Competently directed, extremely well-acted, exquisitely mounted...

Rating: 9/10 (4 December 2003)

'Amadeus' won eight Academy Awards with its highly fictionalized account of the life of 18th-century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart... The film explores the essence of our strength and weakness, our essay on love, our darker side as human beings... Both Mozart and Salieri were born with unusual talents, but were overcome by emotions of love, faith, hate, pride, rage, repugnance, envy and falseness...
F. Murray Abraham gives a tremendous performance as Antonio Salieri, the forgotten composer of Vienna who unfairly compares his own skill to a better man in the field, harboring in his heart a violent and uncontrolled anger, causing the poison of his own malice...
Tom Hulce is remarkable as the over-excited genius, with a high-pitched giggle, whose unique music shows a continuous growth in expressive power...
Jeffrey Jones gives a delightful performance as the 'musical king' who does not censor things lightly...
Elizabeth Berridge is the perplexed and tempted woman who delivers the Court Composer a portfolio filled with her husband's manuscripts, and is horrified in hearing that 'some service deserves service in return.'
Christine Ebersole is the young, high-spirited soprano, emotionally disturbed by Mozart's dramatic change...
Richard Frank is the Chaplain, at the hospital, who hears Salieri's faults...
Roy Dotrice is the menacing figure in a long, gray cape and dark gray hat...
Nicholas Kepros is the Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg who seems quite sure that Mozart has sold himself to Vienna...
Vincent Schiavelli is Salieri's valet who tries to tempt his master to open the door with a favorite dessert...
Cynthia Nixon is the young maid-servant who is invited to go to Mozart's house and offer her services...
Roderick Cook is the harsh and highly correct Emperor's Chamberlain who makes certain to a passionate Mozart that a little modesty would suit him better...
Charles Kay is the corpulent man, highly conscious of his position as Director of the Opera, who rips out several pages of Mozart's music...
Jonathan Moore is the kindly and educated Imperial Librarian who argues that opera is here to ennoble human spirits...
Simon Callow is the impresario who asks the enchanted Amadeus to write for him a proper part with a couple of catchy songs, and he will guarantee him a 'luxurious triumph.'
Kenneth McMillan is the prosperous merchant who treats his dogs like his own children...
One of my favorite sequence is when a bewildered Mozart is received by the Emperor who is practicing a little March of Welcome composed by the illustrious Salieri... After some comments and remarks, Mozart, returns the manuscript back to the Emperor, and sits on the piano to play Salieri's musical composition demonstrating to the Emperor that he already had it in his head 'on one hearing only.' Mozart plays the first half of the march with great precision, then proceeds to modify the written score so that it turns out into a much better march...
Filmed in Prague with a joyous music from Mozart's phenomenal repertoire, Milos Forman's 'Amadeus' is a masterpiece of drama intelligent and moving, handsomely filmed, competently directed, extremely well-acted, exquisitely mounted... The script gives a thought-provoking scenario that is clever, believable and interesting...