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Moulin Rouge!

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Moulin Rouge! (or simply Moulin Rouge) is a 2001 Academy Award winning musical film directed by Baz Luhrmann. It tells the story of a young British poet/writer, Christian, who falls in love with the star of the Moulin Rouge cabaret, actress and courtesan, Satine. It uses the colourful musical setting of the Montmartre Quarter of Paris, France. Some plot details, specifically the poor artist and his dying lover, bear relation to the Giacomo Puccini opera La bohème (which Luhrmann has also directed several times), including references to the "Bohemian" subculture. Otherwise, the plot greatly resembles that of Giuseppe Verdi's opera La Traviata, especially the end. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture and the Academy Award for Best Actress for Nicole Kidman, but won only the Academy Award for Best Costume Design and the Academy Award for Best Art Direction. The film was shot entirely at Fox Studios in Sydney, Australia. Baz Luhrmann is said to have been inspired to make the movie after watching Dil Se (1998) by director Mani Ratnam.

Five other movies with the title Moulin Rouge have been made.

Due to the film's international success, it has been widely credited with revitalizing the musical genre, setting the stage for films such as Chicago and The Phantom Of The Opera.

Contents

Description

Moulin Rouge! is a cinematic opera that has a storyline and structure that is said to be inspired and influenced largely by Italian grand opera: exuberant music, colourful visuals, elaborate sets and costumes. It also has some elements of Bollywood films such as a simple story line with a simple conflict, a heroine with melodramatic disease and two-dimensional characters.

The film takes well-known popular songs and modifies them to fit into a tale of a turn-of-the-20th-century Paris cabaret, blending swirling camera motion, loud music, and dancing to a powerful effect. Some of the songs it samples include "Chamma Chamma" from the Hindi movie China Gate, David Bowie's rendition of the Eden Ahbez jazz standard "Nature Boy", "Lady Marmalade" by LaBelle (the Christina Aguilera/Pink/Mya/Lil Kim cover having been commissioned for this film), Madonna's "Like a Virgin" and "Material Girl", the titular song of "The Sound of Music", and one of the few film uses of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana. The film uses so much popular music that it took Baz Luhrmann almost two years to secure all the rights to the songs.

Primary cast

Plot summary

[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.
The Moulin Rouge on Boulevard de Clichy (Paris, France)
Enlarge
The Moulin Rouge on Boulevard de Clichy (Paris, France)

The theme of the movie is love and its age-old conflict with wealth, materialism and jealousy. The main character, Christian (Ewan McGregor), is an English poet/writer who comes to Paris at the height of the Bohemian movement—a city of artists, parties, and absinthe. He falls in love with the principal singer of the Moulin Rouge cabaret, Satine (Nicole Kidman), who unknowingly suffers from a terminal case of consumption.

Satine is a worldly and beautiful courtesan who lives by the theme "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend"—it is better (and/or safer and more secure) to have money than love—but she dreams of becoming a real actress. Through mistaken identity, Satine believes Christian is a wealthy and powerful Duke who will invest in the cabaret's new show, keep everyone employed, and make her a star. While meeting him in the Elephant Room for a tryst to seal the deal, Satine is at first taken with Christian's poetry (a version of Elton John's "Your Song") but is shocked to realize he's actually a penniless Bohemian poet. The real Duke arrives and catches them together. Christian's quick wit and Satine's charm fool the Duke into believing that they were rehearsing their new show, "Spectacular Spectacular." Christian, with the help of Satine and the Bohemians, quickly improvises the show's plot: an Indian-themed musical spectacular (a story within a story whose plot turns out identical to the movie's). The Duke is impressed and agrees to support the show, but he quickly reveals that he is a violently jealous man who will shut down the Moulin Rouge if he does not get Satine exclusively to himself. Nevertheless, he accepts that she will be busy with rehearsals and in close contact with Christian, the writer.

Christian and Satine fall madly in love, while Harry Zidler, the Moulin Rouge's manager and a father figure to Satine, struggles to keep the Duke interested in the show even though Satine has not yet spent the night with him. At length, the Duke realizes he is being cuckolded, tries to take Satine by force, and threatens to kill Christian. Satine, at Zidler's urging, tells Christian she never loved him, hoping he will leave town and escape the Duke's wrath.

At the show's debut, Satine, now aware that she has quite little time to live, performs a weary version of "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend." An angry and hurt Christian takes the place of the show's hero, throws money at her feet, declaring, "I've paid my whore," and storms off publicly. Although dying and fearing for his life, Satine successfully calls him back by singing "the Lovers' Secret Song," and they are reconciled in full view of the audience and the Duke. The show ends in success, but afterwards, in the dark backstage area, Satine dies in Christian's arms, begging him at the last to write their story down for others to read. Half a year later, Christian keeps his promise, and we see that the Moulin Rouge is now empty and has fallen into disrepair.

Spoilers end here.

Release and Reaction

Production on the film began in November 1999 and was completed in May 2000, with a budget of just over $50 million. Production generally went smoothly, with the only major problem occurring when star Nicole Kidman injured her knee while filming one of the more complicated dance sequences. Originally set for release on December 25th, 2000 as a high profile Oscar contender, 20th Century Fox eventually moved the release to early summer so director Baz Luhrmann would have more time during post production. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 9th, 2001—making it the festival's opening title. A limited release on May 18, 2001 followed, and the film was released to theaters nationwide on June 1, 2001.

Critics enjoyed the film for the most part, with many citing that it was a true love-it-or-hate-it experience. Those who loved the film were incredibly passionate about it, praising both Kidman and McGregor for their daring turns and the unique visual stylings. Over the past few years, the film has gotten more credit from previous naysayers and is widely regarded as a modern classic. Michael Wilmington of the Chicago Tribune stated that the film was "a rare picture that gets you intoxicated on the possibilities of movies."

The film was an instant success in limited release, grossing $185,095 in only two theaters opening weekend. Representatives from the studio said that many audiences even burst into applause during the screenings. The numbers continued to increase over the Memorial Day weekend, with the film making $254,098. When it expanded into over 2500 theaters, it made $14.2 million in its first weekend of wide release. It had great word of mouth and managed to have sturdy legs throughout the summer season, eventually grossing over $57 million domestically. It had a brief re-release in October 2001 for Oscar consideration, with Luhrmann stating that his intent was to get Kidman and McGregor nominated.

The movie was even more successful overseas, where audiences turned out in droves. It broke box office records in Australia and managed to find a stable audience in almost every country. It eventually made over $120 million internationally, resulting in a total of over $177 million worldwide.

Many believe that without the success of this film, movies such as the Oscar-winning Chicago would have never been made.

Awards

When awards season rolled around, the film was still fresh in everyone's mind due to the high-profile DVD release in December 2001. It was selected by the National Board Of Review as the best film of 2001 over many other contenders. After that, it picked up six Golden Globe nominations including Best Picture (Musical or Comedy), Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Original Score, Best Director and Best Song ("Come What May"). It won three including the coveted Best Picture trophy. A few weeks later, it received 13 nominations at the BAFTA Awards, making it the most nominated film of the year for that ceremony. It took home three, including Best Supporting Actor for Jim Broadbent.

When Oscar nominations were announced, the film received eight nominations including Best Actress (Nicole Kidman) and Best Picture. The film was not nominated for Best Song (although it was a musical) or Best Director (Baz Luhrmann). During the Oscar ceremony, host Whoopi Goldberg remarked, "I guess Moulin Rouge! just directed itself." It took home two Oscars when the winners were announced for Costume Design and Art Direction. At the lower-profile MTV Movie Awards, Kidman took home the Best Actress trophy.

Soundtrack

The following is a partial list of songs featured in the film along with the artist that popularized them.

Elephant Love Medley Two soundtrack albums were released, with the second coming after the first one's massive success. The first volume featured the smash hit single "Lady Marmalade", performed by Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya and Pink.

Track listings are as follows:

MOULIN ROUGE - Music From Baz Luhrmann's Film (Vol. 1)

1. "Nature Boy" performed by David Bowie

2. "Lady Marmalade" performed by Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya and Pink

3. "Because We Can" performed by Fatboy Slim

4. "Sparkling Diamonds" performed by Nicole Kidman, Jim Broadbent, Caroline O'Connor, Natalie Mendoza and Lara Mulcahy

5. "Rhythm Of The Night" performed by Valeria

6. "Your Song" performed by Ewan McGregor

7. "Children Of The Revolution" performed by Bono, Gavin Friday and Maurice Seezer

8. "One Day I'll Fly Away" performed by Nicole Kidman

9. "Diamond Dogs" performed by Beck

10. "Elephant Love Medley" performed by Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor

11. "Come What May" perfomed by Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor

12. "El Tango De Roxanne" performed by Ewan McGregor, Jose Feliciano and Jacek Koman

13. "Complainte De La Butte" perfomed by Rufus Wainwright

14. "Hindi Sad Diamonds" performed by Nicole Kidman and Cast

15. "Nature Boy" performed by David Bowie and Massive Attack

MOULIN ROUGE - Music From Baz Luhrmann's Film (Vol. 2)

1. "Your Song" performed by Craig Armstrong

2. "Sparkling Diamonds (Original Film Version)" performed by Nicole Kidman, Jim Broadbent, Caroline O'Connor, Natalie Mendoza and Lara Mulcahy

3. "One Day I'll Fly Away (Remix)" performed by Nicole Kidman

4. "The Pitch (Spectacular Spectacular)" performed by Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, John Leguizamo, Jim Broadbent and Richard Roxburgh

5. "Come What May (Original Film Version)" performed by Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor

6. "Like A Virgin" performed by Jim Broadbent and Richard Roxburgh

7. "Meet Me In The Red Room" performed by Amiel

8. "Your Song (Instrumental)" performed by Craig Armstrong

9. "The Show Must Go On" performed by Jim Broadbent, Nicole Kidman and Cast

10. "Ascension/Nature Boy" performed by John Leguizamo and Craig Armstrong

11. "Bolero (Closing Credits)" performed by Craig Armstrong

Distinctions

Award wins: Award nominations:

External links

 

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