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intereact!Director: James Lapine
Actors: Bernadette Peters, Chip Zien, Joanna Gleason, Tom Aldredge, and Robert Westenberg
Rated: Unrated
Retail Price (not our price): $29.99
Release Date: 1997-08-27
Theatrical Release Date: 1991-03-20
Studio: Image Entertainment
Run Time: 153 minutes
Format: Array
Format: Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Discs: 1
Editorial Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):
1) Amazon.com essential video
Fractured fairy tales of a darker hue provide the remarkable context for Into the Woods, which deconstructs the Brothers Grimm by way of Rod Serling. While the faces and names are familiar, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, and company inhabit a sylvan neighborhood in which witches and bakers are next-door neighbors, handsome princes from once-parallel fables are competitive (and equally vain) brothers, and all the stories intersect through unexpected new plot twists. Stephen Sondheim's Tony-winning score favors intricate ensemble numbers that present the characters' divergent, then overlapping fears and desires. And it's the latter category that provides a primary thread to James Lapine's ingenious puzzle of a book, which coheres around the inevitability--and treachery--of our innermost wishes. That theme is given farcical energy in the first act, which offers enough comic invention, tart dialogue, and witty music for a satisfying evening of theater as is. Instead, Sondheim and Lapine offer a bold, darker second act that takes a look at what happens after "happily ever after," elevating the work beyond inspired parody toward allegorical gravity. By the final scenes, with the one-two punch of the score's two most enduring songs, "No One Is Alone" and "Children Will Listen," what began as a clever diversion has touched deeper nerves and primed some tear ducts. This video production by the original Broadway cast gets its marquee shimmer from Bernadette Peters's wonderful witch, but the standout (and Tony winner as Best Actress) is Joanna Gleason, who gives the Baker's Wife a mixture of warmth, pragmatism, and sudden, poignantly romantic radiance. The DVD version is comparatively no-frills, given its American Playhouse origins, but multiformat digital audio renders the musical performances in immaculate detail. --Sam Sutherland2) Amazon.com
Fractured fairy tales of a darker hue provide the remarkable context for Into the Woods, which deconstructs the Brothers Grimm by way of Rod Serling. While the faces and names are familiar, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, and company inhabit a sylvan neighborhood in which witches and bakers are next-door neighbors, handsome princes from once-parallel fables are competitive (and equally vain) brothers, and all the stories intersect through unexpected new plot twists. Stephen Sondheim's Tony-winning score favors intricate ensemble numbers that present the characters' divergent, then overlapping fears and desires. And it's the latter category that provides a primary thread to James Lapine's ingenious puzzle of a book, which coheres around the inevitability--and treachery--of our innermost wishes. That theme is given farcical energy in the first act, which offers enough comic invention, tart dialogue, and witty music for a satisfying evening of theater as is. Instead, Sondheim and Lapine offer a bold, darker second act that takes a look at what happens after "happily ever after," elevating the work beyond inspired parody toward allegorical gravity. By the final scenes, with the one-two punch of the score's two most enduring songs, "No One Is Alone" and "Children Will Listen," what began as a clever diversion has touched deeper nerves and primed some tear ducts. This video production by the original Broadway cast gets its marquee shimmer from Bernadette Peters's wonderful witch, but the standout (and Tony winner as Best Actress) is Joanna Gleason, who gives the Baker's Wife a mixture of warmth, pragmatism, and sudden, poignantly romantic radiance. The DVD version is comparatively no-frills, given its American Playhouse origins, but multiformat digital audio renders the musical performances in immaculate detail. --Sam Sutherland3) Description
A baker and his wife journey into the woods in search of a cow, a red cape, a pair of golden slippers and some magic beans to lift a curse that has kept them childless. Tony Award winners Bernadette Peters, Joanna Gleason and the rest of the original Broadway cast weave their magic spell over you in Stephen Sondheim's masterpiece, directed by James Lapine, a seamless fusion of fairy tale characters and what happens after "happily ever after. "With oft-recorded songs such as "Children Will Listen" and "No One is Alone," "Into the Woods" is a music lover's delight from start to finish--and will forever cement Stephen Sondheim's unparalleled position as the giant of the American musical theater.
Customer Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):
Average Customer Rating: 5.0 out of 5
1) Into the woods [Rating: 5 out of 5]
It is an excellent family play filmed live at a theater. Bernedette Peters is very good and funny as the Witch. Little Red Riding hood is also very good. Her deadpan humor is hillarious.2) I really, really hate this show [Rating: 1 out of 5]
I saw this production on Broadway the week it opened. It made no sense then, it makes no sense now. I defy anyone who hasn't listened to the album with the lyrics in his hand to say what the heck is going on at any particular point. The lyrics are unintelligible in the theater. I've seen this show a half-dozen times, trying against all hope to figure out what makes it popular, and I still can't even begin to figure out what the plot is. I've asked other people, normal, non-show people who've seen it and supposedly enjoyed it, if they could tell me the story. Nope, not a single one could. All they knew was it was about some fairy tales. Yet they liked it. That makes me despair as much for the state of our audiences as for the Sondheim groupies.The libretto - well, there are so many things wrong with it, where to start? First, the utter disrespect for the original fairy tales, twisting them to fit the potted theme - excuse me, gentlemen, Cinderella does NOT go "into the woods"! Jack does NOT go into the woods with the cow. Second, the inability to use the original fairy tales for a through-line, having to invent the lame story of the Baker and his Wife. So why not just stick to the Baker story, or the fairy tales? Well, because Sondheim isn't happy until he's crapped all over stories that have enchanted the West for hundreds of years with his own perverse maunderings. Third, the incessent, whiny moralizing. Sondheim has turned into a twisted version of Hammerstein; first he rebelled by being seemingly amoral ( I stress the seemingly, he has always been moralistic in his work), now he moralizes but only after making you sick to your stomach. His shows have to "mean" something, something "deep," something "profound," like Be careful what you wish for (like a new Sondheim show), or Art isn't easy (no, but the best art looks that way). On top of all that, Sondheim breaks all his own rules for lyric writing in this piece, stuffing it with off-rhymes, assonance, etc. It is simply sloppy.What stuns and amazes me is that the more outrageously bizarre he got, with Sunday in the Park, Into the Woods, and the worst of all, Passion, the more esteemed he became! Why do people worship this man who celebrates illness and neurosis? Are we so desperately unsure of ourselves that we automatically esteem something that makes us queasy or that we don't understand? Now, if anyone reads this, I'm sure I'll receive hate mail. Too bad. When people praise the unpraiseworthy, I don't mind being the voice in the wilderness. Anyway, if I've had to listen to people applaud this mishmash, then I get to say something in return.3) wonderful introduction to Sondheim's work, superb production [Rating: 5 out of 5]
About six weeks ago, I watched this DVD of Stephen Sondheim's "Into the Woods." It happened to be on my Netflix queue because I was curious about Sondheim's work. What a delightful surprise to discover this piece of work (which is not even considered Sondheim's best.)The story melds several traditional fairy tales (Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Cinderella) into one with the addition of three new characters: the Baker, the Baker's wife, and the witch. One aspect I really enjoyed was the ensemble nature of the work. No one character dominates and pretty much every major player has at least one great song. The casting was terrific; everyone acted superbly (the standout being Joanna Gleason as the Baker's wife). I also really liked the fact that each character had a unique voice (not chosen just to be beautiful and melodic, but to fit the character). The book by James Lapine was also very funny and witty, matching Sondheim's clever lyrics. None of the songs are really show-stopping with the exception of "Giants in the Sky" and "Children Will Listen" in the Act II finale. But that's fine because "Into the Woods" is an ensemble work and you really have to watch the whole thing to appreciate it. Unlike the other musicals I've seen (Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, etc), the acting was more important than the singing. Not that the singing was bad, but I really enjoyed the fact that the actors and actresses put so much effort into being the characters. The most amazing song is Joanna Gleason's performance of "Moments in the Woods." It was wonderful to see her express different moods with slight movements of her head and facial expressions and even do little things like fix up her hair while singing. What I really like about the songs in Into the Woods is that they're tied to a character's thinking and slightly ambiguous. Little Red wonders whether she did the right thing "straying off the path." Cinderella debates whether she should tell the Prince who she really is. Perhaps that is why some people find Sondheim unusually cerebral for a songwriter. The ambiguous nature of "Into the Woods" is fitting since the woods are a metaphor for our journey through life. Bernadette Peters is the main attraction and she does a wonderful job with the witch, but I find the character of the witch to be a little shallow compared to the Baker and the Baker's wife. As an example, I really loved the song "It Takes Two" where the Baker and Baker's wife sing about how they need each other.To sum up, "Into the Woods" was a wonderful introduction to Sondheim's work and I look forward to more!Additional note: I just read a Sondheim interview where Sondheim summarized "Into the Woods" as a Bronx couple (the Baker and his wife) living in a world of fairytale characters. What an apt and succinct characterization! It makes the show seem even funnier.4) great price special show [Rating: 5 out of 5]
thank you this shows the original cast on broadway CD is unavailable but DVD was wonderful to have5) One mixed-up fairy tale [Rating: 4 out of 5]
I'm not usually much for stage productions on DVD. In general, I think the best way to view a play is to go to a theater. Capturing it on film loses a little something, since you're restricted to watching where the camera brings you, and you can't enjoy the surrounding atmosphere. I say this as an explanation of why I gave Into the Woods only 4 stars. If I were able to watch it as intended, it would easily be 5 stars, but there is something that I feel is lost in translation.That said, Into the Woods is an excellent musical by the legendary Steven Sondheim. It takes a mixture of fairy tales, including Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Cinderella, and puts them all into a blender. The result is a play that has a very quirky first act, and a surprisingly dark second half. The music is excellent, and the songs are at times laugh out loud funny -- especially when it comes to the pair of womanizing Prince Charmings.Bernadette Peters steals the show with her amazing acting as the evil witch. However, all the performances in this production are spot-on, and the script, music, and timing are perfect. If you're familiar with the fairy tales involved, you already know the plot -- or at least the first half of it. You'll be surprised and delighted to see where the rest of the story leads. Happily Ever After isn't the end of this tale. Into the Woods is a fun production that is both charming and suspenseful. If you enjoy musicals, it's definitely a must-see.