There was a film...

Rating: 10/10 (3 July 2002)

...a very strange, enchanting film...
I was one of the millions of skeptics out there that refused to accept "Moulin Rouge" when it first came out. I, like many, assumed that the movie musical was dead. I was wrong.
I recently rented the film on DVD, and now can barely go a day without watching it (now that I bought it on VHS) or listening to the soundtrack.
Where to start?
Well, for one, Nicole Kidman has shot to the top two or three on my list of favorite actresses. After her amazing role in "The Others," paired with her mesmerizing performance as Satine, the beautiful courtesan in "Moulin Rouge," anyone who doubts her acting chops needs to get their head checked.
I've been a fan of Ewan McGregor's for a long time, but it was more of a fan-boy "Star Wars" type of respect. However, now that I've seen him carry himself as a leading man (in a non-indy, non-crappy-horror film), he, too, is now one of my favorites. While a bit crude, his singing voice is amazing. His portion of the "El Tango de Roxanne" sequence is one of the most heart-rending in the entire film, and at the end...well, without giving any spoilers, this hard-hearted movie fan got something in his eye.
After seeing his portrayal of Harold Zidler, I'm amazed that Jim Broadbent won his Best Supporting Actor Oscar for "Iris" instead of this. I guess it was a choice between the two roles, and "Iris" was a bit more Academy-friendly, but Zidler was one of the ultimate love-him-AND-hate-him characters put on-screen in a long time.
Apparently, I jump to conclusions a lot, because I had John Leguizamo pegged as an annoying little loudmouth. His portrayal of Toulouse Lautrec changed my mind. It was impressive enough that they made him look like a believable dwarf, and that the lisping French accent didn't grate on my nerves, but he carried several key scenes with a strength of character I'd never seen from him.
This movie is, to use a worn-out cliche, a roller-coaster of a film. It starts with an almost-ridiculously manic pace, jumping from shot to shot like a Linkin Park music video. Then, there's a wonderful, brief pause (for comic relief) as Christian (McGregor) begins to write his story. "There was only one problem: I'd never been in love!" I can't explain the shot, but it had to have been one of those that Baz Luhrmann came up with over a glass of absinthe.
Speaking of absinthe, the manicness of the film picks back up once Christian, Toulouse, the Unconscious Argentinean (possibly my favorite character in the film), and the rest of the Bohemians, have their first taste of the green beverage. After a brief encounter with Kylie Minogue's Green Fairy, they're rocketed into the Moulin Rouge itself where those with weak stomachs probably get nauseous from the frequent camera moves.
It is this kind of stop-and-go filmmaking that makes "Moulin Rouge" one of my favorite movies to come out in the last five years. Baz Luhrmann is truly a visionary, and the fact that he was denied a Best Director nomination is sickening.
Needless to say, the soundtrack is amazing. In what other movie (other than, perhaps, "A Knight's Tale 2") could you see such an eclectic mix of modern rock transposed back a couple of centuries? Seriously, in 1899, when the word "grunge" still meant dirt, the men at the Moulin Rouge are singing "Smells Like Teen Spirit," while the Diamond Dogs (the club's showgirls) croon "Lady Marmalade" and Satine belts out a medley of "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend" and "Material Girl." From there, Christian serenades Satine with "Your Song," "All You Need Is Love," "Heroes," "Love Lifts Us Up Where We Belong," "Silly Love Songs," and a host of others.
But, undoubtedly, the most amazing musical piece in the entire film is when the Unconscious Argentinean, with the help of the wicked (why?) dancer Nene, turns "Roxanne" into a spine-tingling tango. Mixing that song with (what I believe is) an original composition which I can only assume is titled "Why Does My Heart Cry?" lends the scene added potency, making it one of the most surreal musical experiences I've had at a movie since the "Golden Years" scene in "A Knight's Tale" (which I also loved).
Isn't it odd that David Bowie's music has been around from the days of jousting, through the Bohemian revolution, up until modern times? I wonder which era were the "Golden Years," exactly.
Anyway, I digress.
I know I've rambled about this movie for a while, but I definitely think it's worth the words. "Moulin Rouge" is the most visually amazing film I've ever seen, and if last year were not the year of "AKT," this would have been my favorite of the year.
So, kudos to Luhrmann, McGregor, Kidman, Broadbent, Leguizamo, and the rest of the people who assembled this truly amazing film. You all deserve a big pat on the back.
Ten out of ten, at least.