A very good production of the wonderful musical "Pippin". Ben Vereen is terrific in his role as Leading Player. William Katt and the rest of the cast do an equally stunning job in their roles.
Even though some scenes were cut (the talking decapitated head scene and the duck death scene) and one entire song omitted (I Guess I'll Miss the Man), it doesn't detract from the overall performance, IMO. All of the other songs are included (in the DVD version anyway).
*** Possible spoiler ****
And to clarify one other reviewer's comments - there are officially two ways to deliver the final line in the play. Bob Fosse's approved final line (and the way that William Katt delivers it in this version) is "Trapped ... which isn't too bad for the end of a musical comedy."
Pippin's author and lyricist's actual written line is "Trapped... but happy... which isn't too bad for the end of a musical comedy."
Since this filmed version was supervised by Fosse, his ending line was the one delivered.
*** End spoiler ***
The DVD version of the film was a bit of a let down, though. The video clarity and sound are o.k., but the thing that irked me on this Special Edition DVD was the total lack of any kind of insert (liner notes and lyrics would have been nice - and maybe a performance history), and Chapter Stops that don't make sense (I wish they had chapter stops placed at the beginning of each song, but they don't and you have to fast forward to get to them). The only thing special was the inclusion of a 5 minute Fosse interview.
This performance was very good to deserve something more than this Special Edition offers....
Film - 8 out of 10 (because they cut out my favorite song) DVD - 5 out of 10 (for lack of 'specials' in a Special Edition)
Even though some scenes were cut (the talking decapitated head scene and the duck death scene) and one entire song omitted (I Guess I'll Miss the Man), it doesn't detract from the overall performance, IMO. All of the other songs are included (in the DVD version anyway).
*** Possible spoiler ****
And to clarify one other reviewer's comments - there are officially two ways to deliver the final line in the play. Bob Fosse's approved final line (and the way that William Katt delivers it in this version) is "Trapped ... which isn't too bad for the end of a musical comedy."
Pippin's author and lyricist's actual written line is "Trapped... but happy... which isn't too bad for the end of a musical comedy."
Since this filmed version was supervised by Fosse, his ending line was the one delivered.
*** End spoiler ***
The DVD version of the film was a bit of a let down, though. The video clarity and sound are o.k., but the thing that irked me on this Special Edition DVD was the total lack of any kind of insert (liner notes and lyrics would have been nice - and maybe a performance history), and Chapter Stops that don't make sense (I wish they had chapter stops placed at the beginning of each song, but they don't and you have to fast forward to get to them). The only thing special was the inclusion of a 5 minute Fosse interview.
This performance was very good to deserve something more than this Special Edition offers....
Film - 8 out of 10 (because they cut out my favorite song) DVD - 5 out of 10 (for lack of 'specials' in a Special Edition)