Madama Butterfly (TV)
1975 · Movie · 146 min. · Germany - East Germany (GDR)
Of all Puccini's major operas, the intimate tragedy of Madama Butterfly is least in need of elaborate staging and might therefore benefit most from the close scrutiny of film. The story is domestic, the setting Spartan, the incidental characters kept to a minimum. This 1974 version, however, demonstrates that Butterfly still needs a healthy injection of proscenium arch melodrama. Director Jean-Pierre Ponelle's production strives for realism but remains unfortunately studio-bound, having neither the benefit of location filming nor the heightened reality of an opera stage. The exterior is a perpetually fog-shrouded heath of indeterminate locale; the interior is cramped and unadorned. The setting is just too prosaic to contain the epic emotions of grand opera.
Direction Jean-Pierre Ponnelle
Cast Mirella Freni · Plácido Domingo · Christa Ludwig · Robert Kerns · Michel Sénéchal · Giorgio Stendoro · Marius Rintzler · Elke Schary
Soundtrack Herbert von Karajan · Giacomo Puccini
Screenplay Jean-Louis Martinoty · Giuseppe Giacosa · Luigi Illica · David Belasco
Cinematography Wolfgang Treu · Ernst Wild
Original title Madama Butterfly (TV)
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Not rated (FilmAffinity)
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