Glorious

Rating: 8/10 (29 September 2002)

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Just saw this movie for the first time last night, and whew! This movie was a wild ride. The energy and the passion were incredible. This film was an explosion, a bright shining beacon of filmmaking to movie studios everywhere.
I could just imagine the pitch: Doomed lovers meet in a dance hall/brothel in 1900 Paris. Oh, and it's a musical, with the actors singing modern songs. Yet somehow, studio execs took a chance on this, and bless them for it.
Regardless of what anyone thinks of this film, what cannot be denied is the aggressive, infectious energy of it. It pulls you in so hard and so fast your neck is nearly broken, not to mention the rapid transitions which make you throw all sense and reason out the window. But that's the point: in the bohemian world of the Moulin Rouge, sense and reason have no place here, only truth, beauty, freedom, and love.
As I watched it, I saw a distinct similarity between it and Asian action films. Both have incredible energy thrown into their "action" sequences, with wild, improbable, breakneck transitions that challenge the viewer to follow, especially when the performers pitch "Spectacular Spectacular" to the Duke.
There were only two flaws that I saw. A personal dislike of mine is being shown the ending and then the rest of the film is shown in flashback. I hate knowing the ending before it occurs, and this film commits that sin.
The second was the drop in energy. The first hour is one musical number after another, and then in the second it drops off to tell the story. I know that had to happen sooner or later, but after being exposed to the incredible energy of the first hour, it was a bit of a letdown.
But this is still an incredible film, something that lives up to its hype.