Casanova (2005 film)
Casanova is a 2005 American romance film directed by Lasse Hallström starring Heath Ledger and loosely based on the life of Giacomo Casanova. The film premiered September 3, 2005, at the Venice Film Festival.[1] It received mixed reviews and flopped at the box office.
For the 2005 British miniseries, sometimes shown as a film, see Casanova (2005 TV serial).Casanova
Production[edit]
Director Lasse Hallström had long wanted to make a film about Casanova but postponed the project to make An Unfinished Life with Robert Redford. The script was originally written by Kimberly Simi. It was later redrafted by Michael Cristofer.[3][4] Tom Stoppard gave the script an uncredited polish.[5] Producer Leslie Holleran also polished the script.[6]
Filming began on July 9, 2004, and the finished film was released in the United States on September 3, 2005. Visual effects for the film were produced by Custom Film Effects and Illusion Arts. Period costumes were supplied by four different Italian costume houses: Tirelli Costumi, Nicolao Atelier, Costumi d'Arte, and G.P. 11, and shoes were manufactured by L.C.P. di Pompei. Wardrobe was also rented from Sastreria Cornejo of Spain.
The film was shot on location in Venice.[7]
Additional scenes were filmed in Vicenza, particularly the Teatro Olimpico, the Renaissance theater known for its intricate forced perspective stage design.
The hot air balloon scene was created using Computer Generated Imagery (CGI).[6]
Reception[edit]
On Rotten Tomatoes the film has a score of 44% based on reviews from 131 critics. The site's consensus states: "This frothy, oddly bloodless film does a disservice to the colorful life of the real Casanova."[8] On Metacritic it has a score of 57% based on reviews from 36 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[9] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "B" on scale of A to F.[10]
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave it 2 out of 4 and wrote: "That the new Casanova lacks such wit is fatal. Heath Ledger is a good actor but Hallstrom's film is busy and unfocused, giving us the view of Casanova's ceaseless activity but not the excitement. It's a sitcom when what is wanted is comic opera."[11][12][13] A.O. Scott of The New York Times called it "a delightful respite from awards-season seriousness" and rated it 4 out of 5.[14]