Bloody Daughter - Martha Argerich, A film by Stephanie Argerich

Documentaire intéressant pour qui aime bien Martha Argerich et réalisé par Stéphanie, la plus jeune de ses filles. Elle s'exprime toujours par bribes quelque soit la langue choisie et donne encore l'impression d'être confuse. Mais certains éléments de sa vie deviennent plus clairs. Elle ne veut tout simplement pas être épinglée comme un papillon dans une boîte ou une plante dans un herbier. C'est un excellent complément à Conversations nocturnes d'il y a quelques années. Un 2e dvd est inclus. Il contient un concert : Crto de Chopin, rappels et autres.Bloody Daughter est l'expression utilisée par S. Kovacevich au sujet de sa fille, Stéphanie qui n'est toujours pas reconnue.

Definitely not what I was expecting. The piece was really very intimate, and gave a human face to famous people which is cool and super rare. Also Martha has mentioned that she was unhappy in lessons as a child and doesn't like performing. As a pianist, I can relate. Her husband mentioned that it was her "duty" to perform - I thought that was interesting. I wonder how much of duty is compulsory and how much is passion, and how sometimes that can be taken for granted by the audience and probably the artist as well. I can't imagine the intensity of that struggle, especially when one is so accomplished at said "duty". I've struggled with that in my own life and that stood out to me. I also enjoyed watching the way she raised her children, which was completely non-conventional. The tragedy of her first daughter came as a surprise, and it makes me happy that they perform together and have a good relationship. I think the author/director Annie shouldn't beat herself up about her father and the birth certificate issue. Its more a matter of principle I understand, but cultivate the relationship as is. You're lucky to have it. He's a really nice guy and doesn't seem like a bully - that alone makes you a lucky daughter. I wonder if the children felt like an inconvenience to their parents, or if their parents felt that way as well. This doc. explored that and I think thats a universal theme.... Delicate documentary that was super engaging. <3PS The way Martha speaks "with her eyes" - no words.

This was a very interesting film a side of Martha Argerich the public rarely sees. It is not just a film of her piano performances. It is more of a film about Argerich in her personal life and relationships. She is a complex person who can't always express what is on her mind. She sometimes struggles to find words about her feelings (and this isn't because of language).This film, lovingly narrated by her daughter Annie, also reveals some information about her other daughters that I didn't know. I appreciated that her daughter, Annie, made this film which gave the viewer an intimate portrayal of Argerich.

"Bloody Daughter", the documentary film about pianist Martha Argerich made by her daughter, Stéphanie Argerich, attains a goal most biographers would like to achieve. It reveals, most convincingly, the real person behind the legendary musician. Stéphanie, given a video camera at a young age, photographed her mother almost obsessively: asleep, eating, practicing, fretting backstage, holding forth, whistling to the unborn grandchild, ear to the daughter's belly.The biographical DVD comes with a second video: Martha playing Chopin's first piano concerto and two encores in Warsaw in 2010.The documentary deserves a wider circulation than it has had. Besides being the only first-hand biography of one of the greatest pianists of our time, it is full of surprises, drama, contradictions, smiles and tears. "Bloody Daughter" is apparently what Stéphanie's father, Stephen Kovacevich, called her, though he insists it is a term of affection. Kovacevich, despite the affectionate daughter's best efforts, does not come off particularly well in the film, refusing to perform, unable or unwilling to acknowledge his paternity.Martha, on the other hand, despite being so clumsy with speech and clumsy, in fact, with almost everything except the piano, comes through as the most extraordinarily human you can imagine. As Stéphanie says, "I am the daughter of a goddess."

This is an enjoyable and remarkably frank look at Argerich's personal life. What "bloody" in the title has to do with it escapes me, as she comes across as a down-to-earth, plain spoken, and quite lovable person. She does not hesitate to discuss what she sees as her personal weaknesses and failings, in fact, seems to be a little too hard on herself at times. Still, she is able to have fun, notably as she, family members, and friends join in a Jewish folk dance they're following on video.The picture gets a little more depth with the segments on her parents, childhood, and early career. The daughters are interesting people on their own, and seem to have turned out well, "bloody" or not. The three former husbands, each of whom fathered a daughter, are given fair treatment, with a good deal of time spent on Stephen Kovacevich and his daughter, the film's creator.My only regret was that the clips of her performances are much too short, but that's what recordings are for -- and, since this is Amazon, we know where to find them.

A beautiful film about the complex relationship of the filmmaker and her mother, Martha Argerich. As a fan of Argerich this film gave insight into the life of an artist who has lived, largely, out of the spotlight throughout her career, despite being one of the world most talented pianists. More interestingly however, was the powerful description of the relationship between Stephanie and Martha. The film is composed of new footage and some which Stephanie took as a child after her mother returned from Japan with a video camera in the 80s. As a mother of daughters myself, and someone who saw her own mother infrequently while growing up, I found this film enormously touching and inspiring on a deeper emotional level.

This pianist is probably the world's best artist. Her playing is phenomenal. This DVD is about her life and in particular that of her daughters and one daughter in particular. It gives a very personal view into Miss Argerich's life - not an easy thing to do but it is well worth watching not just if you love her playing but it lets you into her life, just a little bit and a very personal and at times painful view. I thank her daughter and Martha for the making of this film.

I found this film extremely moving, particularly in terms of the various levels of relationship involved. The inclusion of the Chopin E minor concerto on DVD was something I've been waiting for since I heard Martha play it in the Festival Hall in the seventies - it was inspiring then and it is still inspiring now. May Martha live for a long time yet and delight us with whatever she feels like playing!

A wonderfully intimate and honest portrait of a brilliant but troubled family. Stéphanie Argerich pulls no punches and, as a result, her virtuoso parents, Martha Argerich and Stephen Kovacevich, come over as real flawed as well as brilliantly talented people. Stephanie's discovery of her siblings is also very moving, and, as a film-maker she know exactly what to leave and what to leave out.Warmly recommended.Piers Plowright

Excellent film (I saw it on release in Warsaw last year) and seems to be region free, something worth checking on since most people will noy order it since it's advertised as unplayable in Britain and Europe