Mad world

Rating: 8/10 (21 November 2004)

Baz Luhrmann's 'Romeo + Juliet' was a brilliant blend of Shakespeare and a decidedly modern sensibility. 'Moulin Rouge!', that film's successor, is a less-grounded and rather more self-indulgent affair, a voracious monster that gobbles up just about every influence it can lay its hands and spits them out as a spectacle of sound and noise so overwhelming that at times it seems that the screen can barely contain it. Luhrmann's interweaving of fragmented images and songs is dizzying and dazzling and very self-aware, delighting in its deliberate anachronisms. The editing is perhaps the most manic yet seen in cinema, which sometimes supports but at other time smothers some the film's nicest tricks, like the deft choreography (and not just in the dance numbers) that were one of the pleasures of 'Romeo + Juliet'. One could hardly call it monotone, but one can almost for just a little bit of metaphorical black-and-white to offset the extravagant colour.
Ewan MacGregor does his usual stuff, Nicole Kidman is excellent in the most demanding role and I also enjoyed the relatively understated performance of Richard Roxburgh as the malevolent Duke. The plot resembles that of 'Shakespeare in Love' (which of course was also based on Romeo and Juliet), and also contains a definite nod to 'Strictly Ballroom', Luhrman's breakthrough feature. There are also no original songs, the joke lies the way that the familiar is recycled into something shiny and new (and if you've seen the film, you'll get the allusion in that last sentence). Yet the fact the soul of the film is so well reflected in pop songs also indicates a certain level of triteness. For all its pomp and magnificence, when the hero and heroine sum up their tale in a simple chorus, you're left with the feeling that there really hasn't been anything deeper than this at any point in the movie.
You can file this film along with 'South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut' as a modern attempt at revitalising the big screen musical. 'Moulin Rouge' is certainly amazing; but the fact that you're unlikely to see another film like it is probably something of which you'll be glad.