Exquisite

Rating: Null/10 (18 August 1999)

That's the word to describe this film.
Incredibly ambitious, this movie follows a violin through the centuries, up to modern day Montreal, where its going to be sold at an auction.
This movie could easily have fallen apart. IT might have been too ambitious, or badly structured. Instead, we're given an elegant film, that moves backward and forward through time seamlessly. At the auction, there are five people who want the violin, and each have their reasons. Set in Montreal, Oxford, Vienna, Shanghai, and Italy, this story is universal in it's appeal.
At the core of this film, other than the violin, is it's performances. Jason Flemyng and Greta Scacchi make a very sensual pair. Yet my favourite performance comes from Christoph Koncz, as Kaspar Weiss.
The music solos, by Joshua Bell, are nothing less than remarkable, and this film ranks as one of the best of the year.