I fought seeing Moulin Rouge, having developed a lot of preconceived reasons to hate it. I didn't consider it a "real" musical since it wasn't original music. (I had the same problem with Contact, which I enjoyed but didn't believe should have won Best Musical). I am not a true Nicole Kidman fan (having turned against her during the interminable and indulgent Eyes Wide Open. I had heard the play was assaultive visually and aurally. I haven't thought musicals translated well into film, e.g., Chorus Line was awful.
But I loved MR.
I thought it was a very, very funny movie and the music was fully integrated into the whole. It never (for me) had the feel of Stop Action! Time to Sing a Song. For me, the music was a parody and it worked. Was it Great Music (hear that read in a deep, profound voice). Not at all. It was just entertainment. It's sort of like puns. They may be the lowest form of humor, but you still can appreciate the really good ones.
And the actors, particularly the minor ones, were just fantastic. The storyline,a sort of bastardized La Boheme, WAS practically non-existent. Zonder is right. And yet, for all its deficiencies, I ended up having a great time. |
