Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado
by Victor Schertzinger
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DVD details
Actor: Gregory Stroud, John Barclay, Kenny Baker, Martyn Green, Sydney GranvilleDirector: Victor Schertzinger
Brand: Image Entertainment
Cinematographer: Bernard Knowles
Cinematographer: William V. Skall
Editor: Gene Milford
Editor: Philip Charlot
Producer: Geoffrey Toye
Producer: Josef Somlo
Writer: William S. Gilbert
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Classical, Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 90 minutes
DVD Release Date: 1998-12-22
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Image Entertainment
DVD Reviews of Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado
DVD Review: A fine historical document not without it's flaws, mainly CUTS
Summary: 5 Stars
The Martyn Green 1939 Mikado film is a valuable historical document, and in the end enjoyable, but still not without certain defects. The foremost of these is the huge number of cuts, listed here in chronological order:
* Much of the Overture (understandable, as it wasn't even written by Sullivan)
* Some of the opening chorus I think, but half of it is run over the opening credits anyway
* Both of Nanki-Poo's recitatives (some of the words of the first one are place in his dialogue with Pish-Tush)
* 2nd verse of Pish-Tush's song, "Our great Mikado"
* Pooh-Bah's song, "Young man despair"
* The list song, "As some day it may happen"
* All but the coda of "Comes a train of little ladies"
* "So please you sir, we much regret" and much of the dialogue preceding it
* "With aspect stern and gloomy stride" (the orchestral part is altered in order to skip from the introduction to Pooh-Bah singing "To ask you what you mean to do we punctually appear")
* 2nd verse of "The threatn'd cloud has passed away"
* "Oh fool that flee-est my Hallow'd joys"
* "The hour of gladness is dead and gone"
* Katisha's first solo lines in the conclusion of the Act I Finale ("Ye torrents roar"), allowing for the chorus to continue on after they interrupt Katisha.
* Pitti-Sing's solo and the reprise of the main verse in "Braid the raven hair"
* 2nd verse of "The sun whose rays are all ablaze." Sadly, Yum-Yum's small speech preceding it, which I never fail to enjoy, is also omitted
* 2nd verse of the madrigal, "Brightly dawns our wedding day" (this cut is also made in the 1966 film)
* 2nd verse of "From ev'ry kind of man obedience I expect" (the daughter-in-law elect thing)
* 1st verse of "A more humane Mikado"
* "See how the fates their gifts allot" and the dialogue concerning Katisha's complexion
* "Alone and yet alive" (including "Hearts do not break")
* "There is beauty in the bellow of the blast" and all of the preceding dialogue
* "For he's gone and married Yum-Yum" (They skip straight to "The threatn'd cloud has passed away" after Ko-Ko explains himself, and very well too)
* The orchestral reprise of "There is beauty in the bellow of the blast"
No doubt I have missed something as I have only watched the movie once (I have made no effort to include all of the dialogue cuts)
Regardless, these are the consequences of the various deletions: Katisha's role is cut down to nothing, singing-wise, though she still retains enough dialogue to get her personality across. And Pitti-Sing's part is chopped down to "For he's going to marry Yum-Yum" and her part in "The criminal cried." Peep-Bo almost doesn't exist. Nanki-Poo and Ko-Ko are the main characters, though they have a few cuts to their roles as well. The part of the Mikado is trimmed down too, but has the privilege to appear before Act 2 in the "Prologue" added to the beginning. This prologue is okay, but I really don't see how it shortens the length of the opera much. Precious time is wasted showing Nanki-Poo walking around Ko-Ko's house, singing nothing but (at one point) "The sun whose rays are all ablaze" as a love song to Yum-Yum, who watches from her window. This seems counterproductive, but there really isn't much one can do about it except skip it. The movie has a distinct Hollywood flavor during the first bit, but once Ko-Ko enters, things begin to seem more Gilbert & Sullivan.
Some complain about the "encores," saying they should not have been allowed in the program so as the grant space for fewer deletions. One must keep in mind, however, that only three minutes are added due to encores (one for "Here's a how-de-do" and one for "The flowers that bloom in the spring") and they add greatly to this fascinating historical document. As another reviewer noted, this is one of the few recordings (the only one?) in which the special orchestration of "The flowers that bloom in the spring" and Nanki-Poo's cadenza are heard.
As for the performance, it is very good to have Martyn Green's Ko-Ko preserved on video. He does wonderfully, with many comic touches that are endearing rather than annoying (I like his last fan). Granville as Pooh-Bah does similarly well, and makes his character's personality come across well. The way he uses his costume almost as a turtle shell is delightful. Kenny Baker is a decent Nanki-Poo. His voice isn't as operatic as it should be, though he certainly can hold his breath for a long time (take a gander at the encore to "The flowers that bloom in the spring"). Jean Colin as Yum-Yum is good but not memorable as far as singing goes. John Barclay's Mikado is pretty good, and gives so much more character to the part than, say, his Brent Walker counterpart.
The sound limits all of the singers a bit, but isn't too bad for 1939.
Overall, this is something to watch once or twice, but not own unless you really take a liking to it. Trying it via interlibrary loan is probably a good idea. Martyn Green is a wonderful Ko-Ko, but with the defects in this recording (primarily the cuts) it probably can't compete with modern versions as a recording of The Mikado. Rather, it is a recording of what the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company was like in 1939 (to a certain extent). If you want to see Green in action, this is the only place for it, otherwise, I recommend the more complete 1966 version or even The Brent Walker version (which has issues all its own).
July 2010 EDIT: Since 2007, I have managed to pick up a DVD copy of this wonderful film. I don't remember laughing so much the first time around! Also: the DVD has restored part of the prologue that the VHS copy cuts. The color and film quality in general are also cleaned up a fair bit on the DVD.
Anyway, the 1938 Mikado ended up being so much more enjoyable than I remember it that I'm upping my rating from four stars to five. Amazing stuff this.
Description of Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado
As an operetta, "The Mikado" was the culmination of Gilbert & Sullivan's work--the tale of Japanese prince Nanki-Poo, who is on the run from an arranged marriage, masquerading as a balladeer. He falls in love with Yum-Yum, a woman betrothed to the Lord High Executioner, who has problems of his own--his job (and life) depends upon at least one execution taking place each month, but he's without a current prospect for the ax. Nanki-Poo agrees to be executed if he is allowed to marry Yum-Yum so that he will have a month of romantic bliss, and a comedy of errors ensues, all sparked by classic songs such as "A Wandering Minstrel I" and "Three Little Maids from School."Changes must be expected when a classic book or stage show becomes a movie. In this 1939 Mikado, efforts were made to respect the original. Stars of the D'Oyly Carte Company were hired for key roles and performed them in their traditional style, with the D'Oyly Carte Chorus, London Symphony Orchestra, and a director (Victor Schertzinger) who was also a conductor and knew the music.
An introductory scene was added to clarify the plot, and other small adjustments were made. Several songs were left out or abbreviated, and one song, "The sun, whose rays," was sung twice, by Nanki-Poo and by Yum-Yum, for whom it was written. A popular tenor of the time, Kenny Baker, sang Nanki-Poo with good, light tone, but in his own non-traditional style. These departures from tradition may infuriate hard-core Gilbert and Sullivan fans, but others will hardly notice. The visuals are gorgeous, the sound not up to present standards but clear and accurate. This is not a definitive Mikado, but an interesting one and timeless in style. --Joe McLellan
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