When I first saw Dante and the Invention of Hell advertised on Sky Arts, I knew immediately I just had to watch it. I immediately set a reminder, got the popcorn and settled down for what I thought would just be a simple documentary looking into Dante's Inferno. What I found instead, was a beautiful performance, that left goosebumps on my arms and chills in my spine. Really, this being aired on Sky Arts should have told me straight away that this wasn't going to be just any documentary, but not knowing it would be how it was, left me even more amazed than I would have been.
The first thing I have to say is that the actors, the dancers, all did amazingly. I didn't feel like I was watching a documentary. I felt like I was watching a performance, not that I was learning, that I was being entertained. I felt like I was taken on a journey that allowed me to explore this world that I knew so well already in so much more detail than I ever had before and it was awe inspiring. Never once when watching a documentary on Dante before have I sat and said to myself "this makes me want to visit Hell". Never before have I said this and meant it, and it struck amazement and slight fear into me. The documentary was just so beautiful that I couldn't help but want to be a part of this... macabre world they had created with just a tiny budget.
The second thing I noticed was that the people interviewed for this show, definitely knew what they were talking about. There were things that they brought up that I have never noticed about Dante's Inferno before, and it rekindled my love for this ages old poem once more. After reading it close to fifty times, I found myself rather bored of it, but those on screen have inspired me to look at it with new eyes, new ideas, and have sparked a whole new love for this poem.
The only thing I find to be a fault is it seems quite rushed at times. There were times I found myself struggling to keep up, or with a few questions about the Canto they just moved on from, and I feel like this was meant to be a much longer documentary, condensed into what we see on screen. It's a shame, that such a beautiful documentary felt like that, but other than this, I have 0 faults.
If you're interested in this kind of thing, I highly recommend watching Dante and the Invention of Hell. Never before have I been so entertained before. I would definitely watch this again.
The first thing I have to say is that the actors, the dancers, all did amazingly. I didn't feel like I was watching a documentary. I felt like I was watching a performance, not that I was learning, that I was being entertained. I felt like I was taken on a journey that allowed me to explore this world that I knew so well already in so much more detail than I ever had before and it was awe inspiring. Never once when watching a documentary on Dante before have I sat and said to myself "this makes me want to visit Hell". Never before have I said this and meant it, and it struck amazement and slight fear into me. The documentary was just so beautiful that I couldn't help but want to be a part of this... macabre world they had created with just a tiny budget.
The second thing I noticed was that the people interviewed for this show, definitely knew what they were talking about. There were things that they brought up that I have never noticed about Dante's Inferno before, and it rekindled my love for this ages old poem once more. After reading it close to fifty times, I found myself rather bored of it, but those on screen have inspired me to look at it with new eyes, new ideas, and have sparked a whole new love for this poem.
The only thing I find to be a fault is it seems quite rushed at times. There were times I found myself struggling to keep up, or with a few questions about the Canto they just moved on from, and I feel like this was meant to be a much longer documentary, condensed into what we see on screen. It's a shame, that such a beautiful documentary felt like that, but other than this, I have 0 faults.
If you're interested in this kind of thing, I highly recommend watching Dante and the Invention of Hell. Never before have I been so entertained before. I would definitely watch this again.
