The film opens with the final rehearsal for an unusual
production of Verdi’s Macbeth, but
the woman playing Lady Macbeth is upset by the presence of a raven on stage. This
scene is presented in an interesting way. We hear the actor complaining about
the production, about how the bird hates her and is deliberately ruining her
performance, but we see the theatre and the action from her perspective. So the
other actors and musicians and crew members are looking directly at us. It’s
unsettling and effective, almost aligning us with this unseen character, while
also distancing us from her, since she remains just a voice. An interesting
effect is created because we don’t want to be aligned with her; we want to
escape from her perspective, just as she wants to get away from the production.
Then, as she rushes out of the theatre, we see her hit by a car. But it’s done
in a wide shot from a distance, so we never really get a good look at her.
That leads to Betty (Cristina Marsillach), the understudy for the role, getting
a call from a mysterious man who tells her tonight she’ll make her debut as
Lady Macbeth. When her agent enters to confirm the news, Betty protests that
she’s too young for the part and is afraid she won’t be able to reach some of
the notes required. And she says, “Macbeth
brings bad luck.” This film does play with that idea of the curse of Macbeth, something that will be familiar
to all theatre people. On opening night, one of the theatre employees is
killed, causing a stage light to fall and interrupt the performance. The
director then tells Betty, “I know we’ve had some trouble, but you know it’s
got nothing to do with Macbeth.”
Whether it has to do with the choice of play or not, the trouble has just
begun. There are some intense scenes, like when Betty is tied up, the killer
using a terrifying little contraption to hold her eyes open so she is forced to
watch him murder her lover. And the scene with her agent in Betty’s apartment
is likewise intense.
The film is full of intriguing shots, camera movements
and unusual perspectives, all of which work to keep us on edge and make us
unsure of whom to trust. In addition to the actor’s perspective in the opening
scene, we get the killer’s perspective, and even a bird’s perspective, the
latter in a wild shot as the bird flies around inside the theatre. The birds
play an unusual and important role in the story, at one point unlocking their own cage and
attacking an intruder who enters the props and costumes storage area of the
theatre. There is also a somewhat humorous shot of the woman who was to play
Lady Macbeth watching the live broadcast of the performance from home. All we
see of her is her leg in a cast, as a man tells her not to be childish. And at
times we get glimpses of erotic images, such as a woman’s hands being tied, she
seemingly a willing participant as she holds her hands still for him rather
than struggling. These add to the strange, beautiful, dreamlike quality of the
movie. But it all fits together.
Music also plays an important role in this film.
Obviously, we get portions of the music from the opera. But another moment I
love is the sudden contrast in music when the stage manager is murdered. A loud
rock song plays, in jarring contrast to the music that’s come before and the
beautiful, ethereal music that plays afterward. This is an excellent and
enjoyable film, one of Argento’s best.
Special Features
The Blu-ray contains a couple of special features. The
first, Blood Red Curtain, is an
interview with Dario Argento about the film. He begins by saying, “It is a film
that I love, and I put it first place among my favorite films.” Argento is a
fan of opera, and actually was able to stage Verdi’s Macbeth years after this film (and this special feature treats us
to a couple of still images from that production). He talks about the troubles
of working with ravens, including that one bit him in the face. He also talks
about some of the camera moves, as well as the music. This feature is approximately
twenty-two minutes.
The second special feature is an interview with actor
William McNamara, who tells the story about getting the role in the film, and
about working on two projects at once. He talks about his death scene. But the
most interesting anecdote he tells is in regards to that opening scene,
offering the explanation for why it was shot the way it was. Wild! This feature is approximately seventeen minutes.
There are also three trailers for the film, the first of
which has the film titled Terror At The
Opera.
Opera is scheduled to be released on Blu-ray on January 23, 2018 through Scorpion Releasing.
Opera is scheduled to be released on Blu-ray on January 23, 2018 through Scorpion Releasing.
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