Pavarotti

source: Pavarotti

Reminded me of growing up in Newark NJ until I was 12 years old. The sad sad operas I understood because my beloved grandmother spoke italian who watched me. I miss her so much.

When it comes to opera singers, there aren't many household names that people know or actually talk about, with the exception of one person, Luciano Pavarotti. Few documentaries make it all the way to the cinema, not to mention having a premier screening, so I was curious about what made this one so special. I knew who Pavarotti was before watching this film and I have heard his performances, but I had no idea what kind of man he was and how people loved him for his voice, charisma, generosity and his big joyful smile. Ron Howard seamlessly blended the footage of Luciano's life to make it flow like a regular film while accentuating on the musical parts that left me in awe of how talented and impactful he was, specially hearing it through Dolby Surround system. This film is more than just a documentary about a singer; it is a story of a man who worked tirelessly to achieve worldwide fame and yet not once did he lose himself in the process and that is how he will be remembered. He loved life, he loved the ones around him and he loved helping others. Luciano is one of those people whom I would love to meet just to bask in his grandeur and absorb some of his happiness, positivity and energy that he radiated.

I saw this film in a theater in New York a few days ago and was enchanted by the film and by the subject of the documentary: Luciano Pavarotti. I didn't know much about Pavarotti before having seen the film and I am not an opera fan. However, this touching documentary endeared me to the man and his music. His life is well documented in this film, excellently directed by Ron Howard. Whether or not you like opera, you will likely appreciate the humor & heart which Pavarotti had as well as his obvious vocal talent. A documentary about a person is supposed to capture the essence of the human being or artist and this film succeeds in doing that. It also successfully revealed the notion that a great artist is also a flawed human being who leads an imperfect life, just like everyone else. I left the theater wanting to know more about the man & his music. Bravo to all involved in this production.

The film was overall quite informative and really provokes further interest in those trying get into Opera music. The film was a quite random and disorganised in terms of its contents. For instance it would pan back to childhood and then to his 50s without any logical flow and at times I could not keep track with what was going on. It needs to be more dramatic and more artistical. I do praise the effort of the crew gathering so many interviews from so many people about Pavarotti, but it should have been better organised even if that means a bigger spending budget for a movie take such a big international stage.

So me and the opera crowd were sitting there enjoying this positive - perhaps too positive - biopic when up pops Bono. Sigh. Here's the sweary luvvie Irishman, swearing away, paying tribute YET AGAIN to someone from the world of showbusiness. It really jars. This is just like in Ron Howard's Beatles movie when Whoopi Goldberg comes on. Why does he do it? It's like he thinks, 'Let's bring someone discordant on to swear a bit, that'll do it'. What have we done to deserve Bono? Can't he just go away forever? Anyway, film is a decent watch. You can't help but grin along with Luciano. Pity Gazza isn't in it, though.

This documentary is a beautiful demonstration of love and respect for one of the greatest Artists ever. As a singer and Modenese myself, having met and sung (as a chorister) with the Maestro, I can only thank Mr. Howard for having produced a documentary I can only recommend to everybody.

I could not go see this while in my local small theaters due to family health problems. Now that SHOWTIME has it for a month, we were all able to watch on home big screen. THANK YOU RON HOWARD. The work is original, insightful and give viewers an insight and feeling into the man that no other work had given us. There are many assorted docs and biographies on amazon and youtube but I must say that in the wake of 10 years plus of watching all these thing, NONE of them gave us the feelings, emotions and closeness to the great tenor. He is missed, and will be missed for centuries to come or for as long as the human race and it's records and digital media lasts. No other man will have his voice, like Roy Orbison, he is one of a kind and will never exist again in this dimension. You know he is special when Sting and U2 come to his defense as Pavarotti got older and some people were saying he had lost an edge that he had in the 60's, 70's and 80's. What he had lost, was not a loss, it was an evolution, one can only hope that mankind can evolve on Earth to the point where we last to witness another Pavarotti. As the film makes you aware, he knew our existence was not guaranteed. You will feel his sadness, his regrets which are the same as his greatness and power. We are only immortal for a limited time.

An inspirational, uplifting glimpse into the life of mega star opera singer, Luciano Pavarotti. Beautifully assembled from an extraordinary list of archival footage. Allow yourself to be transported into the realm of genius, charisma, passion, and goodness.

When I watched "Pavarotti", the first thing that came to mind was...'why now?'....why make such a documentary about the man now, 12 years after his death instead of back when he could have enjoyed it and participated in it more. But my feelings were premature, as the film did feature many, many clips of the man talking about his life, his career and life. It is very fortunate that he and his family used video cameras and documented so much of his life. These film clips along with many interviews actually worked well to create a film well worth watching...whether you are a huge opera lover or not. Overall, a very thorough film about a great singer....focusing much on the good as well as the bad about the guy. I like warts and all documentaries....and this is clearly one and a good and interesting one at that.