For Roseanna [DVD]

I am not going to discuss the plot since it has been provided by others. My love for this movie is mainly based on the devotion the two main characters have for each other, the back stories, and the visual beauty of nearly all of the scenes. And, of course, the way it weaves humor into a theme based on tragedy.Reno as Marcello does an excellent job of portraying a somewhat clumsy, obsessive character who has a heart of gold and a bent for mischief. Ruehl's character, Roseanna, is the perfect foil to Marcello and every bit his soul mate. Her sister, Cecilia (Poly Walker) is temperamental and fiery (and Walker's Italian is excellent). There are others in the story who are mainly there to provide back stories - one humorous and the other bitter - as well as to support the main story.To me the scenery is as much a star as the actors. The small Italian town is simply beautiful and captured as almost art in scene after scene. Even the trattoria owned by Marcello and Rosanna had a rustic, authentic quality that made you feel as though you were in it. If I had to pick any one scene as memorable it would be the opening one where the surreal visual of a tightrope walker dropping flowers on a coffin below, timed with the priest's prayer verses, sticks in my mind and epitomizes art. Of course, that scene sets the stage for the laughs, smiles and tears that follow to the feel-good and funny ending.If you love quirky comedies with a range of emotion and beautiful cinematography you will probably love this movie.

The premise of this movie (especially the ending) is a bit silly but an enjoyable performance by Jean Reno and Mercedes Ruehl. Sweet and romantic. The local characters are great.. including the accountant, his girlfriend, and the hair dryer scene (no spoilers!). I found this movie as a VHS at a thrift store many years ago and loved it, now glad it's on Amazon prime.

I saw it on video and bought the DVD just to make sure I can see it again. I love this movie and enjoyed every minute of it. It was hilariously funny and the casting was brilliant. None of the stars are Italian or even of Italian descent but I was raised with Italian relatives and went to Italy 4 times, and they were perfectly cast and credible. This movie is very touching as well as funny.

This is a great little sleeper movie. Jean Reno shows his talent in this movie. It is funny, heartfelt and pretty wonderful.

"For Roseanna" is a wonderfully sweet romantic comedy about a loving husband and his devotion to his dying wife. The film is full of charismatic performances, but Jean Reno steals the show by a narrow margin. Mercedes Ruehl is also warm and lovely in the title role. For a story so focused on the subject of death, the character of Marcello is the embodiment of vitality, and his various efforts to keep his fellow townsmen alive so they don't take up the last graves in the village cemetery are hilarious. Having seen Reno more typically in dramatic roles in movies such as "The Professional," "Mission: Impossible," and "Ronin," I was impressed with the very gifted comic range that he demonstrates here. With very fine talented supporting performances from Polly Walker, Trevor Peacock, Renato Scarpa, Roberto Della Casa, and Mark Frankel (tragically, his final performance), this is a little jewel of a movie. Don't miss it.

I've seen this movie a few times and finally broke down and got myself a copy since Amazon's price was awesome. The scenery and setting are beautiful. The love between the husband and wife is very real and touching. There is also some everyday life humor that makes the drama lighter, and isn't real life like that? I also love that these characters are middle aged, married for years, and still in love. It's not wishy-washy; they have had life through them a few curves. The characters are likable and have depth. I would characterize this movie as drama/romance with a side of humor. I could say more but I don't want to give away the plot!

I LOVE this movie!!!!! I first saw it at the Taos Talking Picture Shows; it was titled Roseanna's Grave. I was hoping it would come out in the mainstream arena and would've missed it (because of the name change), but saw a preview of it on another rented video. This is the second copy I've bought, the first being lost or stolen.This movie is SO well done - the actors, the amazing premise, the sweet love this man has for his wife, the humorous situations and the totally surprising ending. I will always have this movie in my library. :-)

Love Jean Reno, have ever since i saw him in "Leon".Polly Walker is beautiful, and Mercedes Ruehl volatile and passionate. This is just a great film. Funny, poignant, life (and love) affirming, and well paced. Love the passion and depth of the couple, the beauty of the scenery and village life portayed, and the marvellous Reno as he desperately tries to fulfil his wifes wish to be buried beside her daughter in the overcrowded village cemetery. Does not sound like the recipe for a romantic comedy, but like the wine and food of the region, it is complex without being complicated, and earthy without being crude. Also wonderfully satisfying! This is a real treat of a movie.

I bought a copy of this on the old VHS tape format back in the day. And when trying to trade in all my tapes for the new fangled DVD was annoyed that i could never find it anywhere.It was because the title had changed !Marcello is a cafe owner in a sleepy Italian village.His beloved wife is suffering from an unspecified illness that will eventually take her life. Her greatest wish is to be buried in the cemetery alongside their daughter who died as a child. However, the cemetery is almost full.In this endeavour, poor Marcello (played wonderfully by the great Jean Reno) spends most of his time running around the village ensuring nobody does anything stupid or dangerous that might cause them to die and so take up a valuable space that he holds dear in the cemetery.ALL parts are wonderfully cast and beautifully acted. Reno and the often underrated Mercedes Ruehl, make a brilliant couple and with support from Polly Walker and Mark Frankel, it's a fabulous movie and i recommend it.

It's a lovely little film. Everyone else has told you that already. But which version to buy?The fact that this still is not available as a UK region 2 DVD is a never-ending mystery. That being the case, we seem to have little alternative other than to consider other releases. In February 2014, after years of waiting for someone to have the sense to release this as an English / UK region 2 disc I finally took the plunge and ordered the release described as 'For Roseanna - DVD - 1997 - Dutch Import'. The default in-film dialogue / language on my (Dutch) copy is ENGLISH.There seems to be a lot of confusion about whether this copy or that copy is or is not in English - this is not helped at all by the fact that Amazon lumps every single review for any release of a film into one single block of reviews, so it isn't always clear which release / version any given reviewer is writing their review about unless it is explicitly stated by them in their review text.For the record, here are the specific details about the copy I received:My Seller: 'brrsales', fulfilled by Amazon. Please bear in mind that the seller Amazon directs you to for this film may change many times over by the time you read this review.Front cover description: Jean Reno and Mercedes Ruehl facing each other across a tabletop with a white vase on it with flowers in it. The main title 'For Roseanna' is in red, with the silhouette of a tightrope walker balancing on top of the word 'Roseanna'. Underneath the main red title are the words "Pour L'Amour De Roseanna" in smaller white lettering. At the bottom, outlined by a white box are the words 'Nederlands/Francais'Rear cover: On the rear of this version are further images of the cast and two paragraphs of text, one a synopsis of the film in Dutch, the other a synopsis in French.When you load the disc up you are presented with a page which ONLY presents you with a choice between 'Nederlands' and 'Francais'.Don't worry.To get to the English soundtrack version, choose 'Nederlands'. On the next menu page (still all in Dutch) turn off 'Onderteiteling' (Subtitles) first if you don't want to watch the film with Dutch subtitles, then select 'Speelfilm' to play the film. The film will then proceed to play IN ENGLISH and without Dutch subtitles.On the version I have, identifiable by the details above, the playback modes are as follows:-Dutch title menus, in-film dialogue in English, Dutch subtitles ON. (This is the default).-Dutch title menus, in-film dialogue in English, subtitles turned off. There are NO English subtitles-French title menus, in-film dialogue in French dubbed over the original English language version. There are NO French subtitles.For English speaking viewers, this version is indistinguishable from the English language original once you have chosen the 'Nederlands' version of the film, turned off the Dutch subtitles and started the film playing.For the hard of hearing, the absence of English subtitling on this version could be a problem.

Bought this film which is spoken in English even though it's a Dutch import thinking that the subtitles would be optional. However you had to have either Dutch or French subtitles on the screen taking over half the picture, making it impossible to watch or enjoy. I have had imports before but you could watch the film with or with the subtitles on. It's a great movie and I had been searching for a long to find it so was greatly disappointed with the result.

To play this DVD it was a great help that I had read other reviews as when I pressed on the Dutch to play the DVD it played in English which is what I wanted.Arrived quickly, recommend seller.

The film is spoken in English, but it is quite distracting having foreign language subtitles across the bottom of the screen. However, I was very glad to be able to eventually buy this film on DVD as I have been trying for years - it is one of my favourites.