Caravaggio

A recent trip to Italy, and seeing numerous paintings by Caravaggio, piqued my interest in his life & work. Subsequently I have sought out several books & movies (from Amazon) devoted to his story. What emerged was a fascinating tale of an artistic individual who rocked the Renaissance art world with his (at the time) revolutionary dramatic use of light and dark and naturalistic realism in his paintings, As is often the case, such originality was controversial in its' time with the art establsihment and Caravaggio's personal penchant for associating with the 'common people' put him at odds with the religious power structure that was the source for most of the large commissions to artists of that day. Apparently, Caravaggio so offended the sensibilities of his time that there was a concerted effort to suppress many of his works and it was only with a relatively recent resurgence of interest in his work that many of his pieces have been 're-discovered' and properly attributed to his hand. This DVD biopic is an Italian production (originally aired as a lengthy TV mini-series) and it gives a pretty accurate accounting of the major events in his life and the mood of the period in which he worked. As an artist myself, I found the 'appreciation' for talented painters back in the Renaissance to be very interesting - they were regarded almost like 'rock-stars' and their talent was greatly respected and sought after by monied collectors. It was this 'status' that seemingly saved Caravaggio's life on numerous occasions - along with certain deep personal connections to powerful families in the elite political structure. It was a turbulent time that he lived in and his rebellious nature got him consistently in trouble and kept him on the run from his enemies-hastening his premature death .Having also watched the more 'creative' take on Caravaggio's life lensed by British film-maker Derek Jarman - I would say I found this Italian version more satisfying in terms of really re-creating a sense of the period and the artist's angst and motivations. The cinematography is exceptional and captures a sense of the light of Caravaggio's canvases and there are many instances showing 'set-ups' for specific well known paintings. This is a long watch (nearly 4 hours) broken into 2 parts and it covers the artist's life from age 6 until his ignominious death at age 39. The principle actors were all excellent in their roles and the lead bore a striking resemblence to the real Caravaggio, as he depicted himself in several of his paintings. This film really captures the feeling of these tumultuous times of immense political intrigue and artistic invention - highly recommended.

I'm a longtime Caravaggio fan and thoroughly enjoyed this film. Perhaps a little more romantic than biographic, still entertaining nonetheless.Had it been in English instead of Italian, I could have enjoyed the beautiful scenery better (my focus was on the subtitles, afterall), but this is not the fault of the film, rather of my ignorance in not speaking Italian (to that end, dubbing would be a nice feature here, but it's not offered). Casting was wonderful (several of the actors/actresses actually resembled the figures in the masters' work), the story was compelling and engaging, and even though you know what happens next, you're still held in suspense.

Part 1 at 100 min, Part 2 at 109 min, compressed onto one disk. (An earlier DVD, from 01 Distribution, was only 130 min, and was critcized for its gaps. I find no reliable info for a 6-hr version--the story can hardly be stretched to such length.) There are no supplements. The optional English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack are of the "hearing-impaired" type, and verbally denote the sound effects.Physical aspects of this international co-production are fine, as is the cinematography. The musical score, sometimes with chorus and soprano, appears frequently. The script follows Caravaggio from 6 years old, when his village is struck by plague, to his death from abandonment, fever, and exhaustion at age 39. Many "facts" of his life and artistic endeavors, his friends and enemies, are woven into the script, and the film moves along at a fast pace. But the script shuns literary qualities, such as the English writers bring to their tv series, and maintains a connect-the-dots simplicity. Alesio Boni as Caravaggio is called upon for much action but little depth-acting.I think the film was made by the "dub-everything" Italian method. First, capture the images without microphones. Subsequently, have the actors, or even alternative voice-actors, in the recording studio add the dialogue to segments. This process can result in some over-emphatic deliveries.So, the film is a first-class production, which you'll enjoy watching. But like me, you may find it does not elicit emotional involvement.

I won't bother dealing with technical shortcomings of the movie because the unfolding drama and inevitable tragedy which a viewer can foresee, painfully and so regrettably and so knowingly inevitable made the movie so worthwhile to experience. A genius, exploited by others and by his own inner demons makes for a most memorable and moving experience for the viewer, at least for me! I would definitely recommend viewing it!Jim G.

I love this movie, and love that it was in excellent condition!

This product was a European version that would not play on my dvd in the United States. The sender wasDaaVeeDee LLC, our of West Berlin, NJ 08091 ? Is that New Jersey or Germany? They must be retarded knowingthis version would not play here. I am fed up with Amazon and will think twice before I ever buy another movie about an artistfrom them unless I know it is in English and will actually work! I do not enjoy reading damned subtitles either. Lowest form of review I can give it,totally disappointed and sending the damned thing back.

We really enjoyed this film. It is very well done and also give good insight not only with the art world at that period, but also the historical background of the Renaissance.