The Tales of Hoffmann (1951)

London Films
Directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Criterion Collection)

The striking visual design and horror undercurrents are ultimately killed by boredom. Our hero Hoffmann falls in love and sings to three different women at three times of his life. He has an arch nemesis who tries to foil each relationship. The film just drifts along with no narrative focus whatsoever. I could have cared less about Hoffmann, his lovers or really anyone. I like opera, or at least can tolerate it, but this just goes on and on and on...