Bel Canto

Book adaptation/Society, Germany 1977

Arthur, the director of an opera house, gathers the representatives of the money, life and art worlds at a soirée in order to rehabilitate himself and the opera house in one fell swoop. But the plan to give himself and culture a new lustre fails. After "Der blaue Engel" (1930) and "Der Untertan" (1950), "Belcanto oder Darf eine Nutte schluchzen?" (1978) is certainly the most unusual adaptation of a novel by Heinrich Mann. Van Ackeren stages his story of the impostor in stylised, natural tableaux, his characters sing their lines a capella, standing in what seem to be floating backdrops. The narrative style and character design question traditional patterns of vision and refuse to conform to classical narrative cinema.
95 min
HD
Starting at 12
Audio language:
German
Subtitles:
EnglishFrench

More information

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Heinrich Mann (Novel)

Cast:

Kurt Raab (Arthur)

Romy Haag (Nutte)

Udo Kier (Poulailler)

Gabriele Lafari (Melusine)

Nikolaus Dutsch (Nolus)

Jule Hammer (Balthasar)

Y Sa Lo (Stefanie)

Erwin Kneihsl (André)

Ellen Umlauf (Babiline)

Helga Krauss (Alice)

Original title:

Belcanto oder Darf eine Nutte schluchzen?

Original language:

German

Format:

4:3 HD, B/W

Ratings:

FBW "besonders wertvoll"

Age rating:

Starting at 12

Audio language:

German

Subtitles:

EnglishFrench