There really is a plot under all the music and camp drama

Rating: 10/10 (10 August 2001)

This movie seems to generate comments that are extreme one way or the other. If you 'get it' - you'll love it. Some people just don't 'get it'. Many people complain about it's lack of plot, or overly simplified storyline.
There is a clever multiple layered story, the movie is about itself. Christian is a penniless artist - a writer specifically, writing a story which reflects his own story, about a penniless artist & his lover. The second time I saw it I realised that quite early in the movie he tells us the ending of the movie, just a quick line that I missed the relevance of first time. It is all the more tasty when the movie anti-hero needs some prompting to see that the story played out in front of him is also happening around him, and he still doesn't quite know what's going on until it's too late.
Then there is the Tango, a marvelously dark rendition of Roxanne. The dance on the ground floor plays out what is happening upstairs, and although we only see tantalising flashes of Satine & the Count, the dancers fill in all the details. This is presented at such a pace that it leaves the viewers almost as breathless as the dancers, which is not a reason to hate it, but the key to the emotional power of this movie.
Moulin Rouge never pretends to be a faithful rendition of 19th century Paris. Rather it uses that which viewers of a century later might be familiar with to convey the spirit of bohemian Montemartre.
Moulin Rouge is not just a movie, it is an Experience. An Experience I doubt I'll ever forget. If there is a problem with this movie, it is that it makes me realise how empty other movies are - like realising that all those '5 star' ratings were actually out of 10, and I've now seen the real 10/10, and I now know what I've been missing.