Review of The Music Lovers (1971) by Geoffrey D — 19 Jun 2008
To call this a 'romp' through Tchaikovsky's life would be understating the case - this is a wild, full bodied rampage through Peter Ilyich's troubled existence that frequently threatens to fly off into the world of total fantasy but just about manages to hold it together.
Visually, this is Russell in top form, the editing and choreography are just brilliant and Chamberlain and Jackson ably impress in the lead roles. The first 40 minutes in particular are just amazing and its easy to see where Baz Luhrmann and, oddly enough, Kubrick take quite a bit of their inspriration from, and also, the scene near the end with Jackson in the mental asylum is a complete head f*ck.
It's a shame that Russell's reputation has diminished so much in the last 20 years (he was once hailed as the British Orson Welles, although Cecil B. DeMille might be a more apt comparison) but these things come around and I think one day his work will be seen as some of the most remarkable and visceral cinema of its time.
This review of The Music Lovers (1971) was written by Geoffrey D on 19 Jun 2008.
The Music Lovers has generally received positive reviews.
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