Opera Goes Cinema - Juan, The Film
by Jenny Mather

What a feast to the ears and the eyes this movie is! Casper Holten is one of Europe’s leading opera directors and he has succeeded in making a fascinating movie for his film debut. Of course, it would be hard to fail with the soundtrack of Mozart’s Don Giovanni as a backdrop, but Mr. Holten has taken the innovative step of making a movie as Mozart himself might have made it had he been alive today. So Don Giovanni becomes Juan (Christoper Maltman) who wears a smart suit instead of an eighteenth century waistcoat and silk tights. His sidekick Leperello (Mikhail Petrenko) looks like a down-at-heel student and Juan’s many lady conquests wear cocktail dresses, business suits or casual jeans as the scene demands.  Juan’s seductions take place near Copenhagen’s opera house, railway station and outside cafe. Swear words and graphic scenes have been added, no doubt to help give a modern feel to the movie.

This clever and confident movie makes you wonder what the brilliant Mr. Holten will do next.