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Title: Janacek's Vixen, de-toothed
Review: It's too bad that Dunbar and crew decided to shorten the opera and aim it at the children's market. The story, in its original form, has sharp teeth. The profundity of Janacek's opera lies in its contrast of mundane and morose humans with the super-*natural* animals, and at 90 minutes, it's succinct. Dunbar -- citing a need to bring the story in under an hour -- focuses pretty much on the cute animals. Worse, the denuded score is sung in a wan, timid style. Janacek's music, though far from Germanic, still demands passion of its singers. On the plus side, there are some nicely animated sequences, and the animation is above-par for today's market. Those who buy this DVD should consider introducing themselves to the *real* work via the MacKerras CD or (perhaps even better) the EMI/Rattle CD, which is in a superior english translation.
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