as a singer, as does Nicole who is also fantastic in this film.It is a film which you must let yourself be transported into and you'll then succomb to its charms and wonders.
Ewen Mcgregor is fantastic and at one particular point he is _so_ good, I found myself asking 'why on earth are you involved in that Star Wars crap when you are this good an actor'? He also reveals he has a huge...talent as a singer, as does Nicole who is also fantastic in this film.
I would liken it to a Strictly Ballroom with a budget of about another $48million, but that comparison's not really fair...there has never been a movie like this one!
If you've heard negative things about it, see it for yourself and decide. Don't just listen to some critics. Folks seem to love it or hate it.
I loved it.
9/10 Good on you, Baz.
They were speaking about this on the radio the other day. In particular, about some of the negataive reviews for the film. The announcer (who loved the film) said he watched Disney's 'The Kid' on video the night before and hated it for being such formulatic drivel but critics didn't mind it. Yet here we have a director who is prepared to do something very different and he gets slammed for it!
One person rang up and said something to the effect of "I didn't think it was fair that he used other people's songs and changed some of the words to make his movie".
To those sorts of comments, I say: "Get a life".
Baz Luhrman was interviewed the other day also and said of the reviews which are mostly extremes of Awful to Excellent, that the reviews for Strictly Ballroom and Romeo and Juliet were exactly the same and he loves it. He loves that he can invoke such a response from reviewers and the public instead of them just coming out of the movie saying...'It was alright...where do you want to eat?', they come out and are passionate about the films he makes.
Baz was known to move from theatre complex to theatre complex in Sydney when Romeo was released checking for quality and audience reaction. Hopefully, he'll be out there again even as we speak.
Again, good on you, Baz. Thanks for being different.
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...all you need is love.
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Never in 28 years as a movie-goer have I heard a packed cinema stand and clap at the end of a film. What a feeling this movie generates, a visually spectacular (spectacular!) experience with a beautiful story line and a love to last the ages. The use of modern day songs and lyrics kept the audience amused and at the edge of their seat to see what song they could recognise next. And who knew that Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman could sing? These were the words whispered while filing out of the cinema by hundreds of movie goers through their now subsiding tears. The whole cast surely surprised and mesmerised alot of people with their seemingly unlimited talent but none more-so than Nicole and Ewan. This movie was beautiful in every way and I would strongly recommend it to all ages. I loved this film and believe if the promotion of it is right it may become of Sound of Music notoriety.
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For more, go to http://us.imdb.com/CommentsShow?203009
I haven't seen it yet, so I will post my review when I do. I have seen the 'Spectacular Spectacular' pitch scene and thought it was so hilarious and outrageous that I couldn't help but grin from ear to ear. If the rest of it is like that, it's going to be a lot of fun.
If you want to be amused...wait till you see a certain number between Richard Roxburgh (who is also excellent here, unlike his role in MI2 where his talent was completely wasted as a South African thug!!!) and Jim Broadbent. I started to laugh when I realized what they were actually saying and didn't stop until they finished...over three minutes later!
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Children really brighten up your life...they never turn off lights.
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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Cell: 716-781-4036 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion
I loved this film. It was gorgeous. USA today had a review that slammed it, and included comments that began with "Take away the...". IDIOTS, take away anything from this film and it sucks. That is why it is so damn good. I have to admit, I liked RnJ. But this was different. I liked the POP aspect, the comedy had great timing and the soundtrack is awesome. Also in the USA today review, they asked the question everyone wants to know, "what demographic?". Oh, wait, NOBODY CARES. How about a movie done for artistic purposes, or maybe they were going for the "intelligent" group, that can find beauty behind Like a Virgin, and Roxanne covers. I certainly know I did, and I hope others will as well.
So why the hell didn't I like this film?
It's a shame. I really wanted to enjoy this like I've enjoyed both of Baz's previous movies. But the editing and camera work in the beginning was just too fast and obnoxious for me to handle. It's like I was hit by a barrage of sensory information with the quick cuts, the singing, the sets, the music, the camera work, and the dancing in the first few numbers, and I'm sure that disorientation was the point, but it was just annoying. And I know the film must focus on Ewan and Nicole's characters but couldn't there have been more development with the Bohemians? I mean the narcoleptic only passed out on us twice. I'm sure Baz could have slipped in another seizure on us once or twice more without running the joke into the ground.
Now by this point my fellow Techers are probably a little pissed at me for being the first to bring any negativity towards this film. Well... get ready to be a little more pissed.
As I was watching this film, I thought to myself, nobody does musicials nowadays like Trey Parker. The next thing I knew, I was recasting the movie in my head. Trey of course was Christian, Matt was Zidler (I know he's too young but it was the only part I could fill him in with), Dian was the midget Toulouse, Toddy Walters (Polly Pry in Cannibal the Musical) was Satine, and for some strange reason, I thought Richard O'Brian would be good for the part of the bald pianist. And I didn't think to change the Duke's part because he was goofy enough. That cast in mind, I suddenly had a better time. But it still required some effort on my part to actually watch the show. Towards the end, it got a little more enjoyable without my backup cast, but it doesn't help my overall opinion of the film, and I was disappointed.
I'm really not trying to say this just to possess a different point of view or intentionally go against the tide of the feelings towards the previous posts just to have a unique voice. I really truly did not like this film. As I said before, all the elements were there, but Baz had to go super stylish on us with his quick paced editing (which is weird because I kept looking at my watch) and it ruined the experience for me. So, needless to say, I am still on the lookout for a really good film this summer. Okay. I'm done. Now I will await the inevitable pommeling from the fans of this movie.
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The man with the magic hands.
Dwayne: I agree with you that Richard O'Brien would have been perfect for the bald pianist. and I could see Gary Oldman pulling off the Duke with ease as well.
Aaron
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The man with the magic hands.
Ian! Do you think that Steve K would LOVE this movie? It seems like his type of flick. How 'bout Ky?
That being said, the DP work and especially the sound mix was extremely well done! Very high ratings go to this flick for technical reasons.
Personally, I found myself thinking how much more humorous the film could've been if every part was played by one of the Kids in the Hall. 
(Joe - I believe John Leguizamo was in "Executive Decision". That movie got high scores if for no other reason than because Steven Segal died!)
So if I'd have thought to cast Gary Oldman I would have liked this film more? "I really wanted to enjoyed this..." I believe were the words I used in my first post on this topic. I meant that.
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The man with the magic hands.
I have just returned from a very pleasant night at Coburg Drive-in where I was given a guided tour by the management and was shown the projection room which, for me a non-projectionist, was an enjoyable and informative experience.
After this I settled down to watch the film.
Unfortunately I am going to have to side with Dwayne on this one. I feel bad because I know a lot of people have really enjoyed the film and also because it is evident that the director and cast have put a lot of work into the production. Not to mention the fact that there are very few musicals these days.
However being a film critic requires one to be frank sometimes.
Firstly, the first 2/3 of the film is characterised by the director seeking to attain the record for the most number of camera shots within a feature film. It is difficult, even unpleasant, to watch a film that jumps from scene to scene so much within the space of a few short seconds.
It could be that Baz Luhrmann is endeavouring to create a new type of movie but for me it just doesn't work. Later in the film things slow down a little bit and the number of camera shots/minute declines and at this point the film becomes more enjoyable but by this time the erratic jumping from scene to scene has left one a bit drained.
Next problem concerns the music. I am no expert on film but I have always thought that a musical should have a suite of complete songs, preferably original, and each song suited to the context of the scene in which it is sung. In Moulin Rouge one gets a mish-mash of once popular 70s and 80s tunes, often with only half the song sung in the film. One is left with the distinct impression that the songs were included so as to sell soundtrack compilation records.
On a positive note it is good to see that Nicole Kidman can sing. Perhaps in future she can be used in other, more conventionally directed musicals.
Another aspect of the film that I had difficulty with was the complete absence of french culture from the film which is curious given that the film is set in Paris. The Paris portayed is not the city of love and culture but rather a sort of quiet Gotham City.
Another aspect I had difficulty with was the way the camera often had shots looking straight down a room with the subject in the centre of picture looking straight at the camera. Personally I do not find this an appealing way to view a scene. Equally the 'whoosh' shots, whilst probably a trademark of the director, added little to the movie.
In summary I gained the distinct impression that this was an attempt by the director to produce a new style of musical which appealed to a present generation audience using familar and famous pop music, an unusual style of camera direction and a very fast pace. For me it just didn't work and I think that many people will not find this style of film pleasant to watch.
In future I hope that the following rules are adhered to when making musicals
1. No whoosh shots
2. A small suite (say 15) of songs, appropriate to their respective scenes and sung in full.
3. Some outside shots
4. More traditional camera direction
Rating 6/10
cheers Peter
PS - Executive Decision was boring. Wasn't that about airplanes or something? I saw it and remember Steven Seagull dying, but that's about it. I will maintain that John Leguizamo ruins movies just by his mere presence!
hey, i liked romeo + juliet.
all the other ones i can think of were pretty bad though.
oh, yeah....screw traditional
I give Moulin Rouge two and a half stars out of four.
I'm encouraged to see actors who can act branching into musical efforts. It reminds me of the good old days when an "entertainer" was expected to act, sing, dance, be funny, be serious, ride a horse... everything! We need more of that.
I wanted to be able to enjoy the film more, but I found a lot of the musical numbers to be horribly distracting in the choice of music material. I likely would have liked the film much more if it had used original songs rather than lifting everything from "the hills are alive with the sound of music" to grabbing stuff from Nirvana and Madonna. That stuff pulled me out of the film experience in the same distracting manner as "A Knight's Tale." Maybe I am a purist though, having seen a number of Broadway musicals where the numbers were primarily original material written for that stage production. I feel "Moulin Rouge" should have done the same thing.
One thing I really loved about the film was the look of it. Don McAlpine really did a cool job with the anamorphic photography. Thank God this was not just another fobbed off Super35 grain job. This is a good example of a DP using the optical artifacts of anamorphic photography to a stylistic advantage. The production design for the film was first rate. I would certainly expect this one to be mentioned at least in the art direction and set decoration Oscar categories for 2002.
------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Cell: 716-781-4036 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion
Is it too early to say that Moulin Rouge is a flop? I wouldn't mind that as I would hate for the film to set any sort of a precedent.
I understand that the film cost about $50 million to make yet to date has only grossed $40 million and the number of theatres showing it is declining markedly.
http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2001/MOULR.html
Hopefully this will cause Hollywood to make more traditional style musicals in future.
cheers Peter
It may not be huge in the States, but she's a biggy here in Oz.
http://www.urbancinefile.com.au/news_bums_on_seats.asp
Still going strong at my theatre and for anyone interested, there have been many reports of the prints shedding and losing SRD info from the print.
I was told that by a service tech and suggested he take a look out that port-hole right there. He did and saw a dazzlingly clean, blemish-free psint of Moulin Rouge which at that point was up to 120 passes. He was suitably impressed.
I then took him to the CP500 and kept looking at him as I opened the front panel to reveal the error rate. I did this so I could enjoy his expression. It was running along at '2'. At this point, his jaw literally dropped.
...and there was much rejoicing...
If you don't think FilmGuard is worth the effort or the bucks...come and see Moulin Rouge at my theatre. I'll even comp you a ticket!
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"If you think THIS is fantastic...wait until you see the full effect with the HIMP!"
- Chief Inspector Clouseau.
If this movie is regarded as a box office failure, it won't cause Hollywood to make more traditional musicals. Rather, it will cause Hollywood to continue to shy away from musicals altogether.
The fatal flaw may be that this movie lacks the innocence of so many of the musicals which inspired it. If it's supposed to be a story about love and the search for love, then it was a thematic inconsistency to set the story in a veritable brothel.
Yes, the old "hooker with a heart of gold" idea has appeared in a lot of movies before. But a rich, power-hungry guy like Richard Gere deserves a girl like that a movie like Pretty Woman. Ewan McGregor's wild-eyed, dreamy innocence in this movie deserves a better reward than a woman who's been around the block so many times. He's more deserving of a "Princess Bride" type of woman. I honestly think that's why audiences aren't able to become enthusiastic about this film.
As stated earlier the cost of the film was about $50 million - US$ I think. Yes The film has grossed about $17 million Australian but with the Australian dollar the way it is, that isn't significant in $US terms.
Last night I watched a documentary/promotional video discussing the history of the various versions of Anna & The King including the productions with Yul Brynner and the recent movie with Jodie Foster. It is interesting to compare 'The King & I' with 'Moulin Rouge'.
Why did 'The King & I' succeed so well. Here are a list fo factors that I felt made the film so good.
- Outstanding performance by Yul Brynner
- Strong storyline with forceful characters
- exotic/savage/barbaric culture adding spice to story
- Original music by Rogers & Hammerstein
- Real feeling & emotional identification with main characters
- Carefully crafted moments of light & shade, silence & noice, tension and humour
'Moulin Rouge' was quite a different matter entirely. There was no original music - just a hotch-potch of bits and pieces of various pop tunes arguably unsuited to the period and storyline. There was little or no character development.
Worst of all - there was no happy ending! Musicals are meant to be upbeat and in my humble opinion the best musicals have happy ending.
There was little light and shade. From the moment the film started the audience is subjected to a barrage of images and sounds that are disorientating. There are no pauses for an audience to contemplete where the film is going. The film is not a train taking an audience somehwere - rather it is an express that runs right over its audience.
To make the film work I would have done the following things
- written in a happy ending
- stripped away all of the music used and settled on 17 original songs suited to the scenes in which they are sung - including one or two genuine french songs. Alternatively, some of Celine Dion's material could have worked in this film.
- cast Celine Dion (she would have been IDEAL!) and Anthony Warlow in the lead roles
- Made this a Kylie-free movie
- Over-dubbed the Australian accents (not suited to film)
- Used exterior shots of older parts of Paris
- Introduced genuine french culture into the storyline
- cast several top line french comedy actors in secondary roles (Thierry L'hermite, Christian Clavier, Marie-Anne Chazel...)
- Slowed down the pace of the film considerably to give greater depth
- Rewritten the script to add a bit more humour
Just my ten cents
cheers Peter
RAOTFLMAO!!!!!!
Celine Dion!!!
Oh...oh...I can't breathe...I can't breathe...
You were joking about Celine Dion, right?
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Greg Mueller
Amateur Astronomer, Machinist, Filmnut
http://www.muellersatomics.com/
Why is the idea of casting a french canadian singer into a musical set in France so bizarre? Casting an Australian actress in a musical set in France I find a bit bizarre.
cheers Peter
The thing about great actors is that they can play parts which may have little to do with the actor's real characteristics. Let's hope Anthony Hopkins isn't anything like Hannibal Lecter, but would those movies be better if a real, homocidal pyschopath had played the lead?
Celine Dion toured Australia a few years ago. My wife and I saw her in Concert and everyone was saying 'What a voice...!' afterwards. She is awesome in concert.
http://www.celineonline.com/
My sister (who has worked in Canada) and my French-Canadian born French teacher have both told me that Canadians don't much like Celine Dion. That is probably due to the fact that they have been familiar with her since she was a teenager whereas her talents are new to Australians. Familiarity breeds contempt.
Had she been in Moulin Rouge the box office takings would have been even bigger in Australia. I rather think that songs such as 'Falling into you', 'If that's what it takes' and 'Treat her like a lady' would have worked well.
Putting great singers into Musicals seems logical to me.
Who can forget Barbara Streisand singing 'As time goes by' in What's Up Doc (One of my favourite films). Actually it strictly wasn't a musical but Barbara Streisand's musical number definently added some magic to the film.
Leave drama to the actors and musicals to the singers in my opinion.
cheers Peter
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Greg Mueller
Amateur Astronomer, Machinist, Filmnut
http://www.muellersatomics.com/
All the actors in Moulin Rouge sing their own parts, and very well in my humble opinion.
I wish 'Like A Virgin' was on the CD though...also, the instrumental in the credits is very good but sadly missing from the CD. 
Too bad...I still laugh myself silly everytime 'Like A Virgin' comes on.
Still doing very good business here. Click Here for Aussie Box Office Figures Finally, a movie which will make it to its minimum (8 weeks) and then go beyond that...
...unlike Pearl Harbor which will be flat out making it (albeit very unhealthily) to 7 weeks from a supposed 10 week minimum.
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"If you think THIS is fantastic...wait until you see the full effect with the HIMP!"
- Chief Inspector Clouseau.
You think that they're overdoing the emotions in the beginning of the movie, but then you watch the rest of it & realize that those emotions have never been overdone so well.
As a music fan, I was personally entertained by all of the different songs that were transformed into one song. The "your song" montage & the entire first club segment are perfect examples (I never saw "Smells like Teen Spirit" coming up!)
My final impression of the film was that it was really original, it didn't fit into many Hollywood cliches, and it didn't sell out (except to the record companies...).
I might get this one on DVD, if not rent it for sure.
Also... the end credits have some really energetic music in them, I always enjoy listening to them through the monitor speaker!
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I hope that after I die, people will say of me: "That guy sure owed me a lot of money!"
Moulin Rouge has now overtaken Strictly Ballroom as the fourth highest money earning Australian film released in Australia. What Strictly took 41 weeks to do, Moulin has topped in only about 8 weeks.
Still going strong here...if only it had mirrored this result in the USA.
There are a lot of folks missing out on a fantastic piece of entertainment. If you haven't seen it...get out there and catch it before its gone.
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"If you think THIS is fantastic...wait until you see the full effect with the HIMP!"
- Chief Inspector Clouseau.
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Greg Mueller
Amateur Astronomer, Machinist, Filmnut
http://www.muellersatomics.com/
Kismet actually has a better plot line, but suffered badly from slow pacing and some songs that were horrendous. Moulin had some songs that weren't great, but the pacing and constant references and visual texture kept nearly every second of the show entertaining. A never fail indicator for me of a good show is how full my bladder gets before I move out of my seat. This one was a bladder-buster, while with Pearl Harbor I was sucking down the Coke in hopes of having to get up.
During the frenetic sequences, I kept thinking of the Monty Python image animation (the spaceship animation in Life of Brian comes to mind) and thinking that this was the effect that the Python troup had been unsuccessfully trying to achieve. The support characters seemed like they just stepped out of Baron Munchausen or a warp drive theatre of the absurd.
The other effect beyond the freneticism that was notable for me was the Victorian thickness of the sets. So many movies pare the sets down to simple visual cliches that to see a background so lush as this was like walking into a garden after the desert of other film sets.
The use of all these elements successfully within a single film would be impressive enough, but to make it into a musical and make it work takes a vision and a willingness to innovate beyond the standard limits of the genre.
Peter had a comment that I found amazing..."Worst of all - there was no happy ending! Musicals are meant to be upbeat and in my humble opinion the best musicals have happy ending."
Cover your ears Peter. <rant mode>
I am SO sick of predictable happy endings and completely resolved plots that I could puke. I don't know when the studio executives set down a hard and fast rule that every film had to end happily, but such thinking has ruined more films, plots, and scripts than I can count.
I'm trying to imagine how the happy ending to the film would be accomplished. <satire> Instead of dying of consumption, she could have coughed up a huge booger and done a little dance, or Pastuer could have appeared in the last act with a huge syringe of penicillin aimed for her butt. While he was racing around he could give a shot to Carmen as well and fix yet another musical.</satire>
Film can work well and make money with a sad ending. Peter is too young to remember the hoards of sobbing customers exiting "Love Story." I only hope that more directors will use non-standard endings so that I go to the theatre once again with that heady suspense of not knowing how things will end. </rant mode>
My view is that if a person can watch the movie.. and say that he/she likes it after seeing the "Green Fairy" scene... then they will like the rest of the movie.
One cinematic effect that I liked, was the use of very small clips from later in the movie to add to the drama of the current scene. I would have to agree with one person's post on the minute speeding up, or deletion of frames during the beginning Diamond Dog's song was an amazing touch.
I couldn't catch any consistency errors either; but with any film.. I'm sure there were some. Anyone see any? And no... the scene were Lilly states, "This ending is silly, why would the courtesan choose the penniless writer..." The cut after that, where they finish the song is a later rehearsal.. the chairs are removed from the back.. and Lilly and the other courtesans are up on the stage.
But then again.. why criticize perfection =)
PS: This is my first post... good to meet you all.
Welcome aboard.
I haven't heard any reviews that have said it was just ok. People either love it or hate it.
cheers Peter
Fast editing. Just say No!
~GLB
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In some cultures, what I do is considered normal.
Moulin Rouge is definately going on my DVD shelf (of DVDs I steal from Blockbuster)
JK
just kidding about the stealing.
With all the positive reviews on this page I was beginning to wonder whether I'd seen the same film as everyone else.
I opened my local newspaper, the Melbourne Herald-Sun, today however and was greeted by the following news article.
http://heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,2797614%255E2902,00.html
Critics cancan Moulin Rouge 08sep01
LONDON - Moulin Rouge has opened in Britain to reviews ranging from the damning to the delighted.
Most scathing was the Financial Times, which said Nicole Kidman's showgirl role would have been better played by a drag queen, "which might lift the whole tawdry heap of tinsel and glitterdust on to the right tacky level".
"Whatever impact her unclothed form had on playgoers in The Blue Room, here Kidman comes over as a robust Aussie girl willing to be a
sport in groaningly awful material," it said. "She is matched by (Ewan) McGregor who seems to be enjoying himself so much that he scarcely bothers to act".
The Times was scarcely more complimentary, describing Baz Luhrmann's
musical as having the "aural effect of a belligerent drunk with eclectic musical taste and a lot of spare change hogging the pub jukebox".
Critic Barbara Ellen said she left the cinema feeling as drained as a day-old corpse on a morgue table. "It is just about the most self-indulgent, overdone, exhausting confection it has ever been my misfortune to come across stone cold sober," she said. "If you must go to see it, my advice is to go late and go drunk." Kidman was accomplished and beautiful but still one of the world's very few humourless Antipodeans, she said.
But the Evening Standard said musical lovers would be in a state of joy. "Whether it will convert those who don't like the genre to start with, I doubt it," critic Zoe Williams said. AAP
Say no more!
cheers Peter
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Greg Mueller
Amateur Astronomer, Machinist, Filmnut
http://www.muellersatomics.com/
You never know...of course, you may still hate it, but seeing as you will know what sort of film to expect...
I just might do that. It isn't out on video yet so I will have to wait a little while though.
cheers Peter
). I will add to the positive reviews. It is a little bit fast at the start but you soon get into it. I absolutely love the opening curtain with the 20th centuary fox fanfair.Now:
John Leguizamo
I have to disagree with 
, I think leguizamo is great in this movie. It's probably his best, I thought he was great.
And i did notice that a lot of people stayed right to the end.
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Greg Mueller
Amateur Astronomer, Machinist, Filmnut
http://www.muellersatomics.com/
I think the Golden Globes have 'Musical' catagories.
I borrowed Moulin Rouge on DVD to have another look at the film as it appears that most people's impressions of the film differ from mine.
After viewing the film again and giving the film some thought I still found that the film did not work for me. As I had seen the film before I coped a little better with the faced paced editing at the beginning but I found that the failings that I had identified the first time round were still there.
The film is essentially a collage of ideas. Some worked and some did not work on screen. Here are my list of positives and negatives:
Positives
- The Indian musical idea worked well. I like Bollywood and there is richness in Indian musical film-making that deserves greater recognition.
- Nicole Kidman handled some songs quite well. Ditto for Ewan Mcgregor
- Some of the slower songs (unlike the mishmash of other incomplete songs) are suited to the plot
Negatives
- the pop music chosen was largely used as a gimmick to attract a younger audience rather than as a tool to highlight the subtleties of the plot. To put this issue more precisely the songs were only loosely related to the plot. They songs lacked emotional depth. One feels that the character is singing the song because it is an opportunity for the actor to add his/her gimmick song to the mix.
- The film skims so fast over the plot that there isn't the time for the audience to develop a real emotional empathy with the characters. The plot comes across as a facade presented by actors rather than as something actually happening. Some of the ideas and choices made are so out of sync with the plot and the setting that they are almost laughable when they weren't meant to be.
- Using bits and pices of songs to express ideas or feelings is a gimmick - nothing more. Ask yourself - does the use of this technique really add anything to the plot or the presentation, or is it just a marketing mechanism to sell compilation albums?
- There is almost no 'Frenchness' to this film although it is set in Paris. Take away the words 'Moulin Rouge', a few signs and the fake Eiffel Tower and most people would say the film depicts London. Baz has done to Frenchness in film-making what McDonalds has done to hamburgers - produced a product that is bland and without real flavour. Where is the french sense of the absurd, the joie de vivre, the very essence of french culture? Reduced in this film to a pale shadow of itself if that. Quelle dommage!
- Fast editing works ok sometimes but not for 45 minutes straight.
- Lack of realism to sets
- Baz Luhrmman's obsession with dance floor shots. It just looked like he was trying to remake Strictly Ballroom at times with different costumes. These shots worked in Strictly Ballroom because the dancing was more closely part of the plot but here...
- A lot of the 'comedy' just isn't funny
Enough said - I guess people will make their own decisions but for me there was a lot in this film that didn't look right or work. It is an interesting film in that many new ideas are trialled but a truly great film, both old and new, is one where all the ideas work.
cheers Peter
Ps Here is the Tomatometer rating
CLICK HERE
Moulin Rouge has been nominated for 4 awards in "The Stinkers" (the world's most comprehensive bad movie ballot).
http://www.thestinkers.com/2001sofar.html
As far as the Golden Globes go here is a quote from the Stinkers website timeline:
"Sunday, December 20, 2001 - Hollywood's biggest ass-kiss fest (The Golden Globes) announces its lame nominees. NO ONE takes these seriously...
and later...
Sunday, January 20, 2002 - Hollywood's biggest ass-kiss fest (The Golden Globes) slimes its way on the air (NBC from 8:00-11:00 p.m.). NO ONE cares..."
I wouldn't go as far as saying that Moulin Rouge is worst film however, although it has been nominated. It generally takes John Travolta in a lead role to win that award.
But I think it has a real chance for worst sense of direction.
cheers Peter
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Greg Mueller
Amateur Astronomer, Machinist, Filmnut
http://www.muellersatomics.com/
Merry Christmas everyone
cheers Peter
I realized from the get-go that this film was a derivative, a mix of other earlier films and songs, and I appreciated it in that way. Looking more closely, I wonder if the subtitle shouldn't be "Shakespere in Love meets the Rocky Horror Picture Show"
Consider the similarities of ML and SIL:
The lead is a young writer.
There is a play within the movie.
The setting is a major European city.
The love of the lead characters is thwarted at the end.
The female lead is "betrothed" to a noble.
The noble is cuckolded and made to appear foolish and vain.
The bulk of the active women are portrayed as whores.
The owner of the stage is portrayed as an overextended impressario.
There is a character used mainly to expose the lovers.
At the last moment, the integrity of the opening night performance is thrown into doubt.
The similarities go on, but you can see my point with the above examples.
Now imagine:
Frankenfurter as the Impressario.
Janet in Nicole Kidman's role.
Brad becomes the young writer
The Tango becomes the Time Warp
The Castle becomes the Moulin Rouge
All this, and the film still works as a straight romantic story.
Three Golden Globes says it all..!!!
Paul--
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"It's not the years honey, it's the mileage". - Indiana Jones.
Moulin Rouge is one of those weird films that many people (myself included, just check the first page of this thread) absolutely HATED. Yet upon a second viewing, and moreso with a third, the magic starts to come out.
I am therefore changing my review of this movie to a big thumbs up. While I still feel the first reel is too spastic, this is one of those weird films that really does require a second viewing. I am apparently not the only person out there who required a second viewing to enjoy this film. I now know of a half dozen other people who like the film after my insistence of them watching it again.
So if you've only seen this film once, go see it again.
The check's in the mail.
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"It's not the years honey, it's the amount of time it takes people to realize that Moulin Rouge is the best movie to come out in absolutely years."
- Indiana (Tango) Jones.
I truly believe that in 20 years, this will be the film that is remembered as the truly influential film from whatever we are going to call this decade (the zeros?, the nothings?, the naughts?...sure a lot harder that the eighties or nineties!).
I love the way Baz slams the viewer around. There is a promo piece on AMC I stumbled across this week, and he points out the jarring cut in LIKE A VIRGIN where it cuts to Satine being injected. That was deliberately placed there to make the audience aware of just how ill Satine is.
I have another theory about why I liked the film more the second time...I call it the SISKEL-EBERT effect, and it was most noticeable in LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS. Many years ago, back in the PBS days, Gene and Roger posed that the true mark of a good film was that the audience truly cares about the characters. In the original LITTLE SHOP musical, both Audrey and Seymour are so likeable, and the audience cares so much about the relationship, that we are let down at the end when they die (original version). Test audiences hated the ending so much that a new, happier ending was shot.
I so liked the relationship between Satine and Christian that I was very let down at the end. I didn't want her to die. I cared about them. I later viewings, I know she is going to die, I accept that, and just let the beauty of the film flow.
My favorite parts of the film are the DIAMONDS ARE A GIRLS BEST FRIEND number (love a good big band!), and the amazing LIKE A VIRGIN. Mixing Madonna with Hello Dolly was almost more than I could take...best laugh I've had in a LONG time.
One side note...there are reports on many of the DVD boards of the DTS track being slightly out of sync. I just got a new DVD player with DTS, and I notice a very slight lag through much of the film. Anyone else notice this?
This is a film I would love to see in a 70mm print on a BIG screen with a BIG sound system, and sit in the front row and just smile, and smile and smile.
I agree that "Moulin Rouge" would have been a good candidate for making a few dozen 70mm prints. The image quality is superb!
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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Cell: 716-781-4036 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion
Oscar nominations.......
Best Picture:
Actress:
Art Direction:
Cinematography:
Sound:
Costume:
Film Editing:
Makeup:
That makes 8.
Last night on Ally McBeal the baby sitter got fired, because she didn't like Moulin Rouge.
Had a good laugh about the babysitter thing. It's spooky you know...I've thought about doing that myself. Of course it's hard though as I can't seem to find a babysitter who doesn't like Moulin Rouge!
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"It's not the years honey, it's the mileage". - Indiana Jones.
Best Picture at the Producer's Guild awards...
From BBC News
>>Hit musical Moulin Rouge has received a boost for its Oscar hopes with the award of a prize from the Producers Guild of America.
The Baz Luhrmann-directed film, which starred Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor, was named the best film of the year.
In the last 12 years nine movies honoured by the Producers' Guild have gone on to win best picture at the Academy Awards - including Gladiator in 2001 and American Beauty in 2000.
The PGA predicted Gladiator's Oscar success
The boost for the musical may have come at a good time, as Baz Luhrmann was not nominated for an Academy Award for direction.
Many observers have started to see the Oscars as a race between top-nominated The Lord of the Rings and A Beautiful Mind - which received eight nominations, as did Moulin Rouge.
Oscar share
But the antics of A Beautiful Mind's star Russell Crowe after the UK's Baftas - when he berated a TV producer for editing out a poem he read out on accepting an award - may have damaged his Oscar prospects.
If Moulin Rouge is named best picture at the Oscars on 24 March, Luhrmann will still take a share in an Oscar as one of the movies' three producers, despite the lack of a director's nomination.
The film's other producers were Fred Baron and Martin Brown.
Kidman was the only Moulin Rouge actor to receive an Oscar nomination, following her January Golden Globe for her lead role in the film. <<
That is all..
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Come what may...
Great date movie.
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The greatest thing you'll ever learn
Is just to love
And be loved in return
Is it getting another run anywhere leading up to this weekend's festivities?
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"It's not the years honey, it's the mileage". - Indiana Jones.