Fall in love, with the stylish musical, Moulin Rouge!

Rating: 10/10 (12 June 2001)

When I had the chance to see Moulin Rouge, I went into the cinema with no expectations, yet all I had heard was praise for this Australian film. To my delight, I was swept up in what I think will be one of the films of the year. In fact, this was the sort of film I have been hanging out for, for six months.
A poet, against his father's wishes, moves to France, the 19th century equivalent of Andy Warhol's Factory. He falls into the world of Toulouse-Lautrec and his entourage, and is drafted to write a nightclub spectacular. In this seedy world of sex, drugs and electricity, he begins a passionate love affair with the club's highest paid star and courtesan.

Firstly, I want to give special praise for the script of Moulin Rouge. It was so spectacular spectacular', and there are so many reasons for this. Well the main reason would have to be the great soundtrack. The old classics, then a mixture of 20th century hits that had a great remix to suit the mood of the film. Then you have the dancing part of the script, which again helped set the music up to have a big impact on the audience. Then the last reason would have to be the very subtle change from the four main themes of Moulin Rouge: Truth, Beauty, Freedom and LOVE. The script also has a two sections to it. One half made me happy, the other made me sad and want to stand and applaud.
The cast of Moulin Rouge, while it might not be world wide known, it will put the Australian talent we have on show to the world. I want to praise the two main characters. Nicole Kidman, has had a rough trot this year, but this has not affected her acting talents. She was fantastic as the beautiful Satine. I never realised that Nicole could sing, but what a voice she has. This film will undoubtedly make her a big star in the following months, home and abroad. I look forward to seeing Kidman in future movie roles, because it will take a big role for her not to be known as the Moulin Rouge babe'. Then we have the role of Christian, played by Ewan McGregor, the new Star Wars' man. While he was good in the Phantom Menace, McGregor showed off his real talents in this one. Again the dancing and singing of this Scottish born actor just amazed me. I felt that McGregor and Kidman had a great on-screen chemistry together. The wrong pairing for that part of Moulin Rouge would have spoilt the film completely.
The other people in the cast of Moulin Rouge, might not be too familiar to people overseas, yet being from Australia, I picked up on them immediately. Richard Boxborough, played the role of the duke and did it very well, plus there was John Leguizamo, Garry MacDonald, Christine Anu, David Wenham and a very special appearance by Australia's favourite girl  Kylie Minogue.

So, with a great cast and wonderful script, Moulin Rouge is a brilliant film for mine. It is very original, a little bit different to your ordinary film, and gives you another view of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. The director of Moulin Rogue, Baz Luhrmann, deserves so much praise for this film, because this will put Aussie movies on the map.
Finally, I want to leave you with a quote from Moulin Rogue that I will never forget, a reference to the movies main theme  LOVE:
`The greatest thing is just to love, and be loved in return'.
Love is a very confusing and difficult emotion to handle, but this quote says it all. Give love and you should receive love. Oh how I wish I knew more of Shakespeare's work, because I am starting appreciate it even more. Count on one thing, I will be adding the DVD and soundtrack of Moulin Rouge to my collections when I have the chance to.
Rating: 5 Stars or 10/10 (Loud Applause!!!)