I'm a fan of classical literature. I remember having bits and pieces of the story of Don Quixote read to me long before I ever saw Man of La Mancha on stage. Fortunately for me, I saw it on stage and fell in love with it there long before I ever saw the movie version. Had I seen the movie version first, I might never have bothered with the stage version.
The stage play and the movie both frame the Quixote story within a story about its author, Don Miguel de Cervantes. They both begin with Cervantes being imprisoned while he awaits trial by the court of the Inquisition. Cervantes (Peter O'Toole) and his servant (James Coco) are stuck into a prison common room with many others. As a diversion, he begins to tell the story of Quixote. He passes out costumes to the prisoners, and plays the role of Quixote himself. His servant becomes Quixote's servant, Sancho Panza.
The story played out for the prisoners is that of an old country squire named Alonso Quijana. Quijana has spent so much time reading about chivalry and knight errants, that he has lost his mind and believes himself to be a knight named Don Quixote de La Mancha.
Quixote find himself falling in love with a kitchen maid/prostitute that everyone else knows as Aldonza (Sophia Loren) but which he believes to be the Lady Dulcinea. He jousts with what he believes to be giants which everyone else believes are windmills.
In the meantime, the family of Alonso Quijana is at their wits' ends. His housekeeper and his niece engage the assistance of their local priest and of the niece's fiancee to bring Quijana back to his home and to his senses.
The stage version of this story is wonderful and magical. The screen version is not. O'Toole is a tremendous actor, but he cannot sing. Instead, his singing was dubbed by Simon Gilbert. Unfortunately, Mr. Gilbert's singing is not up to the role either. The only thing I can think of is that they found someone whose voice had some of the same qualities of O'Toole's speaking. Whatever it is, the audience has the double jolt of watching a song dubbed (which one can usually tell) and being sung less than pleasantly.
James Coco is quite good. He can sing and has a nice sense of comedic timing. I actually laughed when he and the barber had their exchanges over the shaving basin that Quixote wants because he believes it is the Golden Helmet of Mambrino.
The most pleasant surprise here is Sophia Loren. She is perfect as the earthy, tough and confused kitchen wench, Aldonza. Her singing is actually good. She brings a great depth to the role. I would have loved to see her play the part on stage with a director who could have brought out more.
The orchestral part of the music is good; it is only when actors open their mouths that the music falls apart.
The directing is perhaps where the movie most falls apart. The pacing is bad. It feels laboriously slow throughout. I like filmed stage productions and adaptations. This was just poorly done.
The songs included in the movie are:
"The Impossible Dream" (sung by Simon Gilbert), "Man of La Mancha" (Simon Gilbert), "Dulcinea" (Simon Gilbert),
"It's All the Same" (Sophia Loren), "Aldonza," (Sophia Loren), "I Really Like Him," (James Coco), "The Barber's Song/Golden Helmet of Mambrino" (Gino Conforti, James Coco and Simon Gilbert), "I'm Only Thinking of Him" (Julie Gregg, Rosalie Crutchley and Ian Richardson), "The Psalm" (Ian Richardson) and "A Little Gossip," (James Coco). Missing are songs "Knight of the Woeful Countenance," and "To Each His Dulcinea."
The message of the story - to reach for goals no matter how lofty or unattainable - is a good one. The film includes no sex, no swearing, some fighting but neither gore nor blood. This is a squeaky clean story that you can take kids to without embarrassment - only boredom.
The film runs two hours and ten minutes which feels much longer than it sounds in this case. If you are interested in Man of La Mancha, look for a local stage production, get a copy of the script or get a copy of the cast recording. Skip this film and try to remember all the good things Peter O'Toole has done.
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