"Age Of Innocence" Shows Martin Scorsese Love For Opera

Ms. Pfeiffer (facing camera) at the opera in the film Age of Innocence. Read a wonderful article documenting the history of opera in the life of director Martin Scorsese by clicking here.

"The Age of Innocence is a 1993 American film adaptation of Edith Wharton's 1920 novel of the same name. The film was released by Columbia Pictures, directed by Martin Scorsese, and stars Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Winona Ryder. The film won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design, and was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Winona Ryder), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score and Best Art Direction. The film was dedicated to Martin Scorsese's father, Luciano Charles Scorsese, who died before it was completed." [Source] The opera scene that opens the movie is from Gounod's Faust and shot at the Philadelphia Academy of Music. Watch the scene and read the movie plot, after the jump.

Adam Sandler's Film "Mr. Deeds" Gets Some Operatic Humor

The 2002 film, Mr. Deeds, features Winona Ryder, Adam Sandler, John Turturro, Steve Buscemi, and Peter Gallagher, in a non-stop romp of humor. One scene takes place in a restaurant when a table of guests decides to make fun of Sandler's character. One gentleman proclaims, "I sing at the Metropolitan Opera" and proceeds to let loose with a vocal thank you for corporate sponsorship: "When Longfellow Deeds, a small-town pizzeria owner and poet, inherits $40 billion from his deceased uncle, he quickly begins rolling in a different kind of dough. Moving to the big city, Deeds finds himself besieged by opportunists all gunning for their piece of the pie. Babe, a television tabloid reporter, poses as an innocent small-town girl to do an exposé on Deeds. Of course, Deeds' sincere naiveté has Babe falling in love with him instead. Ultimately, Deeds comes to find that money truly has the power to change things, but it doesn't necessarily need to change him." [Source]