davo Reviews

Oka! (2011)

Oka! a worthwhile effort but NOT the real Louis Sarno story

[7/10 · 4 March 2024]

The source material for this film is the memoir LAST THOUGHTS WHILE VANISHING FROM THE FACE OF THE EARTH by Louis Sarno, but that text is significantly different from this film. Number one for me, the protagonist "Larry", is nowhere near as charming nor funny as the real Louis Sarno, though the character evidently has some of the same diseases as him. Louis was hired as an advisor and facilitated actual Aka (pygmy) people appearing in the film. They are the most authentic part of it, along with locations in the Central African Republic. Within that country relations among people and groups can be quite complicated (well-shown in Sarno's text,) but for dramatic effect a logging company becomes the chief adversary and the actor Isaach De Bankolé is wasted as a one-note villain.

Room 104: The Last Man (2020) Season 4, Episode 9

And it's a musical!

[7/10 · 20 September 2020]

We watch this show mainly because my wife likes it. It definitely has a reliable formula whose boundaries it sometimes choses to test. Basically, the episodes take place in Room 104. For this episode, the door to the room opens onto a desert landscape. My first thought was: this is a cheat. But it's not like I really care, and when the characters appear, they are like video game warriors who are singing in a heroic manner a la Broadway. I have a weakness for musicals, which extends to musical episodes of TV series: Xena, Buffy, etc. I did not recognize the music for this episode and as of this writing there are no soundtrack credits here on IMDb. On screen, the music is credited to Julian Wass, who also directed this episode; original songs by Mark Duplass & Julian Wass. Mark Duplass is of course the show's co-creator, co-writer, and played a nihilistic folksinger in a previous episode. I am willing to believe the actors did their own singing but I wouldn't swear to it, again no credits. I am willing to accept the whole outside-the-room aspect as some kind of meta/magical gaming metaphor, why not? It's not like we're watching a documentary. Having it be musical made it fun for me.

Un Secreto en la Caja (2016)

The Imaginary Line

[7/10 · 26 August 2020]

I have reasons both personal and professional for being interested in this film. The ostensible subject of the film is Marcelo Chiriboga (1933-1990), an internationally known Ecuadorian writer, member of the Latin American "boom" generation. I come from an Ecuadorian American family (both parents and 2 of my 5 siblings were born there.) The library where I work received a copy of this film and I had the pleasure of creating a bibliographic record for it. Naturally I'm interested in the biographical details of its subject, and therein lies my inability to write about it without resorting to SPOILERS. (You have been warned.) Chiriboga is a fictional character created by José Donoso y Carlos Fuentes and referred to by other authors, but nowhere else is he as exhaustively documented as in this film. Without the resources of films like Zelig or Forest Gump, Chiriboga is inserted in history by splicing him into photos with other Latin American boom writers, and by interviews with people who knew him. There is only one surviving piece of film of him, an interview from Spanish television with the real journalist Joaquín Soler Serrano. Like some other writers of the boom, Chiriboga suffered the the trials of exile. I am also reminded of Dean Reed, a minor U.S. star who found greater success in Latin America where his consciousness was raised to revolutionary fervor. Like Chiriboga, he ended up in East Germany, married to an actress. (Dean Reed had a fairly extensive film career and I also had the pleasure cataloging a documentary about him entitled Gringo Rojo. He was sometimes referred to as the "Red Elvis.") Back to Un Secreto en la Caja. For the (bibliographic) record, "mockumentary" is not a prescribed genre term I could use, so I was kind of glad to use "documentary style film", which describes it pretty well. It does not have the broad humor of something like This Is Spinal Tap, but its humor is more subtle and underplayed. For instance, in this universe, Chiriboga invents Donoso, instead of the other way around. The Imaginary Line is the title of Chiriboga's masterwork. We even see a bit of the terrible film adaptation of the book. It is about the 1941 border war between Ecuador and Peru. The imaginary line may refer to one which gave Ecuador its name, or it may refer to its border with Peru. Through the Protocol of Rio in 1942, Ecuador ceded the southeastern region of its territory to Peru, but it continued to appear on maps as a disputed area. The wars with Peru frame the narrative of Chiriboga's biography. After 20 years, he returns to Ecuador in 1980. In 1981, there follows another war with Peru. The author dies in 1990. The third and final border war of the 20th century between these two countries occurred in 1995. Perhaps the secret in the box is the ultimate fate of Ecuador.

L'attrape-Salinger (2007 TV Movie)

Trying to be funny? The Salinger Trap

[4/10 · 21 July 2019]

I don't believe this movie is exactly what it pretends to be. Documentary? It has the feel of a mockumentary, and the scenes of the locals in Cornish in particular seem staged. I had to ask myself, is this a joke? Some of what is said seems to be facetious. If so, its humor is quite dry. "Catching" Salinger? That's just a play on the title of his most famous book. Catching Salinger is name on the title screen of the DVD we watched, which also had the credits in English, as well as voice-over English narration. It is also the name of a film released in 2009 by 3 guys from Ohio who went looking for Salinger. (Couldn't bring myself to watch very much of that after being disappointed by this one, but it is available on YouTube.) The film ends with the protagonist supposedly walking up Salinger's driveway, but we never see the great writer live, though evidently Salinger was still alive at the time this film was made. My disappointment is probably compounded by re-reading Salinger as a senior citizen after having read him as a young man decades ago.

Aradhana (1969)

Come for the songs, stay for the eyeliner

[6/10 · 14 February 2019]

A fairly conventional melodrama plot, but some nice parallel moments, almost shot for shot when scenes are repeated involving father and son (both played by Rajesh Khanna.) I liked him more as the father than as the son. A celebrated role for Sharmila Tagore as well. Her make-up goes through an evolution as her character ages. I got kind of obsessed with her eyeliner that resembles cat-eye glasses without the glasses. My real reason for watching this was the music. Again, the stagings don't seem that original (easy to say, 50 years later!) but the songs, the orchestrations and singing are quite nice. But of course, I don't understand Hindi...

Masculinity/Femininity (2014)

Not so super 8

[5/10 · 10 December 2018]

This film had some interesting things to say, with some interesting people saying them. However, the cinematography is dominated by the Super 8 format the director decided to employ, perhaps for philosophical or maybe economical reasons, and it does NOT serve the subject well. The Super 8 segments all had what appears to a brown drip at the top center right of every frame, and the image fidelity is generally of a lower quality than the conventional segments. Plus, the film cartridges provide (at best) 2 and a half minutes of footage each, so there are black screen gaps in the film while the cartridges are replaced. Again, there may be some reason for using obsolete technology, But I don't get it or appreciate it.

Mustang Island (2017)

Local color (black and white)

[6/10 · 16 February 2018]

Some reviewers have likened this film to the work of Jim Jarmusch, and I can see that to a degree, specifically his early black and white films that featured trios of fairly deadpan characters. The humor in Mustang Island is not as dry as in the Jarmusch films, and here the protagonist is explicitly lovelorn. The tracking shots to hip music as the characters arrive at the island reminded me of the scenes of driving around New Orleans in Down By Law. And there my comparisons end!

I thought the Mustang Island locations were great, and I thought the cinematography was pretty good, particularly the night shots. The amusement park in the background in a few shots was particularly evocative. I really liked that a lot of scenes unfolded without dialog, though there were some rather funny lines in the script, which I didn't write down, so no spoilers here! The interactions among the characters seemed realistic to me, with appropriate awkwardness.

I liked this film, though my rating may not seem so high -- I don't believe I've ever given a 10 here, and my 9s are not so common. I look forward to seeing more films by Craig Elrod.

Bhagam Bhag (1956)

Good music, comic caper

[6/10 · 19 February 2017]

I've been meaning to write a review of this for years, even rented it a second time because so much time had passed since my first viewing, now months (at least) have passed again. I didn't rate it that high, why review it? For the same reason I watched it: I'm a fan of Kishore Kumar, particularly because he was a playback singer who was also an actor, especially earlier in his career. I also appreciate his comic sensibility. This is a buddy movie for Kumar and Bhagwan (the latter of whom also directed the picture). The summary provided here on IMDb gives a good idea of the picaresque plot, and the comic duo cuts up all the way, donning different disguises and employing different accents and musical styles and I think even different religions. Bhagwan, the less handsome lead, manages to get the arguably cuter sister as his love interest. As a westerner, a lot of subtleties of the culture and music are lost on me, but I did observe obvious western influences on a couple of the songs. On "Chhod Chale Pyaari Duniya Ko", the duo has been thrown in jail, and are wearing western (not cowboy) contemporary suits, and are threatened with hanging. The music is bluesy with horns, might even be based on a U.S. song that I don't recognize, with some yodel-like trills thrown in. The song "Hey Babu" is pretty clearly derived from the melody of the song "Mambo Italiano", which was a hit for Rosemary Clooney. Kumar and Bhagwan seem like they probably had fun making this film. If you are a fan of Kishore Kumar, it might be worth checking out.

Un transport en commun (2009)

Musical entertainment

[7/10 · 27 January 2017]

I came across this short film as I was cataloging the DVD collection Africa First, volume 1, which includes this work. If you're looking for serious post-colonial deconstruction, this ain't it. If, on the other hand you are looking for light musical entertainment, perhaps it will surprise and delight you as it did me. Another commentator disparaged it as the sort of thing the French love, like that's a bad thing. The film it reminded me of most was Jacques Demy's 1967 film The Young Girls of Rochefort, which is sort of the less popular sister to his more melancholy film the Umbrellas of Cherbourg. Un transport en commun (a.k.a. Saint Louis Blues) is decidedly low budget and the plot is not compelling, but the characters do yearn and dream in a way that may be understandable, and while they are not virtuoso singers and dancers, that, too, may be relatable to people who move through their daily lives imagining a soundtrack that is the music of their souls.

Outcasts (1986)

Not Crystal Boys, but the same source

[13 November 2011]

I believe movies should be judged (if at all) on their own merits, rather than how they might measure up to their literary sources. Different medium, different story. That said, I watched this adaptation of the novel, Nieh-Tzu (Crystal boys) the same day I finished reading the book (in English translation). I read it after cataloging an academic work that touched on the novel's importance related to gay issues in 21st Taiwan. I have not seen the TV series Crystal Boys which debuted in 2003. This film from 1986 may have been groundbreaking in its time (I lack the cultural credentials to know), but from my foreign perspective, it does not bear up well. First of all, the music sounds pretty bad to me, like sappy pop. I appreciate that there is compassion for the young gay boys, but the soundtrack sentimentalizes what gritty dignity they possess. The intimate "Cozy Nest" gay nightclub of the novel is here transformed into the glitzy Blue Angel disco. (More bad music.) It seems as if 2 or 3 characters from the book are conflated into one father figure for the gay boys, which is understandable, and similarly, a landlady's role is amplified into something like a fag hag. I kind of liked her. I also liked the dramatically lit bridge in the park which serves as a cruising area. On the whole, however, I found this version rather disappointing.

Yeh Kaisi Mohabbat (2002)

the musical numbers are the best parts

[7 August 2011]

For me, (this is typical) most of the fun, energy and sex appeal of the film are in the musical numbers. The fight scenes are comical, almost every hit forcing the characters to dive in some direction. I was also amused by the the running gag of the inspector cracking his neck, but I didn't find the comic relief to be very funny. The plot was over-complicated and improbable. Most of the characters were not (to me) very sympathetic. I did like the art direction, locations and choreography. The music itself didn't particularly appeal to me, but it had good energy and served the dancing. The female lead was suitably hot.

Bluff Master (1963)

Shake it, Shammi; smile, Pran!

[7/10 · 28 October 2010]

Disclaimer: these comments reflect only my own tastes, feelings and ignorance. I like watching Bollywood DVDs (among other reasons), for the option to play just the songs. They often (but not always!) make more sense in the context of the plot, but what I'm really interested in are the musical numbers. If I don't like the music, I probably won't like the film. As a United Statesian, I am pretty clueless about Indian culture, except that I like watching these films. I've enjoyed watching the films of the Kapoor dynasty; Raj is my fave, but little bro Shammi is fun, too. He has a reputation as the Indian Elvis. I think this is more evident in other films where he adopts a more western style. Here the music sounds more traditionally Indian (except for the "Spanish" number), with great playback singing by Mukesh, Rafi, Lata & her little sister Usha. I wonder who did the voice for Shammi's drag number?

As far as I know, Shammi is straight, a family man and all that, but the first time I saw him, perhaps in scenes from Teesri Manzil, he set off my gaydar. I immediately suspected my cultural ignorance, but his moves can be so fey that to these eyes he looked like a big queen. Hey, I'm not knocking it! Like Elvis, he is provocative, with strange twitches. So I was delighted in this film to find he had a musical number as female impersonator. He seems to be having fun. I think the person seated almost immediately behind him in this scene may also be a man dressed in woman's clothing.

But my favorite Shammi dance number in this film is when he joins a procession singing a song about Govinda. He gets to display his abandon in a "wet" scene, and then climb a human pyramid to reach a pot.

Pran, the eternal villain, gets to do a little dancing, and in the picnic number he even smiles like he might actually be having fun, rather than his usual sadistic leer. However, he has plenty of creepy smiles in a later song when he dances with Saira Banu in the "Spanish" number, she in a fabulous gown and Pran brandishing a whip. Throughout the film his character wipes his nose with his hand, perhaps to make him more disgusting, but he did it so often that I wondered if his character was cokey. (Again, cultural bias.)

I also like the accordion in the soundtrack.

Plus, Saira sure looks cute holding a sitar, her bare toe taping in the foreground.

Ek Hi Raasta (1993)

It's all about the beefcake

[5/10 · 3 August 2009]

We got this by mistake, it was in the sleeve of the 1956 B.R. Chopra film of the same (or similar) name but different plot. Despite the presence of Raveena Tandon as the attractive love interest, Priya, the film is really all about the manly virtue, smooth moves, moral rectitude, good looks and killer instincts of the good soldier Karan, played by Ajay Devgan. Karan is the son of the dutiful orderly to the colonel. Being the son of an orderly exposes Karan to some class discrimination from a jealous rival. Karan's father gets to do some tearful scenery-chewing as he pleads the righteousness of his son, who is being framed. There is a kind of funny musical number (the disco-like Yaar ko Milne) with a bunch of soldiers dancing around in camouflage fatigues. Possibly one of the more lurid scenes is after Karan has been tortured, and cut and bruised, he practically gets a lap dance from Priya when, during the number Pyar Ke Kitne, almost literally rolling in the hay, she slides down his body for some crotch-worship, then gets all wet in the time-honored Bollywood tradition. I pretty much tuned out the savage bloodbath Karan perpetrates as he saves the day during the final section of the movie.

Padosan (1968)

Mehmood is Masterji

[8/10 · 24 May 2009]

...yet Kishore Kumar rules. Sunil Dutt holds his own as the straight man, and the best things about Saira are her figure and her clothes. The rest of the cast is good, too, but for me the main interest was to see a film where the actors (Mehmood & Kumar) do their own playback singing, which I believe became fairly uncommon after the 1940s. These guys deliver, and steal the show whenever they are on screen. Then on top of that, Kishore's character, Guru, after Bhola (Dutt) hilariously demonstrates that he can't learn to sing, pulls a Cyrano and provides the voice for Bhola's picturizing. Then song duel with Masterji, too much, Guru working Bhola like puppet. Guru's troupe (including Bhola) are a gang of 5, working like a chorus, double-takes timed to the music. The scene where they go to Bhola's uncle to change his mind about his engagement is structured as a pretty much a cappella song. I love that. I chose this film to see Kishore work, and I feel like I picked a good one, plus I learned about Mehmood, I'm looking forward to seeing more of both of them.

Echoes of Paradise (1987)

John Lone's dancing is the best thing about this film

[4/10 · 27 September 2008]

The only thing I really liked about the movie was John Lone's dancing. I was mildly amused by his accent, which for all I know could be a typical Balinese accent, but to me it seemed affected and was merely amusing. The film is set in Phuket, Thailand, as is clearly stated in the story, though Lone's character is indeed supposed to be Balinese. Though I had some sympathy for Wendy Hughes' character, I didn't really care about any of the characters, none of which seemed that well-developed. The local color was adequate rather than inspired. Another commentator mentioned the behind-the-scenes soap opera regarding the writer and the director, which is somewhat interesting, (if true,) but how can we really know, and does it really matter?

Nagina (1951)

Worth watching for fans of the golden age

[6/10 · 7 September 2008]

Nutan shows much promise (if not the depth and nuance of her later roles) and of course exceptional beauty in one of her earliest films. The music by Shanker & Jaikishen is typically great: for me, this if nothing else makes the film worth watching. A couple of musical numbers, including the initial one, feature a female singer ("picturized" I suppose) with a chorus of women dancers, all in Western dress. The first one especially shows Western influence in the music and dancing, like big band boogie-woogie. Very peppy. The second number with this group features an all-girl band dressed in sailor suits. Both numbers also feature the fat comic relief male neighbor. The romantic male lead (Nasir Khan) picturizes 3 songs that are also extremely well-wrought; I wish I knew who the singer was. But honestly his songs were less to my personal taste, as they are basically of the pretty, lovesick hero variety. One has to be in the right mood.

The film has a good look. At first it seems like it's a ghost story, and there are atmospheric night scenes.

I don't speak Hindi, and the subtitles appeared to translate only the first few phrases of any speech. That was kind of annoying, but at least there were subtitles.

Haré Rama Haré Krishna (1971)

Local color and degenerate hippies

[5/10 · 25 May 2008]

This is the first complete Dev Anand film I've watched, and I hope it is not one of his better ones, because it didn't particularly impress me. (I am still looking forward to seeing Jewel Thief and Guide.) He is obviously a good looking guy with a jaunty style, a recognized giant in the industry, but he just doesn't do it for me. The story is not great, nor did Dev's direction impress, including his direction of himself. However, the local color provided by the Nepalese location was interesting, and there is kitschy pleasure in the depiction of the evil dreg hippies. The fight scenes are unintentionally funny -- I can't imagine Dev kicking anyone's ass: he hits like a girl! We do, however, have to thank him for bringing the lovely Zeenat Aman into films. And the music is not bad.

Yahudi (1958)

Roman era story from Bimal Roy

[7/10 · 24 April 2008]

I've seen plenty of films depicting the Roman era which include Hebrew characters, but this is the first Indian production, and directed by one of my favorite directors, Bimal Roy, who has never disappointed me. This film has the usual elements I prize in his films: beautifully composed images and wonderful music that isn't too Westernized. It doesn't look like it had an extravagant budget, but neither does it look cheap; the sets and costumes, while different that what I'm used to seeing in a sword & sandal movie (particularly the costumes), are perfectly adequate. Some of the wigs and beards look kind of fake, though. Other than dance sequences and the occasional comic relief (the latter not much in evidence here), Roy's films don't strike me as relying on flashy acting, and here (as in his 1955 version of Devdas), Dilip Kumar's somewhat restrained affect could pass for subtlety. I guess the acting style is more naturalistic. Dilip's wig, though seems unnatural, kind of shiny or metallic looking. Perhaps the intention was to suggest bronze or lighter colored hair. The only plot point that seemed really questionable was the late reveal of Meena Kumari's character's parentage -- I think the character would have been old enough to know where she came from.

Dulha Dulhan (1964)

Appealing principals

[7/10 · 9 June 2007]

The romantic couple is appealing, Lata and Mukesh give them charming voice, and the music is good. Nobody is really mean, nothing too awful happens to anyone. I wasn't crazy about the best friend, but at least he was helpful and good natured. The central plot device is a cliché, though. Not a bad film but not great, that's just my opinion. I liked the Raj Kapoor cartoon at the beginning of the opening credits -- did he ever do any animated features or shorts? And I liked seeing a number of Daves in the credits -- again, that's just me! The copy I watched didn't have really good sound, but even if had been of better quality, I don't think I would have given it better rating: seven out of ten.

Un toke de roc (1988)

"El roc ha muerto. Viva el roc."

[7/10 · 1 April 2007]

This Super-8 film was completed as that format was on the verge of being discontinued. Given the limitations of the format, the director chose not to try and synchronize spoken dialogue to the images: people's lips move, but we don't hear what they're saying. Instead, the soundtrack of rock music substitutes for narration. On at least a couple of points, the on screen musical performances appear to have the sound synched to the visuals. The music is chiefly Mexican, although there is brief concert footage of the Rolling Stones, and playing over the opening credits is a Spanish language cover of a Neil Young song. The story concerns 4 young women (one of whom dresses as a nun), who band together as outlaws and go around on roller skates. Backgrounds include some footage of earthquake damaged buildings.

Do Ustad (1959)

Do watch Do Ustad

[8/10 · 24 March 2007]

I like this film, it has fun energy. It has some familiar themes: family members and lovers separated and in the dark about about their relationships; mistaken identities; Raj Kapoor donning disguises. It does have morals to impart regarding a life of crime and redemption, so while the ending is not completely upbeat, neither is it tragic. I liked the music; the songs are cheerful and not so Westernized. (One number takes place in and around "Sam's Rocknroll School", but rock & roll is more an influence on the dancing than the music.) This is the first film I've Madhubala in, and she was a pleasure to watch. Raj Kapoor is in good form, too; not overly sentimental or too clownish, he is in his charming prime. He also get to have some fun with his fame: his films Shree 420 and Awaara are explicitly referred to, and he is mistaken for...himself! (That's not a spoiler, if you read the cast list.)

Dastan (1950)

she actually sings

[5/10 · 12 March 2007]

For me, the most interesting thing about this movie was that the lead actress, Suraiya, is also credited as a playback singer. This is the first time in my (admittedly limited) viewing of Bollywood films that I've encountered a star doing her or his own singing. However, checking her other film credits, she did so fairly often. She did hardly any dancing in this film, though, and sang a couple of numbers seated at a piano. I also seemed to detect a Latin influence in the music, particularly in the rhythms. (I'm reminded of an even more pronounced influence of Latin music, i.e. the nightclub scene in Shree 420.) All three of her suitors in this film are good guys, but I won't spoil the ending by divulging who does or doesn't get the girl. However both my viewing companion and myself were disappointed by the ending of the film -- which is not to say it was inappropriate for the time and melodramatic moral tone of the film. The least sympathetic character in the film is the domineering older sister, and I was hoping that Raj would have a final showdown with her, years later when he returned. Despite the serious situations in the film, the young Raj Kapoor manages to fit in some of his trademark high spirits. I would have to say this was not one of his finer films.

Jis Desh Men Ganga Behti Hai (1960)

One of my favorite Raj Kapoor films

[8/10 · 26 February 2007]

I'd rate this as one of my favorite Raj Kapoor films, even though he didn't direct it, right up there with Shree 420. I like the music a lot, especially, the drumming and percussion. The dancing is pretty fun too, particularly when Padmini and Chanchal are jumping around together. I also liked the water ballet sequence, when the women are leaping into the the pool. This movie had a number of the elements I appreciate in a Raj Kapoor film, besides the music: the river symbolism is well-developed,and Raj plays one of his trademark simple, good-hearted tramps who prevail despite the odds -- without TOO much melodrama (which I don't care for.) I tend to prefer earlier films, both from Raj Kapoor specifically and from Bollywood in general -- from the sixties on they get too westernized for my taste, and the dacoit setting here places the story squarely in Indian territory. I also liked Padmini's spunky energy, and her repeated exclamation "Hoi hoi hoi!" (whatever that means, I'd like to know,) it really got stuck in my head!

Jan Pahchan (1950)

Nice art direction

[6/10 · 28 January 2007]

I liked the art direction of this film, and seeing Raj Kapoor and Nargis young and beautiful. I liked the music, too, especially the slide guitar touches, but the songs themselves weren't especially memorable for me -- no doubt my ignorance of the language is a contributing factor, but I didn't find the tunes themselves particularly catchy or evocative. In fact, during one of Aasha's songs, I noted that the lyrics translated in the subtitles seemed a lot more depressing than the melody.

The themes relating to dreams, the creation of art and idealized beauty were of interest to me. Having half of the romantic couple disfigured (no spoiler here, if you read the plot synopsis,) reminded me of the disfigured protagonist in 1978's Raj Kapoor directed film Satyam Shivam Sundaram. Not that I'm positing any direct correlation between the films, other than the theme of love and inner beauty (and me working my way through the Raj Kapoor filmography.)

If, like me, you enjoy the chemistry between Raj Kapoor and Nargis, the completionists among you will want to to add this to your viewing list -- but maybe not the top of the list. Melodrama goes with the turf, but I prefer it leavened with great songs, and none of these grabbed me; also Raj's comic gifts are not utilized. Plus, Anil took too long to get back to Aasha (for my taste.)

Beauties of the Night (1952)

A French Walter Mitty

[9/10 · 7 July 2003]

The protagonist's situation is similar to Walter Mitty's, expect that his fantasies are not waking ones, but rather, occur when he drops off to sleep, and they don't always go the way he'd have them go. The device of dream narratives shows Clair's fidelity to his surrealist roots, especially during the dream debut of the main character's "opera". I was surprised at how low other users rated this film, but I guess it's in keeping with Maltin's opinion that Clair's films after WWII were not up to his prewar standards. Ignorance is bliss, I guess: I thought it was great! Perhaps the character development is somewhat superficial, but the film is funny and fast-paced, with good production values and appealing principals.