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Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: DVD EAN: 0044007431177 Format: Classical, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, DVD-Video, NTSC Label: Decca Languages: Manufacturer: Decca MPN: 000548609 Number Of Discs: 1 Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Decca Region Code: 1 Release Date: November 08, 2005 Running Time: 76 minutes Studio: Decca Theatrical Release Date: 2005 Editorial Review: Amazon.com: The power of art to defy and even transcend politics and oppression is the theme of Shostakovich Against Stalin: The War Symphonies, director Larry Weinstein's documentary about Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich and the six symphonies he composed while his homeland suffered under the brutal dictatorship of Josef Stalin. Born in 1906, Shostakovich gained considerable prominence after the unveiling of his first symphony in 1926, by which time Lenin was dead, the USSR had been founded, and Stalin had assumed power as General Secretary of the Communist Party. Thereafter, the composer was subject to the whims of the dictator. An early opera, "Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk" (a depiction of "the justified murder of a tryant"), led to his being banned; his Symphony No. 7, the "Leningrad Symphony," composed as Hitler invaded Russia in 1941, was virtually appropriated by Stalin as great symbol of resistance (which it was--although Shostakovich intended it as a rebuke to all forms of socialism, including Stalin's), but the tables were turned again with Symphony No. 8, which was regarded as "counter-revolutionary." Through it all, the composer's work (generous extracts of which can be heard among the DVD bonus features) revealed how he really felt about life under Stalin, whose regime was responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of Russians. Much of Symphonies No. 4-8 consists of music that's harsh and aggressive, nervous and tragic; even No. 9, written to commemorate the Allied triumph in World War II and seemingly a light, joyous ode to victory, was in fact filled with musical sarcasm, a favorite mode of expression for Shostakovich. A combination of photos, vintage file footage (some of it featuring the composer himself), newer interviews with family, friends, and musicologists, and more, Shostakovich Against Stalin is a moving tribute to a great artist's will. --Sam Graham Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Shostakovich Symphonies In ContextI was fortunate enough to hear Symphony 7 by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra last week. As moving as the music was, it has helped so much to see this documentary and understand the world Shastakovich lived in when he was composing the "Leningrad". I appreciated the different camera angles of Gergiev's orchestra, and Gergiev does a very good job of explaining to his musicians and his audience the emotions of the music. I never got tired of hearing him talk about the symphonies. The historical footage ... Read More Rating: - Excellent DocumentaryI watch a lot of documentaries on music, and this one blew me away. The story is compelling, but not told in a didactic way. And, best of all, the music is allowed to speak for itself. Many clips are used, not just in a superficial way as with many documentaries, but as a real part of the film. I especially like when they superimpose the interviewees singing or playing over the orchestra. The music will really ring in your head for weeks and the story told will give it more meaning than ever before. Rating:  - Interesting doc and sounds - awful video transferNot necessarily the deepest or best organized of docs, this is nonetheless engrossing and, in view of a lack of similar material, invaluable. The generally excellent Canadian Rhombus ("32 Short Films About Glenn Gould", a terrific film about Falla, the title of which escapes me) is behind this. However, their efforts are all but sabotaged by one of the worst film-to-video transfers I've seen. To say that there are artifacts doesn't begin to describe it. So, even though I enjoyed the film and the DTS audio ... Read More Rating:  - Not that greatI was let down. I thought this video would be compelling and interesting but the comments are obvious. The filming is very ordinary and the conductor has nothing that new to say. Also they passed over some of the symphonies like the 7th. This is really a second rate item. Nothing special. Rating: - Good, but does not stand alone.Overall not a bad documentary, I'm glad I have it but if I could there are a couple of things I would add to it. Simply put its just too short. There is very little about the eight symphony and its aftermath, and therefor the ninth doesn't have its proper context. I don't believe the sixth is mentioned at all, granted it doesn't fit the theme of the DVD, but good historical research doesn't not have a theme. If this is an area of interest there are several books that are of much more value. |
