Renee Fleming: A Film by Tony Palmer
by Tony Palmer

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DVD Reviews of Renee Fleming: A Film by Tony Palmer

DVD Review: A must for a true Fleming fan!
Summary: 4 Stars

--"Chi il bel sogno di Doretta" live, where sings that high note unbelievably easy and on pitch
--"You'll Never Walk Alone" live, and in an AMAZING arrangement where she hits at least a high E flat!
--Renée's mother describes when Renée sung at the Richard Tucker Gala and Mom begins to tear up because "so was SOOO good!"
--She sings "Summertime" for the Clintons
--her being moved to tears while rehearsing for Otello
--The entire "Beim Schlafengehen" from Strauss' Four Last Songs

There's footage you missed and the footage you didn't even know existed! I also found touching all she said about worrying about how to balance her career with being a Mom. She actually discusses how she seriously said to herself one day that's it's been fun but now it's time to settle down, find a nice teaching job, and be a Mom. That was touching.

And of course there's just lots and lots of live footage: Desdemonda, Ellington standards, duets with Hvorostovsky, Domingo, Pavarotti, and more more more. Plus, her in some REALLY REALLY ravishing dresses. A little annoying were these clips of Renée lip-syncing some arias. That was a little corney and boring. And there was a lot of just uninteresting dialogue, even by Ms. Fleming! Was it important to tell us that her mother was pregant with her when her mother graduated as the first woman from some obscure college? It seemed like desperate small talk. One thing I would have added to this film is narration or maybe some sort of timeline of her career. And I think the DVD would have really been interesting if Fleming discussed some scandelous or not so great moments in her career, such as the criticism she has occasionally received about her singing or maybe some bad experiences in Europe like the whole Schwartzkopf ordeal. I mean, the entire DVD can't just be happy friendly cartoon happy colors. The good AND the bad will make a compelling and interesting film.

It's all just good fun and I'm glad to have gotten my hands on this. A must for a true Fleming fan!

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