The Magic Flute (2006)

Very best movie i ever watch

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Based on the 1791 opera "Die Zauberflöte" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, this is certainly a well made film but I can't say that I particularly enjoyed it. As far as opera is concerned, I am a complete philistine and this film did not nothing to change that, I'm afraid. I had never seen a full one on stage or on screen before this film and I am not inclined to watch another one after this. It felt far, far longer than two hours. As with Richard Attenborough's worst film "A Chorus Line", I would never have watched the film if it had been made by one of my favourite directors, in this case Kenneth Branagh. His skill as a director is in evidence throughout the film, most notably the uninterrupted and extremely complex six minute take, and the decision to set it against the backdrop of the First World War was an interesting one but there was little else than I enjoyed about it. The singing was excellent but it was rather overwhelming since it accounted for almost the entire running time. Having just finished the film, I am pretty exhausted, to be frank.Overall, it is not a bad film by any means but it was just not to my personal tastes at all. Hey, at least I can say that I gave opera a try! That box is ticked now. This is without a doubt my least favourite film directed by Branagh.

Now Kenneth Branagh's The Magic Flute is not my favourite opera film- then again this is a list that includes the 1976 film Tosca, Losey's 1979 Don Giovanni, Bergman's 1975 Magic Flute, Zeffirelli's 1982 La Traviata and 1986 Otello, Rossi's 1984 Carmen, Friederich's 1975 Salome and 1981 Elektra, and Ponnelle's 1982 Rigoletto, 1975 Le Nozze Di Figaro and 1981 La Cenerentola- but being someone who loves Mozart's opera I found myself very impressed by it.It does look stunning visually. Despite the first world war setting, the film still maintains the opera fairy-tale feel, and the setting is evoked to poignant effect. On top of that, the costumes and sets do look beautiful, the effects dazzle and the cinematography shows a lot of skill. Mozart's music alone is worth the watch, with gems like the Overture, Papagaeno's Birdcatcher song, the Act 1 quintet, Dies Bildnis Ist Bezaubernd Schön, the duet between Pamina and Papagaeno, Ah Ich Fuhl, the Isis Und Osiris chorale, Der Halle Roche, In Diesen Heil'Gen Hallen, the scene between Pamina and the Three Boys and Papagaeno and Papagaena's duet, it is one of his best scores. Stylishly played and conducted, the film is a musical treat.Stephen Fry's writing I quite liked, a lot of it is very witty and poetic. There are a couple of scenes where the writing doesn't quite work, such as in Sarastro's Isis Und Osiris, but overall I was entertained. The story, although the librettos of Cosi Fan Tutte and Don Giovanni are perhaps stronger and more compelling, is still powerful and moving to me, if missing some of the themes of the opera to make it even more gripping(ie. the whole Masonic idea). Of the characters, I was thrilled by Queen of the Night and Sarastro is noble and firm. However I was disappointed with Monostatos. Now here is a character that can either way, from overplayed, under-characterised or just right, and is perhaps the opera's most controversial character. But this is perhaps for me the first time where Monostatos' role is somewhat pointless.Of the leads, Lyubov Petrova is the dramatic standout in a thrilling, hard-edged and often chilling performance as the fiendishly challenging role of Queen of the Night, especially with those eyes. Vocally, I have to say Rene Pape stood out by a mile. Not only is his Sarastro firm, noble and also comforting, but his voice is one of the warmest and most beautiful basso voices of recent times. He alone makes Isis Und Osiris worth watching, though as I've said I don't consider the scene in this film among the best versions of that aria, but I actually found In Diesen Heil'Gen Hallen to show off his vocal and character strengths more effectively.Benjamin Jay Davis is a fun and charming Papagaeno, and Silvia Moi is suitably pert in the role of Papagaena. Together, they(and the older version of Papagaena) are a hoot. Joseph Kaiser is a dashing and not too stiff Tamino, and Amy Carson's Pamina is radiant and moving. These two really convince together. The Three Ladies are wonderfully kinky, the Three Boys shine with their simple charm and the chorus work is very well balanced. Branagh on the whole directs beautifully, I could tell even by the interviews and featurette of this Magic Flute that he had put a lot of thought and care into the film. It shows.All in all, a very good, well sung and acted and magical film. I personally don't consider it the best version or production of the opera that I've seen(2003 Covent Garden, 1978 Glyndebourne, 1982 Salzburg, 1975 Bergman film and 1971 Peter Ustinov-directed version) and it is not perfect, but for any opera or Kenneth Branagh fans it is worth watching. 8/10 Bethany Cox

I think it's sad that this movie got such a low IMDb grade. I just wanted to say that this film is not for people who has an abc list of criteria each film has to fulfill to be a "good" film.I do not watch much TV and film, and it's getting even less as I've started to work in the business myself.This movie is for people like me, who've seen enough to see they need something different. AND it's for Magic Flute fans. I you don't like things being different or Mozart, you won't like this film either.But IF you like Mozart and things that are different (call it "original" if you'd like). Then this is a MUST SEE. Branaugh has captured ALL the important details i this movie, and by IMPORTANT I don't mean whether the coloratura can hit the F sharp in a special way. I mean captured the true FEEL of the original play.The libretto is silly and full of love, so is this movie. I've seen so many different versions of the opera, but only in this film have I seen truly fitting singers in the different roles. Most casts have a dull Tamino -> in this he's brilliant. Pamina is brilliant. Papageno is brilliant.Mozart would be proud of himself and the performers and Branaugh if he'd watched it. Congratulations!

It's a sad fact but the libretto of Die Zauberfloete is quite... weak. This film has done the amazing achievement of lifting up the story line and making in it not only beautiful in music and decors, but also interesting to follow and understandable! Chapeau. What a great movie. The Papageno-Papagena sound at the end is a masterpiece and is a perfect capture of the theme behind the scene. It's uplifting and joyful, and the voices are perfectly acceptable to very good. It's at the same pleasure level as La Traviatta of Franco Zefirelli. And I have to say it takes guts to revisit this story with a WW1 theme and achieving such a nice result.