Nutcracker

Of all the productions of the Nutcracker I've seen, this one would win my vote for best picture out of the batch. It's very well focused with regards to the actual storyline. Good thing I taped it while I had the chance.

I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 300 HOLIDAY FILMS & SPECIALS. I HAVE NO AGENDA.

Every year there seems to be on variations on "Christmas Classics" There is always new "twist" done to "It's a Wonderful Life", "A Christmas Carol", "Groundhog Day", "The Gift of the Magi" and even variations on "The Nutcracker"

The Nutcracker has been done as "A CARTOON" " A movie with no dancing" "A Semi-Musical" and even on "On Ice" This film however is not a twist it is just a beautiful filmed version of the famous ballet.

Nutcracker: The Motion Picture, like the Stowell-Sendak stage production on which it is based, is presented as Clara's coming-of- age story. It depicts Clara's inner conflict and confusion, as well as the beginning of her sexual awakening, as she approaches adolescence; similar themes occur in many of Sendak's books.

The film especially emphasizes the darker aspects of Hoffmann's original story and the significance of dreams and the imagination. The cinematography, by making considerable use of closeups and medium shots, attempts to bring viewers closer to the psychology of the main characters.

For the film's soundtrack, Sir Charles Mackerras conducted the London Symphony Orchestra at the Watford Town Hall in London in a new recording of Tchaikovsky's score. The passage for chorus was performed by the Tiffin School Boys' Choir. The soundtrack also includes the "Duet of Daphnis and Chloe" from Tchaikovsky's opera The Queen of Spades, performed by Cathryn Pope and Sarah Walker. Telarc released the complete soundtrack on compact disc, coinciding with the release of the film

This film however was not met with great reviews upon its initial release. They were okay at best. It was a huge box office bomb taking in less than $1 Million during its entire run. However since 1986 the film has developed a following and it is easy to understand why.

The soundtrack / orchestra is perfect. You will never hear the score sound better. The staging and costumes are wonderful. Its was directed with such craftsmanship that even if your NOT a huge ballet lover (Which I am not) you will be swept into the scope of this production. If you stumble across it on TV once you watch 10 seconds your hooked. That is what happened to me.

On home video however the film has never had a great release. The original VHS that was released by Paramount was only out for a short time and went out of print. It was later released by GOODTIMES home video and it was in the dreaded LP speed and lacked the stereo mix that the Paramount release had.

Even today the film has never had a DVD release that was worth buying. When MGM finally released a DVD they used an old master that was most likely from the Paramount Home Video release some 25 years earlier. What worked for a VHS release doesn't work for a DVD. In fact its not even a Pressed DVD it is a MOD DVD which makes the picture even softer! Plus is was in the old 4x3 (Pan and Scan) format. Most films released on DVD are presented in the Widescreen Format if the movie was shot in that format. "The Nutcracker" was shot that way but MGM was to cheap to re-master the film. So we get a DVD that is soft and at times un- focused. The stereo soundtrack however is very good. There is however room for improvement if there is a future blu-ray release.

I doubt a blu-ray release will ever see the light of day. Even if MGM wants to release a blu-ray the film will most likely need to have a restoration. I hope it gets one.

On the bright side HD-NET a cable/satellite channel does have a respectable transfer of the film that they show. It is 16x9 and the sound mix is great and its also in stereo. Now why hasn't MGM used this transfer for a DVD is beyond me.

Now back to the film itself. It is the best presentation that has ever been put on film! The only thing wrong is there is no "Mother Ginger in this production". The colors and costumes are as eye popping. The orchestra is one that will put others to shame.

For years Video Stores (if they had a copy) reported that this was a huge rental during the holidays!

A few years later Warner Brothers decided to make their version of the film! Just like other remakes the film industry thought they could do another film and do it better. So in 1993 they released a "Bigger Budget" production.

That version was not 1/2 as good. The only thing it had that the 1986 version didn't was Macaulay Culkin and Mother Ginger.

Catch this 1986 Version! Its worth seeing.

This is easily the best adaptation of The Nutcracker I've seen, on stage or film. Ballard is a great director who adapts his skills to the material. The images really flow, and the Maurice Sendak designs are at once graceful and funny and slightly malevolent (giving the material the edge it needs to avoid candyland preciousness). The critics (Ebert, Maltin, et al) really missed the boat on this one. Most of them criticized the fact that Ballard edits into the dancing. But he edits superbly, highlighting the movements that should be highlighted, at precisely the right moment. There's never a cut or a camera move that feels out of place. It's a classic--sadly neglected now (not even available on video).

We taped this off of television when I was very small, and since then one of my aunties taped over it and broke my Mom's heart. I was lucky enough to find an old library copy of it on ebay, and restore the Christmas tradition to my house. As an arts major, I'm sensible that there can't be too clean a transition from ballet to "motion picture." But I believe this film came as close as possible. It is, for the most part, a very well-taped performance of the Pacific Northwest Ballet's production of "The Nutcracker," with a few special effects and some narration. It's filmed on the Seattle Stage, and because of its movie-like qualities it can focus close on the dancer's faces and shows the great acting skills that many of them possess. I've heard a lot of criticism of the seeming obsession Drosselmyer holds with Clara, but I like it. It adds so much more the the scenes in her parent's party, and I don't think that he's got so much of a sexual yearning as he longs to connect with someone, and he loves his little niece. They shoot the family's congratulations with him when he presents the beautiful doll house, but then they all go off and leave him and, when he tries to join in conversation with Clara, she is afraid of him and backs away. Her fear of him and the sub textual sexual tension are what add to the somewhat erotic and sensual world of her dream, in the palace in Act II. Kent Stowell's choreography is the best I have ever seen in a production of this ballet, and the orchestra is amazing. I was always a huge fan of "Where the Wild Things Are" and "In the Night Kitchen," so Maurice Sendak's costumes and sets hold a very special place in my heart. And the passes des deuxes are some of the finest pairs ballet suites I've ever had the pleasure of watching. All in all, this is my number one favorite holiday film. And if you are lucky enough to get your hands on a copy, I highly recommend you add it to your family's must-watch list this year. :-)

PickMePickMe's commentary is almost three years old now, but it isn't too late to completely refute it. What was this reviewer watching? As far as the performers and dancing is concerned, this troupe has been 'fooling' the people of the US Northwest for over twenty years now with the Sendak Nutcracker. Tell it to the annual sold out performances!

As for the production itself, it couldn't be more cinematic without losing its balletic base. The Drosselmeyer toyshop background for the overture, for example, isn't even seen on stage, nor are the soaring views of Clara's living room. I could go on, but I suspect that PMPM is locked into to the wooden performances of the seventies, well represented in the current VHS/DVD world.

The overall production, as far as Nutcrackers go, is a stupendous, breathtaking affair and very accurately implies the dark E.T.A. Hoffmanesque background of the ballet.

The only letdown associated with it is the lack of a DVD, with which everyone's Christmas would surely brighten.