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15/05/2014 21:26 par tellurikwaves

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Š-DR-PUCCINI FOR BEGINNERS de Maria Maggenti (2007) p14

15/05/2014 21:19 par tellurikwaves

Does not contain something for everyone
7/10
Author: gfvaughn from Houston
8 July 2008

To me this is a decently made digitally-recorded film. It looks better than many low budget features. Photography and sound is generally good except for interior lighting that in places seems a little too flat for my taste. Yes, it follows in the "screwball comedy" tradition to some extent. Occasionally, early directorial efforts attempt to bring in more themes than they can successfully integrate fully. The operatic theme and title wanders off and gets lost somewhere about halfway through. Two sushi chef characters are funny and provide more zest and unity end-to-end than the operatic theme. Various other minor characters who speak just a few words all enhance the story as well and keep it moving.

Dialog relies on psycho-babble for exposition. This does not necessarily detract if the audience can understand it. But the thought that this might be lifted from Woody Allen never occurred to me while watching the film first without, then with, the commentary. Any resemblance this film may bear to certain W.A. hallmarks as others have suggested is coincidental.This isn't a mere goofy/silly wisecracking comedy, either. It has gender identity issues that inevitably darken the mood for the major part of its potential audience. This core aspect of the narrative reduces the film to a subculture where it needs to succeed within a limited cult following to become commercially successful.

Several comments in the narrative reemphasize the writer-director's gender orientation and politics. Given key career and relationship choices that most of the lead female characters make during their arc, it's questionable whether this film is going to engage a lot of general public sympathy. Nevertheless, plentiful relationship dynamics such as basic ability to communicate apply to all romantic relationships. The outcome here is more positive and carries with it greater depth that gives this film its charm.

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15/05/2014 21:12 par tellurikwaves

Gretchen Mol : Grace 

*

*

Delightful, Effervescent
10/10
Author: freddiebean from United States
7 October 2006

I saw this film at Sundance and can't wait for it to get distribution so that I can see it again and again! This is the kind of film that doesn't really get made anymore: witty, fun, intelligent, truly entertaining, reminiscent of classic Hollywood screwball comedy. Wonderful use of New York City as a set, sparkling script, winning performances.

Even the smaller roles are wonderfully cast and written. Every detail of the film is beautifully executed. This is how film-making should be, and as an audience member, how experiencing a film should be. The late-night audience at Sundance LOVED this film , gave a standing ovation  for the director. I am hoping nationwide audiences will soon have the same opportunity to enjoy this delightful film.

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15/05/2014 21:06 par tellurikwaves

See This Movie...
9/10
Author: Davy Ray from United States
2 February 2007

Better than Woody Allen's last five movies combined, PUCCINI FOR BEGINNERS is that snappiest, funniest, romantic comedy in recent memory. The cast is spectacular and the direction is flawless. I can't say enough good things about this movie. I first heard about it at Sundance; everyone I know who attended kept telling how I needed to see it. I am not one to buy the hype so I just let the movie fade from memory.

Having just seen it, I see that the hype wasn't unjustified; in fact, I'd say it wasn't strong enough. Put simply: this movie is cute. C. U. T. E. Gretchen is adorable, as always. Elizabeth Reaser is a dream come true; she delivers her dialogue with the skill and precision of a government trained sniper. Justin is so affable, you can hardly stand it. Overall, I just have to say that missing this movie highly, highly inadvisable.

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15/05/2014 17:44 par tellurikwaves

Š-DR-PUCCINI FOR BEGINNERS de Maria Maggenti (2007) p10

15/05/2014 17:41 par tellurikwaves

La critique de James Berardinelli (fin)

Puccini for Beginners strives to be a screwball comedy and there are times when it succeeds (as during a cell phone conversation outside a restaurant). More often, however, the humor is subtle, avoiding the kinds of slapstick that turn characters into caricatures. Maggenti's screenplay may be highly dependent upon coincidence and contrivance, but the men and women populating it make it easier to accept. As for Puccini, he gets little more than a cameo. His music forms the skeleton of the score and Allegra is a big fan, but the film doesn't demand or impart any knowledge about opera. As sit-coms go, this one is smarter and brighter than standard TV fare, which may account in part for its appeal.

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15/05/2014 17:36 par tellurikwaves

La critique de James Berardinelli (suite)

The actors are well matched to their roles. Elizabeth Reaser, whose credits tilt more toward TV shows than feature films, gives Allegra spunk and spirit. Despite the film's various connections to Woody Allen, at least the protagonist isn't a whiny neurotic. Gretchen Mol loses some of the glamour that marked her turn as Bettie Page but she remains delightful and conveys a girl-next-door appeal. (Not that I've ever lived next to a girl who looks like her.) Justin Kirk, another TV/indie performer with a growing fan base, has a disarmingly boyish charm. He's less polished than, say, Hugh Grant, but perhaps more believable as a result.

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15/05/2014 17:31 par tellurikwaves

La critique de James Berardinelli (suite)

Puccini for Beginners is littered with witty dialogue, although some of it is so obviously scripted that it can become off-putting.Granted,no one in the real world talks with verbal rapiers drawn as they do in Oscar Wilde plays, but Maggenti isn't Wilde. The three main characters - Allegra, Philip, and Grace - are likable, if a little self- absorbed. The film makes some valid points about love and commitment, although there's nothing here that could be considered new.

Fortunately, it's presented in a way that never feels stale or moldy. And the Sapphic angle is more organic than trendy. This is a critical element - it makes Puccini for Beginners a "romantic comedy" (that happens to feature lesbians) rather than a "lesbian romantic comedy." Maggenti's debut feature, The Incredibly True Adventures of Two Girls in Love, was a lesbian romantic comedy.

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15/05/2014 17:25 par tellurikwaves

à gauche Justin Kirk : Philip

For Allegra, whose self-definition is wrapped up in her sexuality, falling for a man is a new experience. But her Sapphic tendencies haven't been submerged, as becomes apparent when she meets Grace (Gretchen Mol), with whom she spends nights when she's not sleeping with Philip. There's a twist, however: Grace is Philip's ex, and Allegra doesn't know this - at least to start with.

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15/05/2014 17:18 par tellurikwaves

à droite Gretchen Mol : Grace

*

*

La critique de James Berardinelli
Puccini for Beginners has a lot less to do with opera than it has to do with a sit-com view of life in the Big City. Not that the approach is inherently bad, and director Maria Maggenti has fashioned a reasonably entertaining movie that borrows heavily from Woody Allen, Sex in the City, and Seinfeld. Her view of New York is that of a big neighborhood where there are no crowds, the sidewalks are clean, and people talk to one another. Maggenti, like Allen, has done for New York what so many directors have done for Paris. (And she actually filmed in New York, not in some other city made up to look like it.)°°°