Aria

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Aria

R,

1987,

1h 31m,

Musical

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Watchlist

57%

14 Reviews

Tomatometer

48%

1,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

57%

Tomatometer

14 Reviews

48%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

In this opera-based anthology, 10 directors interpret 10 popular arias. Among others, Robert Altman imagines the opening night of Jean-Philippe Rameau's Les Boréades in 1734 Paris; Jean-Luc Godard envisions Jean-Baptiste Lully's Armide as the story of French maids desperately trying to seduce burly bodybuilders lifting weights at the gym; and Julien Temple stages Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto with synchronous infidelities occurring at the same hotel.

Janet Maslin

New York Times

May 20, 2003

2/5

The best of the 10 segments is, perhaps predictably, the rare one without lofty pretensions.

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Jan 1, 2000

3/4

I am not sure that any indispensable statement about opera has been made here, and purists will no doubt recoil by the irreverence of some of the images. But the film is fun almost as a satire of itself.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Jan 9, 2024

2/5

'...a sporadically interesting project, but what it shows clearly in 2020 is that diversity is something that cannot be ignored. If all films are directed by elderly white men, then self-indulgence and juvenilia result...'

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Jason Best

Movie Talk

Nov 22, 2020

The most successful episode, though, is Julien Temple's cheerfully vulgar interpretation of 'La donna è mobile' from Verdi's Rigoletto.

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Jun 30, 2005

C

Thomas Delapa

Boulder Weekly

Jun 9, 2005

2/5

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Leia L

Jul 7, 2017

An ambitious and interesting experiment to bring together a group of acclaimed indie directors to present various short stories set to the sound of many different operas. As most experiments go some segments work, some don't with Franc Roddam and Charles Sturridge's segments reign supreme and Jean-Luc-Godard and Robert Altman's segments fall flat disastrously. Give it a watch for some unique imagery and music on display along with the late great John Hurt in a central role.

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Hermione R

Sep 26, 2014

As with any of these 8 director shorts kinda films, half of them are bland, a handful are great and some are just bad. Unsurprisingly Ken Russell delivers one of the best, and so does Julien Temple's amusing romp through the glorious Madonna Inn. Godard surprisingly wins for biggest stinker, with a real vapid short. All in all, Pretty enjoyable due to the fact it's only an hour and a half long- keeping each film in the 10 minute range. Plus the music is all super classic opera which you can't exactly go wrong with.

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Robert Altman

Director

Bruce Beresford

Director

Bill Bryden

Director

Jean-Luc Godard

Director

Derek Jarman

Director

Franc Roddam

Director

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Synopsis

In this opera-based anthology, 10 directors interpret 10 popular arias. Among others, Robert Altman imagines the opening night of Jean-Philippe Rameau's Les Boréades in 1734 Paris; Jean-Luc Godard envisions Jean-Baptiste Lully's Armide as the story of French maids desperately trying to seduce burly bodybuilders lifting weights at the gym; and Julien Temple stages Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto with synchronous infidelities occurring at the same hotel.

Director: Robert Altman, Bruce Beresford, Bill Bryden, Jean-Luc Godard, Derek Jarman, Franc Roddam, Nicolas Roeg, Ken Russell, Charles Sturridge, Julien Temple
Producer: Don Boyd
Distributor: Miramax Films
Rating: R
Genre: Musical
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 14, 1987, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 2, 2017
Runtime: 1h 31m
Sound Mix: Surround

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