stereo.
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Well, I thoroughly enjoyed that.
I'm guessing the attendance was a little more than a third-full this time. I think I heard some of the staff mention that afternoon shows do better with the senior crowd.
There were little smatterings of applause for Heston's name and others in the opening credits, but Miklos got the biggest hand. Of course, by his credit we'd been listening to his work for several minutes. The appearance of his name was timed to a dramatic transition into the love theme, which also helped.
At first, I thought the overture seemed a little sluggish and unfocused. I'd become accustomed to the Graunke rendition of the piece, which I believe is much brisker. But on the whole the score reminded me of the famous Oscar Levant reaction to seeing "King Kong" for the first time, "a Steiner symphony accompanied by pictures," or whatever the exact wording was. Not that the imagery wasn't also breathtaking throughout. There were also striking performances from a slew of European supporting players whose other films I'm now interested to see.
--And oily, smarmy Frank Thring in a not-too-impressive bald cap. He's always fun.
There were a couple of scenes where the music's absence actually almost drew attention to itself, or where its re-emergence was abrupt. The recent Bronston book makes mention of Rozsa's dissatisfaction with the way his music was edited. I'm looking forward more than ever to hearing what we missed, on the Tadlow set.
And guess what, they DID use the exit music with the Webster lyrics. I couldn't make out more than a couple of words of it, but it's probably better that way.
In short, a very pleasant afternoon in sunny twelfth-century Spain.
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Yes, I was most gratified to hear the applause for Miklós Rózsa... different people were applauding for different things up until then (I was amused by the smattering that Herbert Lom had gotten). But everybody there gave it up for the Doctor.
Regarding the overture... I think that the film was slightly stretched or something there, as it sounded like there were mild speed changes in the music during it. The print was not in the best of shape and most of the reel changes were obnoxiously jarring, so the tempo of the piece may have been effected. The "Entr'acte," which sounded fine, though. I, too, was surprised when the "Exit Music" came on with the lyrics.
Either way, this was the first time that I had ever seen the film, and was glad to have been able to experience it projected. The battle scenes in particular were quite breathtaking to see on the big screen.
I also had the Oscar Levant reaction... while I was indeed enjoying the film (Charlton Heston's impassioned performance was a highlight), I was at all times focused on the score, hearing how it mirrored the action and reflected characters. This is in no way detracting from the film... it was made in an era when the score was considered of paramount importance to the narrative flow. I came home and read the liner notes with great aplomb, now that I had more context for them.
A very good film made unforgettable by Doctor Rózsa.
Oh, and the music was in stereo.
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Sounds like they had a print from the 1993 'restoration' as I don't know if the new version is available on 35mm film. The screenings I've read about recently were from a digital source.
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If this was a restoration print, then the condition of the original elements are quite dire. There were several moments where contrast was poor and the image appeared splotchy. I found myself idly wondering at one point if the image quality would have been improved if I had brought 3-D glasses.
Did the restoration have the "Falcon and the Dove" lyrics?
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Yes, that definitely sounds like the 1993 print, which did have the exit music with lyrics.
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A pity.
I wonder if a new restoration could be mounted in the digital realm. Some of the problems I saw in the print looked like they wouldn't be terribly difficult to fix in that medium.
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A pity.
I wonder if a new restoration could be mounted in the digital realm. Some of the problems I saw in the print looked like they wouldn't be terribly difficult to fix in that medium.
I think the new restoration does address those problems (I haven't seen the DVD myself, though). The print that ran at LC appears to be one from 1993, not 2008. I don't know if they've struck any film prints of the 2008 version.
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I found Sophia Loren a bit uncomfortable towards the beginning of the film, but that cleared up once Rodrigo killed her father and she got all cold and distanced. From there on, I had no issues whatsoever with her.
Otherwise (taking into account the disparity of acting styles between 1961 and today) I found most of the performances very good. Alfonso was extremely believable as you point out, and Andrew Cruickshank was also quite engaging as Gormaz, interesting arc he had there. I singled out Heston in particular because the film does hang on believing in Rodrigo's virtue, and he does an admirable job of conveying that without coming across as a sap.
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). Particularly good was John Fraser as Alfonso, as Heston himself remarks in his autobiography. I've seen Fraser in a couple of lightweight British comedies but nothing that would have prepared me for his intensity in this film. I can only suppose that like most young British actors he was trained in Shakespeare. I wonder whatever happened to him.