Charlotte Church In Jerusalem DVD with Charlotte Church, Marina Maximilian Blumin, Uri Myles (NR) +Movie Reviews +Used DVD available for Swap

A Personal Visit Would Be Better

Candice Matthews | Oregon, USA | 01/30/2002

(1 out of 5 stars)

"This video certainly has no more merit than a CD by this artist. The scene is by the wailing wall in Jerusalem and the sum total of the program is to hear Miss Church wailing away with her choir-girl repertoire of material from previous CDs. Accordingly the listener/viewer has the same problems as with the CD and that is the total lack of range, control, and emotion in Miss Church's singing. If all you want is volume, you can receive the same every Sunday from your church choir. If you want to see Jerusalem, go there in person. The stationary night-time scene of Miss Church by the wailing wall will not satisfy your appetite for a Holy Land visitation."

SACRILEGE!!

Bethan Ceri D | Berkeley, California USA | 01/31/2002

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I was asked to do this review by a friend who had inquired as to whether this Video constituted a great religious experience. Unfortunately, I finished viewing this video, obtained from a library, totally unmoved. Despite various venues in and around places associated with Jesus, the vocals from Charlotte Church were about as inspiring as a flat tire. There is a total lack of emotion with this little girl and her range is notibly lacking; especially at the lower octaves. There is an aura of sterility that surrounds her vocalizations. In viewing this video, I feel as if I were listening to vocals which have simply been added to some video shoots without any thought of the congruency between the two. Thus, I remain unmoved by this work which rates no more than a travelogue seen on the travel TV Channel."

BETTER than her CD's!

Candice Matthews | 03/20/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Charlotte Church sounds even better when performing live than she does on her CD's - and that takes real talent! This video is absolutely beautiful. Charlotte is beautiful, her voice is beautiful, and the setting is beautiful. Every song is lovely, but I especially like "O Mio Babbino Caro" and "Plasir d'amour." "Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer" is so wonderful that it sounds exactly like the version on her CD, only better! "The Holy City" is a smashing ending to this must-have for Charlotte fans! My only criticism is that this video is way too short!"

Just Plain Wonderful!

Candice Matthews | 04/05/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Many people have been scepticalabout the development of her voice, but as this concert proves she only seems to get better and better. At fifteen years of ageshe has a wonderful appealingstage presence, and if she continues to train & improve, I believe that her dream to star in Madam Butterfly will happen."

A wonderful but slightly imperfect Charlotte concert DVD

Daniel Jolley | Shelby, North Carolina USA | 12/24/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Charlotte Church in Jerusalem is a wonderful concert performed in the shadows of the Tower of David in Jerusalem, and Charlotte is in fine voice throughout, but a couple of things make this my least favorite of Charlotte's concert DVDs. It's relatively short for one thing, clocking in at just 49 minutes - and that includes two orchestra intermissions. For another thing, the lighting is just horrible - maybe it looked great in person, but on video the stage is lit by some very harsh red and blue lights that oftentimes make Charlotte's tongue appear to be blue.

Despite its faults, though, this DVD does give us the always-impressive Charlotte Church singing a number of classical and religious songs, most of which can be found on her second, self-titled album. Singing in such a historically important setting, Charlotte performs with great reverence and grace. She is accompanied by the Ra'anana Symphonette Orchestra under the direction of Julian Smith, and the Chamber Cantus Choir joins her on two songs. There seemed to be a minor timing issue with the chorus on one song, but the orchestra is superb. Uri Miles, possibly Israel's only Uilleann Pipes player, lends an appropriately Irish sound to the song Last Rose of Summer, and Marina Blumen joins Charlotte to sing Pie Jesu. Blumen is greatly overshadowed by Charlotte, who had really settled in to her performance by that point. There are two intermissions, which seems rather strange given the short length of the DVD itself, but the orchestra fills the gaps wonderfully, especially with two selections from Bizet's Carmen.

My favorite songs are, not surprisingly, the ones sung in English. The Lord's Prayer is a beautiful song that Charlotte always sings with great feeling, and she quickly follows up with a powerful version of Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer. Ave Maria is another stand-out selection, followed closely by La Pastorella and Plaisir d'amour. Having begun the concert, appropriately enough, with the song Jerusalem, Charlotte concludes by singing The Holy City, which she soon reprises before calling it a night.

The DVD doesn't come with many bonus features. There is a discography of Charlotte CDs and videos, a set of pictures from Charlotte's time in Jerusalem (but the concert itself features a number of video shots of Charlotte touring the city), and - my favorite - a music video for Dream a Dream (featuring Billy Gilman). I absolutely love this particular song, so the inclusion of the video earns much appreciation from this Charlotte fan.

All in all, this is a wonderful DVD; I just wish it were longer and featured more flattering lighting. I would rank this last among Charlotte's DVDs, but that does not mean Charlotte Church in Jerusalem is not worth watching. Devoted fans like myself will definitely want to add this title to their collection."

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