a stunning musical worthy of remembrance!

Rating: 8/10 (8 June 2005)

what can I say? I had avoided Moulin Rouge at the cinema like the plague, turned off by musicals full stop. Then when it appeared on video I avoided it again. It was last year when it was shown on television and I was absolutely blown away by it. A stunning movie full of heart felt emotion and beautifully adapted songs, it was such a brilliant experience watching it for the first time. From the moment Ewan Mcgregor started his rendition of YOUR SONG I knew I loved this film.
Performance wise this film hits the mark. Being a musical, the actors don't take their roles too seriously, an example the cast of Phantom of the Opera 2004 could have learned from. Mcgregor is superb as the penniless writer who falls for the girl he can't have. When he sings YOUR SONG and his face lights up who admits that they weren't moved? His voice never falters, and he has such a magnetic screen presence coupled with an easy going personality that it is a small wonder that h ended up being cast in a role few people would have fought for him to play in the beginning. Kidman is good as well, playing her tragic role easily and making sure her voice doesn't let her down either. The Duke is superbly played by Roxbrough, and he does enough to make you genuinely hate this sorry little man with a weasly voice and quite ridiculous moustache. Leguizamo, who I have never seen in another role is fine as Toulouse, and Broadbent is good value as zidler, with his hilarious rendition of LIKE A VIRGIN raising quite a few laughs. His serious face as he recites the words to the song is amusing, ad he has enough dramatic thrust to make the audience believe that while he has a theatre to care for, he is still concerned about his stars.
The songs meanwhile are brilliantly realised. YOUR SONG is performed superbly by Mcgregor, and COME WHAT MAY is suitably uplifting when first done, and then again at the end. The other songs are done well as well, mixing old style music with recent hits to forge well thought out partnerships. But the best song is WE CAN BE LOVERS, mixing some of the best love songs ever written into one, starting with ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE and finishing with I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU. It also features the finest moment of the entire movie, as Mcgregor leaps to the top of the elephants head (Satines house) and sings out the famous song from the end of An Officer and a Gentleman WHERE EAGLES FLY. It is amazingly done, with the camera swooping past his delighted face as he belts out the words.
Overall this is a magnificent achievement, and any faults such as choppy editing and the occasional camera wobble can be discarded.
As they say, the show must go on!