Edvard Grieg – What Price Immortality ? DVD – Sabine Oberhorner, Hanne Fjerdingstad

A 70-minute co-production between various European TV companies Edvard Grieg: What Price Immortality? seeks to reveal the man behind the iconic image of Norway’s great national composer. Death in Venice (1971) is immediately called to mind as the narrative unfolds through the memories of an elderly Grieg sitting alone on the deck of a boat, particularly in sequences which suggest a more-than-platonic love for fellow composer Rikard Nordraak. The memory structure likewise suggests the Proust adaptation Time Regained, from the same year, while comparison can also be drawn with Ken Russell’s TV composer biopics, particularly the elegiac Song of Summer (1968). Set around performances of two of Grieg’s most personal works, the piano Ballade and the String Quartet, director Thomas Olofsson effectively creates a “silent movie” where the storytelling is predominantly visual, eloquently assisted by Derek Jacobi as the voice of the composer. Grieg is played by various actors at different ages, most notably by the distinguished pianist Staffan Scheja, while even without uttering a word Claudia Z makes a charismatic impression as Grieg’s wife, Nina. Elegantly composed and lit, this beautiful, resolutely middle-brow film is ultimately far too derivative of previous art films to achieve artistic greatness of its own. On the DVD: the stereo sound and anamorphically enhanced 1.77:1 image are both very good, with the latter showing just occasional grain. Colours and detail levels are excellent. There are no extras, only Spanish subtitles and a choice of English, French and German voiceovers. Trailers for a further five Arthaus DVDs are included. –Gary S Dalkin