FauxNixon

The third and final installment of Baz Luhrmann’s “Red Curtain” trilogy is the first musical in recent memory to capture public notice. Moulin Rouge is the story of a young writer named Christian (Ewan McGregor) trying to get a break in 1899 Paris. The focus of the Bohemian community in which he resides, is a nightclub called the Moulin Rouge, where Satine (Nicole Kidman) is a dancing courtesan.  She wishes to become a great actress, but suffers from a serious disease. The great switch of the Moulin Rouge from nightclub to theater is dependent on a duke’s (Richard Roxburgh) financing. A comical sequence of events leads to Christian and Satine falling in love, but being put under enormous pressure, as the financing of the theater conversion is dependent upon Satine remaining the mistress of The Duke. Moulin Rouge is built on a very simple, almost Shakespearean plot, but with the addition of Baz Luhrmann’s touches, is made into so much more.

One’s first impression of Moulin Rouge is that of a passionate assault on the viewer’s senses. Bright, vivid colors, intricate sets, skillfully designed costumes, incredible music and songs, are all carefully shaped by the director into a magnificent example of how well the medium of film can be used to enhance a musical. Despite Moulin Rouge’s lackluster reception by cinema audiences, the quality remains there waiting for the viewer to discover. It should be noted that many of the current film-going generation have never seen a musical and that lack of experience may have lead to a souring of their tastes for the film. The recent success of subsequent Hollywood musical adaptions suggests that this attitude is no longer so prevalent and it is likely that if Moulin Rouge had premiered in this environment, it would have received a great deal more praise from critics and audiences alike. In spite of these issues, director Baz Luhrmann has handed down to the film-going public a movie which takes the best aspects of a musical, with the best aspects of motion pictures, to create something very special and worthy of close inspection by those who appreciate either a musical or a stylistically magnificent movie.

Little known, but very important in understanding why Moulin Rouge came into being is Baz Luhrmann’s loose trilogy of films, exploring the various methods of expression in films, other than traditional dialogue. Strictly Ballroom was the first in the series from Luhrmann and dealt with the expressive qualities of dance. Audiences failed to latch onto this en-masse, but it carved for itself a very specific and important niche in modern cinematic history. In 1996 Luhrmann explored poetry and prose as methods of expression for his actors in his retelling of Shakespeare’s classic, and perennial Hollywood favorite, Romeo + Juliet, albeit with some of the modern adaptions to the classic storyline that fans of Luhrmann have come to expect from him. The final installment of the series is the great leap into the realm of music and song, and comes from a more mature and experienced director, leading to a seamless weaving of a classic storyline, with breathtaking sets and visual style, an amazingly perfect ensemble of actors and musicians, and an absolutely unbelievable soundtrack to create nothing less than the greatest filmed musical since the 1960s.