Some people want to fill the world with silly love songs

Rating: Null/10 (18 May 2002)

The incredibly popular film Moulin Rouge is a sad comment on modern cinema-goers. To start with, most young people I know who are literally obsessed with this film don't even know the song Lady Marmalade is remade from the Patti LaBelle version, not to say that the entire film is a remake! It's music video style cinematography, I'm afraid will contribute to the decay of filmaking until what we now know as trailers will pass for full length films. The entire film caters to pop culture youth marketability and the declining attention span of its audience. Never was I convinced the characters were in love, despite the emotional output by Ewan McGregor at the end. Instead of giving the professionals (Kidman and McGregor) a chance to act, the audience is supposed to believe the characters are truly in love because they are shown in bed together in a musical montage sequence! Also overlooking the historical anachronisms, and the coincidence that the real Moulin Rouge is in Paris France despite all lack of French influence on the film - and the fact that no prostitute looks as gorgeous as Nicole Kidman, the movie is a tired cliche. I was not drawn in by the theatrical falsity of the Moulin Rouge, both the movie and the love story.