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Actors: Gary Oldman, Jeroen Krabbe, Isabella Rossellini, Johanna ter Steege
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| Review Summary and Plot Commentary about Immortal Beloved |
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The great composer Beethoven (British actor Oldman) dies and a funeral is held. His secretary, Anton Schindler (Dutch actor Krabbe), discovers among his papers a letter that leaves everything in the composer's will to his "Immortal Beloved," whose identity is (and remains to this day) a mystery. Schindler travels across Europe in search of the likely candidate, which includes Hungarian countess Anna Marie Erdody (Rossellini), sister-in-law Joahann Reiss (ter Steege), and an attractive piano student named Giuletta Guicciardi (Golino). We see many flashbacks of Beethoven's life, going back to childhood with his abusive father. Writer-director Bernard Rose put together this odd, sumptuous film in 1994, when he was only 34 years old. Set mostly in Vienna (and shot in Prague), it is visually and aurally rich (with the marvelous Murray Perahia doing the solo piano work), and Oldman does an admirable job in an impossible role, but ultimately dissatisfying. Especially strange are a number of Kubrick and "Clockwork Orange" references Rose includes in the movie.
--David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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This movie, written and directed by Bernard Rose, is about the life of Ludwig van Beethoven, expertly played by Gary Oldman. It starts with a former assistant to Beethoven, Anton (Krabbe) finding his controversial and unexplained letter to his secret lover, or his "Immortal Beloved" as he LVB puts it. He then goes on a quest to find this
Immortal Beloved and a picture of Beethoven's entire life is produced through the vague memories of his past lovers. Though the story is a bit weak, the visuals and acting couldn't be better.
--Michael Gookin, Resident Scholar
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| Analysis of Immortal Beloved |
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- 18th century
Romance/Love/Hugging
Yes
Kind of romance:
- email/letter/phone/fax relationship
Job/Profession/Poverty Story?
Yes
Job:
- musician
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- singer/musician
Age:
- 20's-30's
Eccentric:
Yes
- eccentric
- obsessed
- mentally ill
- emotionally unstable
- wild
Hair color?
- brunette (Brown)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard wavey
Body type
- (man) average
Events of movie makes character more...
- aggressive
- tougher
Ethnicity/Nationality
- German
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
- hard edged
Sense of humor?
- Cynical sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Body type
- (man) average build
How much in movie?
- 80%
Ethnicity/Nationality
- German
Main Adversary
Identity:
- general circumstances
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- France
- Italy
- Germany
- Austria
Misc setting
- fancy mansion
- castle
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Movie makes you feel...
- challenged
- depressed/sad
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- kissing
- seeing breasts
- seeing nude male butt
Any profanity?
- Occasional swearing
If soundtrack VERY NOTICEABLE...
- Orchestra/classical
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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