The sight and sound of music.(Cinema's Illusions, Opera's Allure)(Book Review)

Publication: Spectator

Publication Date: 24-APR-04

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COPYRIGHT 2004 The Spectator Ltd. (UK)

CINEMA'S ILLUSIONS, OPERA'S ALLURE by David Schroeder Continuum, 17.99 [pounds sterling], pp. 384, ISBN 0826413927

There have been five notable books on the relations between opera and film in the last 20 years, and you might not think there was room for a sixth. But David Schroeder, a Canadian academic, has produced an enthusiastic and informative survey which throws up some interesting ideas if no decisive or profound conclusions.

He identifies two major areas of interaction. First, a Wagnerian coloration to many spectacular blockbusters--from D.W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation to George Lucas's 'space operas' Star Wars. (Schroeder rather contentiously suggests more specific parallels between Darth Vader and Hagen, and the Jawas...

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