François Girard's The Red Violin (1998) is a good-looking but ultimately insubstantial piece from a director who seems more concerned with tone, colour and style than narrative coherence. The film traces the story of a violin originally made in 17th-century Italy, which is taken to an 18th-century monastery to be played by a child prodigy. The violin later comes into the hand of a virtuoso in 19th-century Oxford, from there to China in the Cultural Revolution and on to Montreal, where--before it can be auctioned--it is "acquired"' by Samuel L Jackson. Unfortunately,... none of these stories make much of an impression: the episode in Oxford is particularly weak, with Greta Scacchi wasted, and the film is even less than the sum of its parts. Jackson is completely miscast as an expert on musical instruments, even if a criminal one. To be frank, this is a poor effort, though well photographed and with a pleasing score by composer John Corigliano performed by violinist Joshua Bell. On the DVD:The disc contains a theatrical trailer but no other features. The soundtrack is excellent, in Dolby Surround. The image is equally good, in a 1.78:1 anamorphic print. --Ed Buscombe [show more]
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