Tosca
Avatar Films | Release Date: July 12, 2002 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
70
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
5
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
New York Magazine (Vulture)Peter Rainer
A rare example of first-rate filmed opera. Read full review
90
Village VoiceElizabeth Zimmer
Two hours fly by -- opera's a pleasure when you don't have to endure intermissions -- and even a novice to the form comes away exhilarated. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Conveys the heaving passion of Puccini's famous love-jealousy-murder-suicide fandango with great cinematic innovation. Read full review
80
The New York TimesDana Stevens
For the most part, it works beautifully as a movie without sacrificing the integrity of the opera. Read full review
80
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
Using a single set for each act and cutting minimally, Jacquot seems to recognize his limited ability to make the opera cinematic. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesDaniel Cariaga
Altogether, this is successful as a film, while at the same time being a most touching reconsideration of the familiar masterpiece. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
The result is a fine production with splendid singing by Angela Gheorghiu, Ruggero Raimondi, and Roberto Alagna. It joins the very short list of first-rate opera films. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
Glorious moments aplenty despite director who's just in the way. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldMarta Barber
Watching a film about an opera can never be as moving as watching the real thing in a great opera house. Musical purists may object to certain details, and film buffs may find the concept unappealing. Yet, for this film and opera lover, Jacquot's Tosca is a treat. Read full review
70
SlateDavid Edelstein
It's so exciting to have a perfectly sung and acted Tosca (Avatar) on film that I'm prepared to forgive the new movie, directed by Benoit Jacquot, almost everything. But I sure wish Jacquot hadn't bungled the look and feel. Read full review
67
Seattle Post-IntelligencerR. M. Campbell
The result is arty but pointless. The sets are unreal looking and so huge the characters drown in their vast spaces. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
For the broader audience, this seems both suffocating and confusing -- True opera buffs, however, are more likely to feel thrilled, as if they're privy to a private production of the highest caliber. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneJohn von Rhein
You would be better off investing in the worthy EMI recording that serves as the soundtrack, or the home video of the 1992 Malfitano-Domingo production. Read full review
60
New Times (L.A.)Gregory Weinkauf
Audiences are advised to sit near the back and squint to avoid noticing some truly egregious lip-non-synching, but otherwise the production is suitably elegant, a fine retreat from summer cinema overkill. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
The performance sequences are in color, while the recording sequences are in B&W. Jacquot's strategy allows his cast the benefit of being able to give full performances (Raimondi is a particularly good film actor) while demonstrating vividly that the beauty and power of the opera reside primarily in the music itself. Read full review
50
New York PostMegan Lehmann
Purists will probably have a conniption at the mere idea of messing with the form, but the worst thing about Jacquot's post-modern treatment is that its incongruity wrenches you out of the story. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderTed Shen
The sets are like islands floating in a void, juxtaposed with sepia shots of Rome and extraneous video clips of the singers and orchestra in a recording studio; the technique purposely draws attention to the movie's artifice, but the performances pull us into the story's elemental emotions. Read full review
40
L.A. Weekly
This filmed Tosca -- not the first, by the way -- is a pretty good job, if it's filmed Tosca that you want. I'll stay with the stage versions, however, which bite cleaner, and deeper. Read full review
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