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Aria

Play trailer Poster for Aria R 1987 1h 31m Musical Play Trailer Watchlist
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57% Tomatometer 14 Reviews 47% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
In this opera-based anthology, 10 directors interpret 10 popular arias. Among others, Robert Altman imagines the opening night of Jean-Philippe Rameau's Les Boréades in 1734 Paris; Jean-Luc Godard envisions Jean-Baptiste Lully's Armide as the story of French maids desperately trying to seduce burly bodybuilders lifting weights at the gym; and Julien Temple stages Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto with synchronous infidelities occurring at the same hotel.
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Aria

Critics Reviews

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Janet Maslin New York Times 05/20/2003
2/5
The best of the 10 segments is, perhaps predictably, the rare one without lofty pretensions. Go to Full Review
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times 01/01/2000
3/4
I am not sure that any indispensable statement about opera has been made here, and purists will no doubt recoil by the irreverence of some of the images. But the film is fun almost as a satire of itself. Go to Full Review
Eddie Harrison film-authority.com 01/09/2024
2/5
'...a sporadically interesting project, but what it shows clearly in 2020 is that diversity is something that cannot be ignored. If all films are directed by elderly white men, then self-indulgence and juvenilia result...' Go to Full Review
Jason Best Movie Talk 11/22/2020
The most successful episode, though, is Julien Temple's cheerfully vulgar interpretation of 'La donna è mobile' from Verdi's Rigoletto. Go to Full Review
Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com 06/30/2005
C
Thomas Delapa Boulder Weekly 06/09/2005
2/5
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Audience Reviews

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thiago S @Thiagostone 3d Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more STU L @RT61333157 May 16 I recently watched this again on DVD along with my girlfriend, who had never seen it. Several of the segments were confusing, and at times the nudity (mostly female) seemed to exist because the directors enjoyed working with beautiful nude women. There were some high points, however. The depiction of two lovers in the "dead city" of Korngold's opera was beautifully shot (was it in Bruges, the locale of the opera?); The aria from "Louise," in which an elderly woman looks back on her joyful youth was touching; the comedy of a married couple both cheating on their spouses at the same resort (while an Elvis impersonator sings "La donna e mobile") was a highlight; and the framing device (no plot spoiler here) was well crafted. A number of the arias were sung by Leontine Price, who may be the greatest soprano of all time. See more 07/07/2017 An ambitious and interesting experiment to bring together a group of acclaimed indie directors to present various short stories set to the sound of many different operas. As most experiments go some segments work, some don't with Franc Roddam and Charles Sturridge's segments reign supreme and Jean-Luc-Godard and Robert Altman's segments fall flat disastrously. Give it a watch for some unique imagery and music on display along with the late great John Hurt in a central role. See more 09/26/2014 As with any of these 8 director shorts kinda films, half of them are bland, a handful are great and some are just bad. Unsurprisingly Ken Russell delivers one of the best, and so does Julien Temple's amusing romp through the glorious Madonna Inn. Godard surprisingly wins for biggest stinker, with a real vapid short. All in all, Pretty enjoyable due to the fact it's only an hour and a half long- keeping each film in the 10 minute range. Plus the music is all super classic opera which you can't exactly go wrong with. See more 11/19/2012 There's something for everyone. I liked almost all of them. Ken Russel, Charles Sturrige and Franc Roddam pieces were fantastic. Derek Jarman visually stunning too. Good stuff. See more 07/10/2012 It starts out mild enough, but in the later parts it becomes so emotionally acute as to seem other worldly. Yet the stories have to do with worldly matters: love, longing, despair, death. Love it! See more Read all reviews
Aria

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Movie Info

Synopsis In this opera-based anthology, 10 directors interpret 10 popular arias. Among others, Robert Altman imagines the opening night of Jean-Philippe Rameau's Les Boréades in 1734 Paris; Jean-Luc Godard envisions Jean-Baptiste Lully's Armide as the story of French maids desperately trying to seduce burly bodybuilders lifting weights at the gym; and Julien Temple stages Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto with synchronous infidelities occurring at the same hotel.
Director
Robert Altman, Bruce Beresford, Bill Bryden, Jean-Luc Godard, Derek Jarman, Franc Roddam, Nicolas Roeg, Ken Russell, Charles Sturridge, Julien Temple
Producer
Don Boyd
Distributor
Miramax Films
Rating
R
Genre
Musical
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jul 14, 1987, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 2, 2017
Runtime
1h 31m
Sound Mix
Surround