Gesualdo: Death for Five Voices

In both his fiction and nonfiction films, director Werner Herzog has often portrayed obsessively driven protagonists who have dangerously destructive tendencies, so it is not surprising that he was drawn to the simultaneously lurid and creative life of Don Carlo Gesualdo, the Italian Renaissance composer whose madrigals—featuring a chromatic language far ahead of its time—were written, at least in part, as penance for his 1590 murder of his wife, her lover, and the son he feared was not his. Gesualdo's music, largely dismissed after his death, was rediscovered in the 20th century and embraced as the work of a genius by modern giants including Stravinsky. Herzog approaches Gesualdo's story for this 1995 film in his usual idiosyncratic way. On one hand, he offers performances of the music, courtesy of Il Complesso Barocco and the Gesualdo Consort of London, along with learned commentary from their respective leaders, Alan Curtis and Gerald Place. On the other, he stages sequences with both Renaissance re-creators and actors (featuring a woman who haunts Gesualdo's dilapidated castle claiming to be the reincarnation of the composer's dead wife, and a chef and his wife who quarrel as he discusses the menu for Gesualdo's wedding feast). Also included is an interview with the aristocrat who now holds Gesualdo's title as Prince of Venosa. Throughout, Herzog narrates in his typically deadpan style, translating for viewers as needed. While this may not be one of the prolific director's best films, it's an intriguingly weird entry that fits nicely into his overall oeuvre. Presented in PCM stereo, this is recommended. (F. Swietek)