Peter Sellars Movies

This release contains performances of Tchaikovsky's one-act opera Iolanta and Stravinsky's Persephone, both staged at one of Spain's most admired opera houses. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

The title is a literal one: Mark Kidel's A Journey with Peter Sellars embarks on a day-by-day journey with the titular celebrity, one of the top-tiered film and stage directors in the modern world, and easily one of the most controversial, given his postmodern inclination to reposit classical operas in anachronistic and unlikely environs. The film in question follows Sellars's doings over a pivotal two-year period that finds him engaging in such activities and roles as rehearsals of Osvaldo Golijav's Ainadamar at the Santa Fe opera house and lectures as World Arts and Culture Professor at UCLA, even as Kidel looks back to trace Sellars' prodigious and meteoric rise to a theatrical phenomenon (and the director of the American National Theater in Washington) at the age of 26. Kidel also provides an opportunity to witness the gestation of Sellars's opera A Flowering Tree. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

Director Olivier Jahan offers an glimpse into The Director's Fortnight, a sidebar of the Cannes Film Festival conceived by a group of filmmakers known as the Société des Réalisateurs de Films who sought to counter the academism of the main part of the world-renowned festival. Pierre-Henri Deleau, the one-time artistic director of the Société des Réalisateurs de Films, and as his successor Olivier Père take movie lovers behind the scenes as the dedicated group of filmmakers prepare for the 2007 Director's Fortnight. Archive footage, film clips, and interviews with over two-dozen directors offer a comprehensive look at forty years of cinematic rebellion. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

The creation of atomic weapons by a team of scientists led by Robert Oppenheimer in 1945 had a powerful impact on nearly every aspect of American culture, so it's not surprising that composer John Adams and director Peter Sellars, two leading figures in contemporary opera, would collaborate on a piece about Oppenheimer and his notorious invention. In 2005, Adams and Sellars teamed up to create Doctor Atomic, an opera that focuses on Oppenheimer during the 48 hours before the first test of the atomic bomb, and filmmaker Jon Else -- whose credits include The Day After Trinity, an award-winning documentary on Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project -- chronicles the writing and staging of this performance piece in the film Wonders Are Many. Wonders Are Many intercuts footage about Oppenheimer's life and career with a detailed look at Adams and Sellars deep in the creative process as they rehearse their cast, work out their staging, struggle to complete last-minute changes in the music and libretto, and attend to hundreds of other details as the date of the premiere performance draws near. Originally created for broadcast on public television, Wonders Are Many also was screened at a number of major film festivals, including the 2007 San Francisco International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Maverick stage director Peter Sellars transfers George Frideric Handel's three-part oratorio to a modern sitting for this performance captured live at the Glyndebourne Opera Festival and featuring William Christie conducting the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, and Dawn Upshaw and David Daniels in the lead. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Flamboyant Broadway renaissance man Peter Sellars was the director of The Cabinet of Dr. Ramirez. This freewheeling musical horror spoof isn't meant to be taken seriously, so don't be fooled by those Karloffian trappings. Ron Vawter plays the title character for all it's worth. He has to, with such formidable competition as Joan Cusack, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Werner Klemperer, the latter cast as "Fat Man Searching for a Tax Break." There's also a "Beaver Gourmet" in the cast of characters, which should clue you in as to the level of subtlety here. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Peter Sellars' productions of Mozart are infamously radical; the astonishingly creative director has long been celebrated -- and, in turn, reviled -- for his non-traditional stagings and bizarre re-locations of everything from Don Giovanni to Marriage of Figaro (both re-set in New York City). This exciting program features excerpts from Sellars' most controversial pieces, in addition to interviews with the man himself. ~ Carly Wray, Rovi

Peter Sellars directs Mozart's "Nozze Di Figaro" accompanied by the Vienna Philharmonic under the direction of Craig Smith with the Arnold Schonberg Choir in Italian with English subtitles. ~ Rovi

One of Mozart's most popular operas receives a stellar production from the respected La Scalla company as preserved in this video, starring British baritone Thomas Allen in the title role. The supporting cast includes Edita Gruberova, Ann Murray and Francisco Araiza. Don Giovanni is performed in the original Italian, with English subtitles. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Happy New Year is an Americanized remake of the 1974 French film of the same name. Peter Falk and Charles Durning play Nick and Charlie, a pair of seedy but suave jewel thieves. Preparing to rob the exclusive Florida jewelry store managed by Tom Courtenay, Nick and Charlie meticulously pre-plan their heist, adopting a variety of false identities and silly costumes along the way. Unfortunately for our heroes, Nick becomes enamored of Caroline (Wendy Hughes, in her American film debut), the beautiful owner of the antique shop next door to the jewelry store. Nick's fascination with Caroline effectively scuttles his and Charlies' "perfect" crime. Claude Lelouch, writer/director of the original Happy New Year, appears in an amusing cameo role. Bedeviled with production problems, the Falk-Durning Happy New Year didn't see the light of day until nearly a year after its completion; after a fitful theatrical release, the film went straight to video, where it finally built up a following. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This documentary captures a performance featuring over one-hundred singers and dancers showcasing various traditional Russian music and dances. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi