You could be in real trouble if your last question in Trivial Pursuit is about Luciano Pavarotti. Chances are you don’t know a lot about the late opera singer. Now, director Ron Howard is here to fill in the blanks. He’s got a new movie about Pavarotti with the kind of revelations that could take your Trivial Pursuit game to a new level.
That voice! It’s literally music to our ears.
The documentary “Pavarotti” takes us behind the scenes of the legendary opera tenor’s life and career.
Speaker (in “Pavarotti”): “He was a nervous wreck before every performance. He would always say…”
Luciano Pavarotti (in “Pavarotti”): “I go to die.”
Director Ron Howard admittedly isn’t an opera expert, so he told Deco what attracted him to the project.
Ron Howard: “You just do a little bit of reading, and you understand it’s a really interesting journey. Relatable and yet fascinating. Then you think about the possibility of using that music to help reinforce and tell his story.”
Pavarotti clearly wanted to make opera as mainstream as possible.
Just look at his epic Three Tenors performances and collaboration with U2.
While Luciano isn’t around to see his own movie, Ron believes he’d give it a good review.
Ron Howard: “I think he would’ve appreciated that this movie, hopefully, does that. It extends that. It brings opera to a broader audience.”
Pavarotti’s asked in home video how he wants to be remembered.
That seemed to us like a fitting question for a prolific director and actor like Ron Howard.
Ron Howard: “Ultimately, I love my family, and I love my work, so I’d like to be thought of as a filmmaker, storyteller and family man.”
Speaking of family, Ron has a younger brother who he casts in a lot of his movies.
He didn’t manage to somehow sneak him into the documentary, though.
Ron Howard: “He’s not a mandate! I love working with my brother Clint, but I only cast him when I know there’s something juicy for him to do.”
“Pavarotti” is now in theaters.
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