United Artists
Directed by Peter Brook
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, MGM)
Peter Brook's treatment of the Peter Weiss play suffers from a stage bound, un-cinematic feel. It all takes place on one large set, an insane asylum, complete with an 1808 audience watching the proceedings from behind bars. It's a nearly plotless critique of French politics in the late 1700s. Unfortunately I had not studied my French history before viewing and as a result most of the references were completely over my head. I suppose there was some tie-in with the cultural "revolution" underway in the late 60s as well, but that only further dated the proceedings. The acting was fine, even expert, but the material was simply too dense to get any enjoyment out of it. The Broadway-style singing by a group of mimes, assuming mimes can sing, attempted to explain some of what was going on, but I found them intrusive and irritating. Overall, a failed experiment by a group of excellent actors and actresses.
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