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Rating: 4.75 out of 5
Growing up, one of my elementary school classes was music. I really didn’t pay much attention in that class as music wasn’t really anything that interested me. I’ll be the first to admit that I have very, very, very limited knowledge of the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. I know he was an iconic composer who was a prodigy at the age of five and died in his early to mid-thirties. I might know like one of his musical compositions. I actually know more about Beethoven than any other composer ever. Beethoven is the s**t, and I personally think he was better. With that said, Amadeus, the 1984, film pleasantly and unexpectedly surprised me with how well and entertaining it was. I would highly recommend that people give this movie a chance because it is funny, stylish and will make you appreciate Mozart’s music.
Amadeus begins in the early 19th century. It is silent when a scream is heard. Famed composer and now an elderly man, Antonio Salieri (Abraham), has been overtaken with grief and tried to commit suicide. He survives his attempt but is thrown into an insane asylum. While in the asylum, he is visited by a priest. Salieri tells the priest about his work and plays a few notes that the priest has zero idea who wrote them. Salieri then plays another song that the priest immediately recognizes. Salieri confesses to the priest that he murdered Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Hulce). Salieri believes that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s music is divine and miraculous. Salieri then recounts his life from childhood and when he first fell in love with music to rising up and being court composer to Emperor Joseph II of Austria. His life seems grand when he meets the famed Mozart, whose genius is far beyond anything he had ever imagined, and is hired by the Emperor to produce an opera. Salieri, a devout Christian man, believes all musical talent and inspiration is given by God but soon comes to despise Mozart, whose personal life is nothing like his. Salieri soon renounces God for giving Mozart all the talent and not himself. At first, he thinks about undermining the famed composer only to become consumed by his hatred and thinks of deadlier ways to get rid of the iconic composer.
Damn, was I wrong about this film. Not only did the film go beyond my expectations, it was a fun and enjoyable ride learning about the life of the famous composer. What is best about this film is how it is structured. Rather than having it as this bland historical drama where Mozart talks about his life, we view everything from his birth to death. The film is presented as a confession from Italian composer Antonio Salieri and his view on the whole situation as they had a rivalry only in his mind.
The film beautifully presents Antonio Salieri and the introduction of Amadeus Mozart. First, we are introduced to Salieri, trying to commit suicide only to be taken and locked in a mental asylum. There a priest comes to offer him forgiveness. This is where the film starts to become funny because Salieri claims he was the best composer in Europe and plays some of his music which the priest has zero idea what it is. Salieri plays some music that Mozart wrote, and the priest remembers immediately to the dismay of Salieri. Here is where Salieri states he murdered Mozart, and the film goes into a flashback mode with Salieri narrating.
The film is presented mainly as a wild flashback from Salieri’s perspective. It is heavily based on how Salieri viewed himself and how he could never compete with Mozart. First, Salieri loved music, but his father thought it was a waste of time. So, what does homeboy do?? He prays to God to help him with living his dream of music. As he put it, God answers his prayers, and boom, his father dies, and he goes off to be a composer. Now the rivalry starts when he first meets Mozart, who is getting freaky with his girlfriend. Salieri thinks Mozart is an imbecilic, and when he plays, he soon learns that the man is a genius and a moron. What does Salieri do?? He forsakes God because he doesn’t have the talent of Mozart but the love of music. The film goes into why Salieri “killed” Mozart, which he really didn’t, and his reasons for having his own rivalry.
Now with the film being called Amadeus, we must talk about the main dude. I love this film because you think of people in that period as being sophisticated and having their nose stuck up in the air. This Mozart was presented in a would, fun, somewhat airheaded loving person whose genius for music was displayed in his actual music. We see that homeboy as a child, played the piano blindfolded and for kings. As a grown-up, he rolled in, heard a tune once, and then approved it to the max. Yet, his genius was on display at every turn; when someone put a roadblock in front of him, he talked his way out of it and put on a magical performance. If you see the opera in German and then all the rest of his musical works, the dude was Lin Manuel and Hamilton before there was Lin Manuel and Hamilton. Yet, we saw the downside of Mozart as the dude partied like a rock star by playing the piano upside down and got freaky with one of the stars of his shows while engaged. Yet the dude couldn’t leave that alcohol alone.
Honestly, let’s talk about the outfits/costumes for a quick second. As the great Ric Flair said, “Mozart was stylin and profilin.” Now the costumes were spot on and grand, but when Mozart rolled through, homeboy was ostentatious. First, dude rolled up to meet the king in this purple outfit. He wasn’t scared of color because she rolled in with a pink outfit and pink hair. When the dude wore his outfits, he was called, Mr. Steal Yo Girl.
I loved how the whole film was blasted with Mozart music. I mean you can’t have a film about yourself without having your music played. Rather than just presenting it, it played throughout the film in grand fashion. I know like one song of Mozart, but it was amazing to hear his music and how his mind produced music. It was just awe-dropping how one mind could come up with such great music and tunes.
The cinematography of this film was also a great highlight. It really showed when Mozart or Salieri were conducting the orchestra. You seemed to be right with them enjoying the whole show. I also found that the camera work when the opera happened was also great as it made you sit in the crowd. The film had this somewhat dark tone to it. It was not like a Tim Burton film, but it was dark but had a historical feel to it.
Now for the performances because if it wasn’t for some outstanding performances, this movie would’ve been an absolute bore. First is the fantastic performance of F. Murray Abraham as Antonio Salieri. Abraham presented Salieri as a man who loved music so much that he became jealous of Mozart because he seemed to not have the same appreciation for music as he did. The way Abraham presented himself in the film and sowing his detest for Mozart was funny. The star of the movie Tom Hulce as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was fantastic. Rather than playing Mozart as a boring artist, he played the legendary as a fun-loving, wild, alcoholic party animal with a laugh that will make you raise your own eye and laugh with him. I truly enjoyed this version of Mozart because it made you want to learn about this person and the music he made.
Amadeus is one of those films that will surprise you. I am not a fan of musicals, but this didn’t feel like a musical or even a boring-ass historical drama. This was a new take on the famous composer who made it fun to watch and was like a murder mystery but not really. The costumes are fun to look at because they are really out there, and the music is phenomenal. The performances of F. Murray Abraham and Tim Hulce are what moves this movie and make it fun to watch. Watch this film and enjoy it to the fullest.
