Product: The Idiot (4 DVD Set)
Rating: 3.0
Like Painting a Moustache on the Mona Lisa
The acting is superb. The casting is perfect. The sets are pretty darn good. As such, I imagine for native Russian speakers this was an incredibly rewarding experience. Sadly, however, for someone like me who just adores Dostoevsky - via the Pevear/Volokhonsky translations, at least - and needs subtitles, it was heartbreaking.Put simply, the subtitles are either mistimed, misplaced, misspelt, or missing. I don't understand how so much work and care and love could be put into something like this series only to have the subtitles just thrown together almost like some kind of last minute after-thought. I liken it to spending a year slaving away researching and writing some kind of Masters thesis, only to not bother doing the last couple of drafts before submitting.Were the subtitiles professionally done I suspect this DVD would hold pride of place on my shelf.As such, I'm not sure whether I would recommend purchasing this item or not. It's stll enjoyable, certainly; however, in many respects, the words ought to be the essence but they come up short.Sorry: I realise this sounds all a bit 'Anglophone'ish/centric'.