Stars: Carolyn Farina, Edward Clements, Chris Eigeman

Director: Whit Stillman

Summary: A romantic comedy chronicling the social scene of a group of young Manhattan socialites and their vanishing debutante scene. Into their midst comes an outsider in the shape of Tom Townsend, who opposes the group of young urban upper-middle class members. But, because of an escort shortage he is welcomed into their group by the dominant, arrogant leader and his charming girlfriend.

An outsider is brought along to the Christmas season of a group of young Manhattan socialites. The group's outspoken members Charlie, Nick and Cynthia cynically debate art, politics, social criticism, activism and literature as left-wing student Tom Townsend views on the group and their socialising are confirmed. He becomes immersed in the caustic, witty and urbane barbs and ticks that exist among this conspicuous peer group. Whit Stillman's razor sharp romantic comedy conversation piece set amongst the Manhattan socialite scene is a sparkling reminder of the emerging American independent film landscape of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Earning itself an Academy Award nomination for Best (Original) Screenplay, METROPOLITAN's blend of biting wit, incisive social satire and deeply-felt nostalgia signalled the arrival of a unique cinematic talent in the form of Stillman and a raft of invigorating young acting talent.

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The James Levine cycle of Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungenis humane and emotionally powerful rather than monumental or spiritual; Levine is more interested in finding our sympathy for the characters than inspiring pity or terror. These are very traditional productions in which you see a rock where you need to see a rock, a dragon where the libretto says a dragon (the Metropolitan Opera has never been a place for experiment). What Levine and the Met can and do offer is excellent orchestral playing and some of the best singers in these roles in the world. Siegfried Jerusalem is boyish and naive and touching as Siegfried, and he is also surprisingly good as the detached mischievous Loge of Das Rheingold. James Morris is uniformly impressive as Wotan and makes the character evolve from the young ruthless god of the first opera to the tired old god of Siegfried, who seeks nothing more than his own necessary defeat and death. As Brunnhilde, Hildegard Behrens makes a convincing shift from goddess to woman, from callousness to tenderness and on to vindictiveness and self-sacrificing wisdom. Overall, this is an attractive Ringcycle, well-cast and beautifully played; others have greater strengths in some areas, but Levine is reliable across the board.

On the DVD:Der Ring des Nibelungenhas all four operas, which are also available individually, contained in a single box. All the DVDs come with a photo gallery of the Metropolitan Opera productions and with menus and subtitles in German, French, English, Spanish and Chinese. It's a little disappointing, though, that they are presented in American NTSC format, not European PAL, and the picture ratio is standard TV 4:3. On the plus side, they all have an excellent clear acoustic in the three audio options: PCM stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1. --Roz Kaveney

Aspect Ratio:	16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Year:	1989
Release Date:	July 17, 2006
Runtime:	94 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	M T D 5225
Keywords:	Comedy, Romantic, Metropolitan
Genre:	Comedy