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Black Orpheus (1959) Reviews

Black Orpheus (1959)
Member Rating:  
Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro) is literally what its title suggests: a retelling of the "Orpheus and Eurydice" legend enacted by black performers. This time the setting is the annual Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. Orpheus (Breno Mello) is a streetcar conductor; Eurydice (Marpessa Dawn) has just jilted her lover and is attempting to escape his wrath. Orpheus himself falls in love with Eurydice, whereupon her ex-lover, disguised as the Angel of Death shows up and kills Eurydice. To reclaim his lost love, Orpheus enters "Hell" (the Rio morgue) and uses supernatural methods to revive the dead girl. A multi-award winner on the international film scene, Black Orpheus features a samba musical score by Luiz Bonfa and Antonio Carlos Jobim. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Starring:
Breno Mello, Marpessa Dawn, (more)
Director(s):
Marcel Camus
Format(s):
DVD  |  Blu-ray
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Average Ratings

(12 member reviews)  

Member Reviews

Richard B.

This samba-driven adaptation of an ancient drama is lively and touching. One oddity about the DVD: the English voicetrack at a couple points momentarily changes to Russian.

Yes   |   No


CAROLYN L S.

I first saw this movie when I was a child, it has stayed with me. I remember the music and the cinematography in particular. This is a great film, a classic.

Yes   |   No


Henrietta M.

This movie was a reflection of what many people in 1959 thought black people were like. It was not remotely believeable.

Yes   |   No


Jennifer H.

If you have never seen this movie, rent it now. The story is a classic love story (Orpheus and Eurydice), played out in brasil during carnival. The soundtrack is wonderful, the visuals are wonderful and the story is wonderful. This is a well done movie and stands the test of time. I especially like the fact that hell is a paper filled bureacracy.

Yes   |   No


JOHNNY J.

This movie just didnt make any sense. If I didnt know the story before hand I would've been completely lost. Great colors and scenery just bad acting and story telling I guess.

Yes   |   No


Stephanie R.

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. There is amazing footage of Rio, and it is cool to see how the city has changed. I speak Portuguese so it is easy to follow, but I don't think the subtitles are hard to follow. The story itself is familiar if you know the greek myth of Orpheus. This is a clever movie for the way it takes an old story and recreates it in a modern environment.

Yes   |   No


William T.

The story of Orpheus and Euridice set at Carnaval time in Rio de Janeiro circa 1959. If you believe in love at first sight this is the film for you. Actually, it is at first glance and was not very believeable. The morgue and macumba scenes were strange and added little to the story except a lot of time. I prefer the 1999 film titled Orfeu. Orfeu and Euridice actually have time to fall in love before the tragedy and the Carnaval scenes from the Sambadromo are beautiful. I was caught off guard on a couple of occasions when, for no reason, the English soundtrack switched to Portuguese with subtitles and then back to English. If you are a fan of or interested in Carnaval in Rio it is a good way to spend an hour and a half.

Yes   |   No


Karyn J.

I rented, but did not see it. It was shipped with some kind of coating on it that deemed the disc not viewable. Perhaps I will rent it again another time... :-(

Yes   |   No


Nicole L.

If you like sub-titled movies, this is the one for you; For me it was very hard to follow & understand & caused me to actually research the myth, I think this movie is allegedly based on, but even that is convoluted

Yes   |   No


Kimberly P.

This is a strange movie. Trying to interpret it was not too difficult but it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Yes   |   No


 
 
 

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Member Reviews
Read all (12)
 
Richard B.

This samba-driven adaptation of an ancient drama is lively and touching. One oddity about the DVD: the English voicetrack at a couple points momentarily changes to Russian.

Yes   |   No

 
CAROLYN L S.

I first saw this movie when I was a child, it has stayed with me. I remember the music and the cinematography in particular. This is a great film, a classic.

Yes   |   No

 
Henrietta M.

This movie was a reflection of what many people in 1959 thought black people were like. It was not remotely believeable.

Yes   |   No

 
Read All 12 Reviews
 

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