This Academy Award-nominated documentary is a symphonic blending of narration by James Mason (Pandora and the Flying Dutchman), first-person recitations from Chagall's letters and poems read by Joseph Wiseman (Dr. No, Detective Story), and rare interviews with the charismatic Chagall himself as he nears his 90th birthday.

In Homage to Chagall, which The New York Times describes as "an affectionate and visually beautiful celebration of both the man and his art," acclaimed Canadian documentary filmmaker Harry Rasky (Song of Leonard Cohen) coaxes artist Marc Chagall's formidable life and transcendent work onto film.

In what Judith Crist of Saturday Review called "a magical blend of sight and sound that transcends the screen," Rasky drinks in the lush colors and mystical images of Chagall's paintings, tapestries, murals, mosaics, and stained glass windows from the Paris Opera to the Jerusalem Museum.

Homage to Chagall is a documentary from Kultur Films of a magnitude that rivals the work of its subject (it features more than 100 of the artist's paintings). Rather than trapping Chagall's achievements in an amber of dry historical context and typical documentary didacticism, Rasky's casual mastery of filmmaking irresistibly humanizes and personalizes the art of Marc Chagall while only increasing its lingering, transcendent beauty.

Directed by Harry Rasky. Narrated by James Mason. First-person recitations by Joseph Wiseman.

DVD. 88 minutes.