The Master and Margarita / Master i Margarita (3 DVD SET, ENGLISH SUBTITLES)
by Vladimir Bortko
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DVD details
Actor: Aleksandr Adabashyan, Gennadi Bogachyov, Lev Borisov, Liubomiras Lauciavicius, Roman KartsevDirector: Vladimir Bortko
Brand: CP Digital
Primary Contributor: Anna Kovalchuk
Primary Contributor: Aleksandr Galibin
Primary Contributor: Oleg Basilashvili
Primary Contributor: Vladislav Galkin
Primary Contributor: Kirill Lavrov
Primary Contributor: Aleksandr Abdulov
Primary Contributor: Aleksandr Filippenko
Primary Contributor: Sergei Bezrukov
Primary Contributor: Aleksandr Bashirov
Primary Contributor: Valentin Gaft
Commentary: Based on novel by M.A. Bulgakov
DVD: Region Code 0.0
Audio: Russian (Unknown); English (Subtitled)
Format: Box set, Color, Import, NTSC
Running Time: 450 unknown-units
Published: 2006
Studio: CP Digital
DVD Reviews of The Master and Margarita / Master i Margarita (3 DVD SET, ENGLISH SUBTITLES)
DVD Review: My second favorite Russian movie
Summary: 5 Stars
"The Master and Margarita" is a brilliant film adaptation of the book (of the same name) by Mikhail Bulgakov. This (2005) film is directed by Vladimir Bortko, the director who also brought us the 2003 mini-series "Idiot" (my favorite Russian movie, adapted from my favorite Russian novel).
I read the Bergin and O'Connor translation of "The Master and Margarita" a few months before watching this mini-series. My enjoyment (thrill) in reading the novel was greatly increased by the fact that I had no prior knowledge of anything about it. I was delighted at the mysteries and twists and turns. Therefore, I am very, very disappointed in reviewers here who included "spoilers" in their reviews. Don't you people understand (or care) that these reviews are most often used by people who have NOT YET seen the movie? Believe me, you should watch the mini-series (or read the book) without reading any more reviews.
Whenever I read Bulgakov, I am struck by the fact that most other novels are trivial in comparison. His novels (and this film) are very smart, funny, satirical, thoughtful, and moving. I am thrilled that Bortko brought this novel to the screen. Also, I am thrilled that the movie is of sufficient length (eight hours) to tell nearly all of the story. (Hollywood would have packaged this film adaptation into two hours and changed EVERYTHING except the title.)
To those who complain about deviations from the book: Try making a movie yourself sometime (on a limited budget). Real life is not as perfect as your worlds of fantasy. Bortko did an amazing job bringing this novel to the screen. In future, I will buy any movie he makes. If you have not seen his mini-series "Idiot," you should get it today.
Granted, the English subtitles could be improved. However, this mini-series is so great, I am willing to forgive some minor problems in making it available to the English-speaking market.
DVD Review: Fantastic series, but...
Summary: 4 Stars
The series itself is extremely good - I'm surprised that it was possible to transfer such a fantastic (in both senses of the word...) book to the screen.
However, the DVD suffers from a few defects, namely:
- The translation into English for subtitles is at times extermely amateurish, which means that a non-Russian-speaker like myself often has to halt mentally and try to figure out which meaning was intended. This breaks up the narrative.
- The subtitles often appear too late, i.e. are displayed halfway through the sentence or even while the next sentence is spoken. This also breaks up the narrative.
- Only the dialogue is translated, not for example signs. For example, there is a long scene in front of the gate of the writers' club, and the sign is in plain view which implies that the director intends the audience to know where the scene takes place. But if you can't read Russian this doesn't help much...
- Episode names, cast list etc aren't translated either.
- The division of chapters into scenes is done for each DVD as a whole, not by chapter, so the DVD player's display doesn't show "Chapter 4, scene 3" or some such, but rather "Episode 1, Scene 43". This also means that you cannot see episode length or remaining time.
So: Content 100%, implementation not so great...
To conclude, delivery was very prompt (even speedier than the estimate).
DVD Review: Master i Margarita -- Russian DVD
Summary: 4 Stars
This 2005 Russian TV adaptation of Bulgakov's classic novel is really excellent. Casting, acting and production quality are all superb. The only drawback for English-speaking viewers is the subtitles. While much of the time adequate, occasionally they drift of into nonsense (even once or twice into cyrillic!). Most likely viewers of this will be familiar with the novel. If not, they might have difficulty in following the story. If not for the inadequate subtitling, I would rate this 5 stars. Marinasbooks is a fine vendor; very fast turnaround time.DVD Review: A Masterpice but...
Summary: 4 Stars
the English subtitles are atrocious. Only get this if you speak Russian.
The movie itself is amazing. Definitely how I imagined it when I've read the book.
DVD Review: EXACTLY Like the book!! Awesome!!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of the greatest books of all time. Truly a masterpiece that took Mikhail "Misha" 40 years to write and sadly Stalin never let Mr. Bugalkov leave to the West as he so vehemently wanted.
Of course it is highly recommended that you read the book prior to seeing the movie even if you do speak / read Russian, as with any movie based on a book, it really is best to know the foundation from which the director worked. In this case however, it's as good as a Stephen King movie in that it's so close to the book that it's hard to see any difference.
When I saw that a Russian director had produced this 10-week made for TV mini-series I knew that even if it came with no subtitles I'd still watch and covet it. I actually have 3 copies of the book itself, but feel my earliest has the best translation - it just feels truer to what Mikhail wanted to say and it flows better in English, but the other 2 are good as backups.
This is DVD set and the books I have are prize possessions in our home video library as well as in our book library. It is so part of me that I will be using it within my last will and testament to determine what type of $$ / stuff my heirs will receive ;-) Diabolical and lovely at the same time.
Description of The Master and Margarita / Master i Margarita (3 DVD SET, ENGLISH SUBTITLES)
SOUNDTRACK (AUDIO): RUSSIAN DOLBY DIGITAL 2.0 / ENGLISH SUBTITLES. SYNOPSIS: Vladimir Bortko has become the first Russian film director to start shooting of renowned Bulgakov's novel and not to stop half-way. All the others Russian directors once engaged in the production of "Master and Margaret" have actually turned out to be unable to finalize their projects. The rumors say, it is due to some mysticism... The "Master and Margaret" begins with two story lines: the Devil and his retinue show up to make mischief in 1930's Moscow while Matthew the Evangelist attempts to uncover the truth about Pontius Pilate and the Crucifixion of Jesus in Jerusalem in A. D. 33. Halfway through the novel, Bulgakov unveils a third story line set in Moscow, in which the love-stricken Margarita bargains with the Devil to be reunited with her lover, the Master, a tormented writer-hero who pines away in an insane asylum. Bulgakov gradually weaves the three scenarios together, all the while exercising devilish lampoonery and wit to satirize Soviet life under Stalin. Because public discussions of religion and critiques of the government had long been punishable by a trip to the gulag, the themes addressed in "Master and Margaret" very rarely surfaced in the Soviet Union: many Soviet citizens read the Gospel story for the first time in Bulgakov's narrative.Genres DVDs
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