Moulin Rouge

Woohooooo! You must see Moulin Rouge! The sheer bravado of Baz Luhrmann in bringing back the musical, in updating it for the MTV generation! Let me be clear: I'm not comparing Moulin Rouge to MTV. I'm saying if you grew up listening to music in the 80s, you're going to get a lot of the great references in the film. I love musicals! So the fact that one got made today, in such an audacious fashion, makes me happy. The plot is taken from that book of 20-odd (or whatever) plots that every storyteller references and is told in such a straightforward, open fashion... No hiding the turning points, no disguising the story elements. It works. And the singing! Is that really Ewan McGregor? Awesome performances from both leads. Great interpretations of rock classics in new styles, like the "Roxanne" Tango and "Like a Virgin". This movie is where excellent craft and a certain maniacal passion intersect. Moulin Rouge is a keeper. Go see it.

I saw it in Oz

Since it is an Oz movie, we had to see it of course. Alison liked it but I didn't enjoy it so much. The visuals were vivid and detailed and sometimes big and overwhelming and sometimes like everything is in a doll house. Hmmm, a doll house... I think that sums up my overall impression. There is nothing scary or intimidating about a doll house. It is a place that you play and imagine what might happen. But there is no real danger or surprise. Playing in a dolls house is part imagination and part role playing. It is experimentation with the ways that people live and interact. Moulin Rouge experiments with pop music in the same way. It's experimental role playing with pop music.

So does there have to be a real sense of danger or surprise in all movies? No. But it makes it a little hard to care what happens next. The movie seems to pride itself on the fact that it has a cookie cutter story. It urges the viewer to feel the moment and forget any details or complexity.

Like many films, there are characters but little character development. Nicole's character's dilemma is basically do I do things for myself or do I do things that people tell me I should? Not a lot to chew on. We learn little about what makes these people tick, why they are who they are. The emphasis is on playing the roles, not explaining or giving depth to them.

All that said, Baz definitely has a strong and unique vision and that is always a good thing. Nicole and Ewan sing very well. There must be something very liberating about singing such goofy love ballads in such an over the top kind of way. The way that the pop melodies are sewn together has all of the intricacy of a fine doll's dress.