Moulin Rouge! (2001) Review

 "An unconscious Argentinian fell through my roof."
-Christian



In 1899, Christian (Ewan McGregor) moves to Paris to join the Bohemian movement and gets involved in writing a play for the owner of the Moulin Rouge nightclub, Harold Zidler (Jim Broadbent).  He quickly falls in love with the star of the play, Satine (Nicole Kidman), who has unfortunately been promised to the Duke of Monroth (Richard Roxburgh), the jealous investor of the play.


What Works:

Back when I was in high school, I watched the first two minutes of Moulin Rouge!, and assumed it was going to be a depressing, melodramatic period piece.  That's absolutely a fair assumption if you only see the first two minutes.  Fortunately, I watched past that point in college to see the unconscious Argentinian falling through the roof and I get to see just how bonkers and insane this movie really is.  I remember my jaw dropping to the floor and staying there for the rest of the film.  This was one of the most enjoyable and unexpected cinematic experiences of my life and I highly recommend everyone see this movie if they haven't.

Like I said, this movie is insane and over-the-top.  It almost feels like a live-action cartoon at times and I love it.  It was directed by Baz Luhrmann who gives the movie a very distinct style that has never left my brain.  I will forever be thankful to Mr. Luhrmann for taking on this insane ride.

The performances are wonderful across the board.  McGregor gives a very relatable performance and he and Kidman make their romance feel extremely believable.  All of the supporting characters do a great job as well.  Broadbent feels like a cartoon character at times, but he can also be rather intimidating.  John Leguizamo functions mostly as comic relief, but even he has some good dramatic moments.  And Roxburgh is an excellent antagonist.  They are all a lot of fun and managed to keep the emotional parts of the story grounded when the rest of the film is anything but.

If the unconscious Argentinian falling through the roof opened me up to Moulin Rouge!, the music sold me on it.  They incorporate a bunch of awesome and modern songs through the film.  I was not expecting Nirvana, David Bowie, or Queen's music to show up, but they all do and it's awesome.  The musical numbers are the highlights of a film that is already a highlight.

Finally, the production design is some of the best I've ever seen.  This movie brings the Moulin Rouge to life with some incredible costumes and insane theater scenery.  The production design never feels cheap and really immerses you in this world.


What Sucks:

I've got nothing for you.


Verdict:

Moulin Rouge! is one of my favorite movies.  I can't think of a film that subverted my expectations more than this one.  The musical numbers, the production design, the directing, and the acting all come together to give us a batshit-insane movie that still manages to keep us emotionally invested in the roller coaster ride of a story.  I can't give this movie enough praise and it has definitely got it going on.

 10/10: Amazing 

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