Evita (15th Anniversary Edition) [Blu-ray]

Description

Celebrate the 15th Anniversary (1996 - 2011) of an inspirational classic with a spectacular new release in Blu-ray High Definition! Join two of the world's greatest and most enduring superstars, Madonna and Antonio Banderas, in the epic musical event that is EVITA. Directed by award-winning filmmaker Alan Parker, EVITA is the riveting true-life story of Eva Peron (Madonna), who rose above childhood poverty and a scandalous past to achieve unimaginable fortune and fame. Despite widespread controversy, her passion changed a nation forever. Garnering an Academy Award(R) for Best Song (1996, "You Must Love Me," by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber) and 3 Gold Globe Awards (Best Picture, Best Actress and Best Song) -- critics across the world hailed EVITA as an indelible masterpiece. Now, with a new state-of-the-art digital restoration, you can experience every scene and unforgettable song like never before! Review: Evita is an amazing & touching movie. - When I first saw Evita it was my senior year in high school that was back in 2001. My cinema teacher played the movie. When I found it had Madonna in it I was like oh great. I wasn't a fan then. It only took a few minutes before I was hooked on the movie. I love all the songs in the movie. There is not one bad song. It's rare I say this about a movie but this one in my opinion is perfect from the second it starts to the second it ends. As soon as I saw the movie I called my local mall and I was thrilled they had the double disc complete soundtrack. I think Madonna & Antonio Banderas were both amazing. Jonathan Pryce was great as Juan Peron. When I started researching the Perons after I saw the movie I was amazed how much Jonathan Pryce looks like the real Juan Peron. Jonathan Pryce was also close to the same age as Juan Peron. I can definitely see why he was picked to play Juan Peron. Madonna looks so much like Eva Peron it's in a way kind of eerie. I do agree with Madonna no one else could have played Eva Peron but her. I don't believe in reincarnation but if it did exist I would have to say Madonna is the reincarnation of Eva Peron. I also agree with Madonna when she said she was born to play Eva Peron. I did own the regular DVD years ago. I decided to buy the Blu Ray edition. I love this movie and I know it is one I will watch over and over. Even though it cost twice as much to get the Blu Ray I know I will get my money's worth out of it. My two favorite songs are Oh What A Circus and The Waltz For Eva And Che. One reason I love Oh What A Circus is Antonio Banderas sounded so passionate about the loss of Eva Peron. What I am about to say is a spoiler. If you haven't seen the movie you might not want to read this part. Spoiler When Che (Antonio Banderas) was saying to Eva's picture how Eva let down her people all they wanted was for her to be immortal and that wasn't much to ask for but in the end she couldn't deliver. Then Che calmly bends down and picks up a rock as he throws it at her picture you can see the look of anger he has towards her as he throws the rock it hits her picture causing the picture to fall and the picture to be destroyed. They used a picture of the real Eva Peron. To me that scene is an important and touching scene. We see how Eva's death affected Che. Che is a worker like Eva was. Unlike the other workers Che saw how his Savior changed from her humble beginnings to letting power go to her head. Midway through the movie Che tells Eva she only thinks about doing for herself and she has forgotten her people meaning the workers. Che hints to viewers how Eva was stealing some of the money from the Eva Peron Foundation. Che also didn't believe Eva's words during Don't Cry For Me Argentina. Half way through the song he starts shaking his head. He knows his Saint has started to change. I do think it was a nice tribute to the real Juan & Eva Peron to use their pictures throughout the movie instead of Madonna & Jonathan Pryce's pictures. They used very few pictures of Madonna as Eva Peron. I did like them using the real Peron's pictures. I think by doing that it made the movie more personal and touching. They used very few pictures of Jonathan Pryce as Juan Peron. When Eva & Juan are entering the ball there you can see just how much Jonathan Pryce looks like Juan Peron since Jonathan is wearing an outfit exactly like the real Juan Peron wore in the picture. Spoiler There is some fiction to this movie. There are no records showing that Augustin Magaldi performed in Eva's home town when she was 15. Another fictional part is the brief reunion between Eva & Magaldi at the charity concert. The truth to that reunion is there wasn't one. It would literally have been 100% impossible for Augustin Magaldi to have performed at that charity concert because the real Augustin Magaldi died five years BEFORE the charity concert. I just saw today the making of special feature (June 1, 2015). I do completely agree when Madonna said she thinks she was sort of possessed by Eva Peron and that Madonna felt some electricity in the air while on the balcony where Eva once stood. Unless Eva possessed her I just can't see how Madonna can make the viewer believe she is Eva Peron while on Eva's balcony in the exact same spot where Eva would stand. From the videos I've seen of Eva giving her speeches on the same balcony Madonna's performance is very similar to Eva's. All I can say is give this movie a chance. It's a really amazing movie. I watched it with my mind set I would hate it. But I was wrong I love this movie. It's because of Evita I became a fan of Madonna's. I also coincidentally got the Blu Ray DVD of Evita today June 1, 2015 which is the birthday of Jonathan Pryce. If you have not seen Evita borrow it from a friend/relative/library or buy a copy. It is truly an amazing movie. Due to Evita I have been researching all I can on Eva & Juan Peron & Peronism. Once you see the movie you will more than likely want to learn more about them. History has never interested me. It never held my attention. But for some reason I want to know all I can about the mysterious Eva & Juan Peron & Peronism. The Blu Ray is much better than the regular DVD. The picture is still wide screen but the black bars are thinner. The image quality is really good compared to the regular DVD. The Blu Ray version has a making of feature it's around 40 minutes. It's definitely worth watching the making of. You get to see how much work it took to make this amazing movie. Review: Surprising, and delightful - Let me first preface this by saying that I am NOT a fan of Madonna, as an actress or as a singer. I have enjoyed Antonio Banderas as an actor and a as a singer in the few roles I've seen him in (Zorro, Shrek 2, etc.). The rest of the cast I know nothing about, and while I enjoy reading and viewing things about history post-WW2, I never really took the time or interest in this movie until just now. I found an old review of it on IMDB while looking up something else, and decided on a whim to check it out, since I do enjoy Andrew Lloyd Webber's musicals (Phantom of the Opera, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar). All that being said, I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. I was caught up in the drama and in Eva's rise to power as portrayed by Madonna. I certainly don't condone the methods that she used in her meteoric rise, but I'm also not naive enough to think that such things don't happen in the political world, or even in the professional world. I've seen some reviews on here claiming that they had difficulty understanding the lyrics to the song, or that Banderas and Madonna don't even come close to matching the original Broadway cast - I had no difficulty at all in understanding the songs. "Don't Cry for Me, Argentina" is heartfelt, "Rainbow High" matches Madonna's vocal range brilliantly, and the combination of "You Must Love Me" and "Eva's Final Broadcast" brought me to tears. I don't know if Juan and Eva Peron really did love each other as they are depicted in the movie, or if their marriage was one of convenience and based on what Eva was able to do for Juan, but I was completely sold on them as a loving, if politically scheming couple with possibly morally ambiguous aspirations for power. Eva's deathbed scene, where she can't bring herself to admit that she loves Juan and is only concerned that she's no longer any use to his political career is a heart-tugging moment, since it's obvious that she wants to say it, especially as he is sitting there by her bedside so that she doesn't have to die alone, with tears rolling down his cheeks. On Banderas' side, the director's decision to make him into a quasi-omniscient narrator/voice of the people was a brilliant decision. I don't even know who the character is supposed to represent from history, but I didn't care in the least once I figured out that he was more of an "every-man" of the Argentinian people. "Oh, What A Circus" opens the movie brilliantly and sets the tone for those who have no idea who Eva Peron was and shows how easily public opinion can change for those who have such a sharp rise to power. "High Flying, Adored" shows off his vocal range impressively, and he matches Madonna well when they come together for "A Waltz for Che and Eva". I love the way Webber's music flows so well. Going from a solemn requiem to the rock-themed second half of "Oh, What A Circus", to the Latin flair of "Buenos Aires" and all the other musical styles he works into the music keeps the movie varied and catchy. The music becomes a character in its own right, which is a good thing, since there is almost no spoken dialogue in the movie - almost every line is sung. "Rainbow Tour" is a fun, catchy song that I've found myself humming all day, and the various le motifs used by the different characters ("Don't Cry for Me, Argentina" and "Buenos Aires" for Evita) give a sense of continuity, even as the song styles change from piece to piece. I've never seen the Broadway version of this musical, but simply filming a staged version of the play wouldn't have the same impact as this movie did. Another musical that pulled this off brilliantly (and ironically enough, another Webber musical) was "Phantom of the Opera". This is not the Broadway version, and they don't pretend that it is. It should be able to rise and fall on its own terms, and to be completely honest, I think it excels brilliantly.