Synopsis
Benoit Jacquot's acclaimed 2002 film of Puccini's opera stars Angela Gheorghiu in the title role, with Roberto Alagna, Ruggero Raimondi and the Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, under Antonio Pappano.
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Cast
- Angela GheorghiuFloria Tosca
- Roberto AlagnaMario Cavaradossi
- Ruggero RaimondiBaron Scarpia
- David CangelosiSpoletta
- Sorin ColibanSciarrone
- Enrico FissoreSacristan
- Maurizio MuraroCesare Angelotti
- Gwynne HowellIl carceriere
- James Savage-HanfordUn pastore
- Antonio PappanoConductor
Recommendations
- 100
New York Magazine (Vulture)
A rare example of first-rate filmed opera. - 83
Entertainment Weekly
Conveys the heaving passion of Puccini's famous love-jealousy-murder-suicide fandango with great cinematic innovation. - 75
Christian Science Monitor
The result is a fine production with splendid singing by Angela Gheorghiu, Ruggero Raimondi, and Roberto Alagna. It joins the very short list of first-rate opera films. - 75
San Francisco Chronicle
Glorious moments aplenty despite director who's just in the way. - 67
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The result is arty but pointless. The sets are unreal looking and so huge the characters drown in their vast spaces. - 63
New York Daily News
For the broader audience, this seems both suffocating and confusing -- True opera buffs, however, are more likely to feel thrilled, as if they're privy to a private production of the highest caliber. - 63
Chicago Tribune
You would be better off investing in the worthy EMI recording that serves as the soundtrack, or the home video of the 1992 Malfitano-Domingo production. - 60
New Times (L.A.)
Audiences are advised to sit near the back and squint to avoid noticing some truly egregious lip-non-synching, but otherwise the production is suitably elegant, a fine retreat from summer cinema overkill.
