Product Description

Francis Ford Coppola returns to the realm of his mastery with a new film about growing young. A bolt of lightning strikes Dominic Matei (Tim Roth) so close to death that he begins to age backwards. When he grows from 70 to 40 in a week, he draws the attention of the Nazis and the world. Now he's running for his life with a new love and no hope of knowing his phenomenal fate.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18353 in DVD
• Brand: Sony
• Released on: 2008-05-13
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: AC-3, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French, German, Italian, Romanian, Russian, Sanskrit
• Subtitled in: English, French
• Dubbed in: French
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds
• Running time: 125 minutes

Amazon.com
Francis Ford Coppola returns to directing for the first time in a decade with the fascinating if perplexing Youth Without Youth, a kind of science-fiction tale of mythic proportions based on a novella by the late Romanian historian and religion scholar Mircea Eliade. Tim Roth stars as elderly linguist Dominic Matei, whose life work--uncovering the roots of human language--has been stymied throughout his long and undistinguished career. Struck by lightning while crossing a Bucharest street in 1938, Matei not only survives but goes through a physical transformation, reverting to the age of 35 and remaining ageless for decades to come. Trying to remain incognito, Matei is pursued in Europe by Nazi intelligence as well as journalists, acquiring strange powers and communicating with a sort of psychological double of himself. Throughout, Matei finds himself unable to escape a cyclical destiny, particularly when he falls for a woman (Alexandra Maria Lara)--physically! similar to a lost love in his pre-lightning life--whose apparent possession by ancient, Indian deities is useful to his work but dangerous to her. The episodic film lurches along with the logic of a dream siphoned into waking life, a constantly shifting consciousness that suggests Matei exists in several planes of experiential reality simultaneously. Coppola has been down this hallucinatory road before, perhaps most spectacularly in Apocalypse Now. But it is not hard to see how Youth Without Youth is a very personal film for him and somewhat of a parallel to his career, which seems rejuvenated with the release of this complex movie, so full of the kind of technical and stylistic flourishes that brought Coppola legions of admirers and detractors years ago. --Tom Keogh

Stills from Youth Without Youth (click for larger image)

Beyond Youth Without Youth

On Blu-ray

Soundtrack CD

Paperback Book

Customer Reviews

FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA, OPUS 23
****1/2 2007. Based on Mircea Eliade's Youth Without Youth, this film was written, produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Struck by a lightning, a 70 years old Romanian teacher survives and is rewarded by the ability to live a second life that will allow him to assimilate the whole human Knowledge. This is a haunting movie dealing with important themes such as time, love, oldness or Man's origin, it kept me awake late last night long after its ending. I wouldn't qualify this film as arty because its form and its story aren't incomprehensible for the lambda viewer. The themes handled by the director are intellectually demanding but their exposition is very simple; that's the mark of a great director. Highly recommended.

For film students and philosophers
Because nobody else is going to enjoy it. I had high hopes for this film that were entirely unrealized. The premise of the movie isn't even original - a man endures an accident and grows younger, to be pursued by those who want to understand and exploit his secret. Stephen King did that in 1991's Golden Years, and it wasnt that interesting then.

The only positive comment I can make about this movie is that it's visually interesting - the cinematography and period recreation is well done. Otherwise this is a rambling incoherent mess passing itself off as a stream of consciousness film.

This is an art film. If you're someone who enjoys perusing art galleries trying to intellectualize and decipher meaning from abstract images, then you'll enjoy this. If you're seeking to be entertained for entertainments sake, put this movie down and step slowly away.

Absolutely genius or surreal waste of time?
For me: this film is either a work of absolute genius or is a surreal waste of time. The film captures your attention at the start; I like the `shock' element of seeing Tim Roth doubling in personality - this was done very well and adds a `dark' element to the film that keeps you on edge. The film also contains originality in that it's difficult for me to think of another film through which it can be compared.

The themes covered are interesting e.g. conflict between `good and evil', and the exploration of the origins of language appealed to me as a linguist. Unfortunately, I think there were too many ideas in the film and each one wasn't portrayed in enough depth. The plot lacked some-what and at the end of the film I felt a bit cheated because I was expecting something `more'. Overall: worth seeing but perhaps not owning.