Meeting Venus (1991)

A deliciously biting satire about both the world of Grand Opera and United Europe. A Hungarian conductor (Arestrup) attempts to mount a bold new production of Richard Wagner's "Tannhäuser" ... See full summary »

Director:

István Szabó

Writers:

István Szabó, Michael Hirst

Stars:

Glenn Close, Niels Arestrup, Kiri Te Kanawa

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Glenn Close	...	Karin Anderson
Niels Arestrup	...	Zoltan Szanto
Kiri Te Kanawa	...	Elisabeth (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
René Kollo	...	Tannhäuser (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
Håkan Hagegård	...	Wolfram von Eschenbach (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
Waltraud Meier	...	Venus (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
Renate Spingler	...	A young shepherd (Tannhäuser highlights perfomed by) (voice)
Matthias Hölle	...	The Landgrave (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
Kim Begley	...	Walther von der Vogelweide (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
Robin Leggate	...	Heinrich der Schreiber (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
Rodney Macann	...	Biterolf (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
Roderick Earle	...	Reinmar von Zweter (Tannhäuser highlights performed by) (voice)
Marián Labuda	...	Von Schneider
Maïté Nahyr	...	Maria Krawiecki
Victor Poletti	...	Stefano Del Sarto

Storyline

A deliciously biting satire about both the world of Grand Opera and United Europe. A Hungarian conductor (Arestrup) attempts to mount a bold new production of Richard Wagner's "Tannhäuser" while navigating the snares and pitfalls of artistic egos, rampant nationalism, internal company and union politics, and precarious funding.

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Plot Keywords:

opera | nationalism | passport | banquet | love affair | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

UK Japan USA

Language:

English Hungarian French German

Release Date:

December 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cita con Venus

Filming Locations:

Budapest, Hungary

Box Office

Gross:

$1,000,348 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Fujisankei Communications International, British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The director's name, István Szabó, translates as Stephen Tailor, and one running gag in the film is that several people are called this in different languages: Stefan Schneider, Steve Taylor, Stefano Sarto (three of the singers), and Etienne Tailleur (the stage manager).

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Soundtracks

"Du bis wie eine Blume"
(from song cycle "Myrthen, op. 25")
Music by Robert Schumann
Text by Heinrich Heine
Performed by Kiri Te Kanawa soprano, Roger Vignoles piano

User Reviews

the music isn't enough to save it

A Hungarian conductor tries to unite a multi-national European opera company preparing for a televised production of Wagner's Tannhauser, with mixed results. The same might be said of the film itself, which represents director Istvan Szabo's bid for a wider slice of international box office. Unfortunately, what begins as a mild but engaging Murphy's Law comedy (complete with labor disputes, political arguments, artistic conflicts and so forth) soon devolves into a phony feel-good melodrama, with all the comic frustrations of the early scenes jettisoned in favor of a predictably stormy off-stage romance between the conductor and his temperamental superstar diva (Glenn Close). A few incidental pleasures and an attractive, charismatic cast (presenting the entire European community in a fascinating microcosm) aren't enough to hide all the obvious shortcomings, including (but not limited to) shoddy lip-synching, unnecessary voice-over commentary, and the assumption that listening to Wagner is like dying and going to heaven.