Diva

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S R 1001 movies to see before you die (added later). A well made and entertaining dramatic thriller with a soft French feel to its thrills. The villains were threatening, yet simple to me. I enjoyed the diva who was an opera singer who refused to be recorded, but ironically her best fan is the only one who does. I don't plan to see it again, but the streets of Paris and the chase scenes were fun. RUS. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/29/24 Full Review Paul G In a film filled with symbolism and circular resonance, a young bike messenger (Frederic Andrei) worships an opera diva's music with near-sexual passion, even as he illegally records her concert. Director Jean-Jacques Beineix's consummately French use of symbols will delight any literature student: for example, the bundle of dirty money tossed disdainfully out the window lands next to a blind accordion player, whose music turns out to be what has been playing all along in the earphone of Priest, the punk assassin (Dominique Pinon). C'est bon! (This film is one of my Paris favorites.) Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/18/23 Full Review william k Exciting, highly innovative thriller offers a suspenseful plot with a few twists and some spectacular action themes; plus it introduces us with a mesmerizing rendition of the aria "La Wally"." Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member My all time favourite movie!!! Just makes me feel so happy and warm by the end. It really makes me feel wonderful after a bad day. Also fantastic performances from the whole cast, very beautiful cinematography and locations. The music is also simply outstanding (I even have my own vinyl copy. Would recommend this film to anyone who loves French New Wave and fun feel-good movies. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Audience Member Beautifully photographed as well as having a well-paced, compelling story. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/26/23 Full Review William L Like many of Beineix's films, Diva was initially poorly received by French critics before undergoing popular and critical revaluation that saw its profile rise substantially. It's an important film when considering its place in cinematic history, with an emphasis on aesthetic and visual design that would kickstart the movement known as cinéma du look. However, it's that same feature that makes the film kind of difficult to appreciate - there is such a focus on practical design that the story suffers as a result, coming across as fragmentary and stitched-together. The story is designed around a coincidence - a young Parisian postman that comes into possession of two recordings that are confused with one another; one is a unique bootleg of an American opera singer that famously refuses to have her voice recorded, while the other is an incriminating testimony against a dirty local cop. As a result, interested parties converge in their attempts to secure the tapes for themselves, often creating conflict out of misunderstandings. Sounds sort of Guy Ritchie-esque, right? But the plot just sort of rambles around, dedicating a subtantial amount of time to an unlikely romance between the postman (Andréi) and the opera singer (Fernandez) while also giving virtually no explanation behind Bohringer's Gorodish, who arguably serves to unite the subplots more than any other character and who develops a bizarre heist-flick plan to rectify the film's events. However, if you can stomach the narrative, Beineix gives you a visually original and influential shooting style to tide you over, most clearly evident in the extended scene of a chase through the Paris Metro on moped. The film is full of interesting lighting choices and color schemes, and would be cited as a direct inspiration on many French action films of the next decade or more. Unusual and with some high notes, but the story problems just don't settle in the stomach well. (3/5) Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 10/11/21 Full Review Read all reviews

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