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5.0 out of 5 stars
Geraldine Farrar in DeMille's "Carmen", Jun 23 2000
By 1915, Metropolitan Opera soprano, Geraldine Farrar, had an international reputation. DeMille, looking for the perfect vehicle to introduce her to the screen, had to look no further than one of her most successful stage roles--Carmen. In fact, by 1915 Farrar had already undertaken the role at the Met opposite none other than Enrico Caruso (who also sang opposite Farrar in the first American "Madama Butterfly" at the Met in 1908).DeMille saw "Carmen" as the ideal role for Farrar's first film, but due to the enormous fee requested for the opera's libretto, he adapted the original story by Prosper Merimee, which had fallen into the public domain. So, this film version, while basically telling the same story, differs somewhat from the Bizet opera. For film buffs, the film offers an unusually compact directorial effort for DeMille with a running time of just 59 minutes. And, there's none of DeMille's usual moralizing. For opera buffs, "Carmen" allows a unique view of an opera legend in a role she made famous. Although the film is silent, Farrar ably conveys the character's earthy quality, while not actually convincing us of her sensuality. An added plus: Not only is this Keno print in remarkable condition, but also affords us the opportunity to hear Farrar sing some recorded arias from the opera during a presentation of stills from the movie.
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