I, Don Giovanni

Director: Carlos Saura
Cast: Lorenzo Balducci, Lino Guanciale, Tobias Moretti, Ennio Fantastichini and Emilia Verginelli
Releasing in cinemas: 6 May 2010
Rated: M

Dealing with the intrigues behind Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni, this splendid recreation of the period has the look of a series of master paintings rather than a film. The lovely Emilia Verginelli in her close-ups could be straight from Rossetti’s (or is it Botticelli’s?) palette. It’s been a pleasure to review three legitimately beautiful films to watch in as many weeks. The others were The Concert and The White Ribbon. Amongst so many instantly forgettable movies, they restore faith in the visual power of the medium.

From the misty and ominous opening in miasmic 18th century Venice, we’re in no doubt about being in Carlos Saura territory, with the eerie image of a theatrical white statue gliding along the fog-bound canal. Libertine poet and writer Lorenzo da Ponte (Lorenzo Balducci) - originally a priest - leads a cavalier lifestyle under the influence of his friend and patron Giacomo Casanova (Tobias Moretti).

His affairs result in Lorenzo being exiled to Vienna, despite falling deeply in love with Annetta (Emilia Verginelli), daughter of an old gambling colleague. In Vienna he meets with the King’s favourite composer Salieri (Ennio Fantastichini), and the wildly enthusiastic newcomer Mozart (Lino Guanciale). The jealous Salieri foists the unproven Lorenzo off on to Mozart as a librettist, expecting he’ll bring the young composer down.

Of course that’s anything but the case, and Lorenzo writes the libretto for The Marriage of Figaro, a big hit of the day. In the packed theatre for the premiere, we glimpse the lovely Annetta. But Lorenzo has a mistress, the opera singer Ferrarese and after some years they travel to the Castle of Dux, where they meet with the aging Casanova, who urges Lorenzo to work with Mozart again to produce a new version of Don Giovanni.

An exciting collaboration begins on the opera, and as rehearsals progress Lorenzo discovers Annetta is now Mozart’s pupil. While romance between them blooms once more, it could be too late as Annetta is already betrothed. Lorenzo leaves his mistress to try and win back Annetta, and in so doing the image of Don Giovanni - broadly based on the free spirited libertine Casanova - undergoes something of a change. Casanova himself hopes to influence the end of the opera as he’s not keen to be unceremoniously consigned to hell.

Carlos Saura, the Spanish director best known perhaps for his flamenco spectaculars especially Carmen, shows his strength again with the marvelous fluidity of his images which so effectively create the places and operas of the story. Saura’s world seems gossamer thin, constantly dissolving, the stage and reality fusing into one whole. A wide shot of Vienna turns out to be a painting, and at times the cast are frozen in theatrical tableaux. It’s theatre within a film and you’re never quite sure which level you’re viewing. Having considerable flair for fashion and composition, Saura and cinematographer Vittorio Storaro creates striking images from the crowded squares of Venice, to the gilded theatres of Vienna.

Saura selects his actors with care so that their facial characteristics reflect their inner convictions, and importantly they look if they belong to the period. Lorenzo Balducci is comfortable as the smooth libertine da Ponte, a perfect foil to the old reprobate Casanova played by Tobias Moretti. You might recall Moretti as Adolf Hitler in the TV mini-series Speer und Er. Lino Guanciale has fun with his zestful and slightly loopy Mozart, drawn to some extent on Tom Hulce's Amadeus portrayal. Emilia Verginelli, with her Pre-Raphaelite beauty, glows in her role as the object of Lorenzo’s heart. The supporting cast, especially the members of the opera within the film, are all commendable. The costumes and set design give the film a unique look of the 18th century through the eyes of Carlos Saura - a joy to behold.

John Bale