Incredibly different, and I loved it

Rating: 9/10 (20 June 2009)

It was hard to know what to expect with "Moulin Rouge!" and truthfully, nothing could have been expected. It's a totally unique film in just about every aspect. The film is a musical that maintain's the typical musical feel that goes along with such a love story as this, but what made it different was the fact that none of the musical was original. All of the songs are fairly contemporary, including such tunes as "All You Need is Love," "I Will Always Love You," and my favorite from this film, "Come What May." I would never have thought such a thing would work, but believe me it does. I couldn't help smiling throughout just about every musical number in the film, and the spontaneous singing or songs we all know but could never have predicted in such a film as thing made it even more delightful. Plot-wise, the story is similar to such things as "Shakespeare in Love" (in which the play being written in the film is being inspired by the main characters' secret romance) and "West Side Story" (in which the main characters cannot be together due to forbidden love and such). However, it was the way this film was made that made it feel so original, with the quick and unexpected scenes such as characters suddenly falling in through the roof and the quick pace at which the film goes by. The music made the film for me, and Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman had perfect chemistry. I admit that it might be bizarre at times, which may turn some people off, and it is still a tragic story, but I loved it anyway. Wow, it's hard to know what else to say about this film, expect that it became an instant favorite and is a must-see for movie lovers. It was robbed of Best Picture. We don't see many films this unique, or this good, anymore.
***1/2 out of ****