This Is What All The Fuss Was About?

Rating: 4/10 (9 January 2002)

I know that people and critics alike loved this movie. I just can't figure out why!
OK. There is a bittersweet love story here - if you can fight your way through the innane first twenty minutes or so. But there's nothing particularly original to it. The high-class prostitute (Nicole Kidman) falls for the poor boy (Ewan McGregor), but has "responsibilities" to the more upper-class man in her life. The thing is dull. It's transparent almost from the beginning. We know how this is going to end. Does it have any redeeming qualities? OK - a couple.
Good music. Mostly 80's stuff, but some going as far back as the Beatles. Although, I found the 80's music put into the context of a show in 1900 a bit disconcerting. Still, good selection of music. And the movie should be watched if only to see Zidler and the Duke (Jim Broadbent and Richard Roxburgh respectively) do their rendition of Madonna's "Like A Virgin." That did have me laughing, I admit. But I really thought that, overall, this was a rather poor attempt to blend a musical comedy with a Greek tragedy.
I'm told that the 1944 version was far superior. Perhaps I'll watch that someday.
4/10.