Product Description

Based on famed writer dylan thomas masterpiece. A magical & hilarious story of a spring day in a small welsh coastal village. Studio: Arts Alliance America Release Date: 02/26/2008 Starring: Richard Burton Peter Otoole Run time: 88 minutes

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #27206 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-08-09
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Collector's Edition, Color, DVD, Special Edition, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 87 minutes

Amazon.com
Under Milk Wood is an imaginative, cinematic rendering of Dylan Thomas's famous "play for voices," typically read on stage by a handful of actors expressing the dialogue of more than 50 characters living in a small, Welsh fishing village. Filmmaker Andrew Sinclair sets the story in a real seaside community and visually complements the text's lengthy, opening narration by enlisting Richard Burton both for his brooding voiceover and a mysterious, on-screen role as a drunken gadabout soaking in the very soul of the town Thomas' words describe. Once the narration ends, the film breathes freely with a succession of lively vignettes, some funny, some dramatic, but all rooted in the peculiar circumstances of characters who either feel trapped by or ensconced in their home. Peter O'Toole plays the wizened, blind Captain Cat, haunted by memories of drowned sailors but so attuned to the sounds of village life outside his window he can identify the children screaming in a park. Elizabeth Taylor (Burton's wife at the time) makes a brief appearance as Rosie Probert, and the other players include Glynis Johns, Vivien Merchant, and Victor Spinetti. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Our Town
This film adaptation of Dylan Thomas' wonderful "Under Milkwood" has dozens of characters, the most famous of whom are Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor and Peter O'Toole-- one of the problems with this production. There are simply too many characters to keep up with. The other problem is that the Welsh accents are difficult to understand. The play works better when performed on stage with a few characters reading several parts. On the other hand, the photography of the village and seacost is beautiful beyond words. And speaking of words, hearing Thomas' alliterative plumy language makes up for whatever failings this film may have otherwise: "the dawn inches up," "the tidy wives," and the village at night described as "a hill of windows," etc., will make your heart leap up. Mr. Burton's delivery of the long narrative passages is not to be missed.

The CD has a short interview with Mr. Burton and a longer biography of Dylan Thomas, constructed in most part from his beautiful poems. Both inclusions are an added bonus.

Bad idea well executed.
I own this on videotape, but will not, probably, be getting the DVD.

UNDER MILKWOOD is a play for voices, originially written for radio, and frequently done as a readers' theater piece by college and community groups. (By doubling parts one can do it with a fairly small cast, and the constumes, scenery, and props are minimal.)

Why then, would one even consider doing it as a film, that most visual of media? A videorecording of a proper readers' theater production might have some pedagogical value, but it would be a rather dull film considered as film. But this shoehorning it into a full cinematic treatment was totally wrongheaded from the beginning.

I'm giving it three stars only because of the cast; they were all very talented people and obviously were doing the best they could under the circumstances. The only exception was Elizabeth Taylor, and that wasn't really her fault; (a) so much of her part was cut that one couldn't really get a valid impression of her conception of Mrs. Probert and (b) she was miscast--but she probably would have been even worse miscast as any of the other female parts! As it was, it was obvious that she was really trying hard, but had too much going against her.

As for the cuts--and there were many--why, if they were so pressed for time that they had to cut so much, did they introduce that totally unnecessary and gratuitous 'Norma Jean' interlude?

Don't waste your money; get a proper, audio version.

Under Milk Wood
The 'bonus' material (the biography) was very interesting and a welcomed addition.

The 'movie' itself was generally very well done - I had only ever seen Thomas' work 'acted' out once - on stage. It is, of course, a 'play for words' and therein lies its strength. The portrayed actions were (in my humble opinion) conducted in a manner that aided the presentation of Thomas' masterpiece. However, there were a couple of 'director interpretations' that I did not like, or that I felt were not adequately expressed:

1. The scene with Burton, his 'lady friend' and side-kick, in the barn seemed tasteless and unnecessary - it does even NOT exist in Thomas' writings.
2. The 'ych-y-fy' repetitions were excessive - becoming annoying.
3. He totally missed (portrayal of) the obvious fiscal solicitations during the 'crytal ball readings'.