Immortal Beloved (1994)

Posted : 3 months ago at Nov 10 13:57

''It is the power of music to carry one directly into the mental state of the composer.'' The life and death of the legendary Ludwig van Beethoven. Gary Oldman: Ludwig van Beethoven Firstly, everyone knows Beethoven in his childhood was forced live up to the child prodigy Mozart. A nice analogy can be made with this film, this adaptation, this conjuring of his life. Because of the semi-biographical, semi-fictional nature of the story it is impossible not to compare it to Milos Forman's Amadeus. And where Beethoven (in my opinion) surpassed Mozart later in his career, Immortal Beloved does not. I'm not saying that Immortal Beloved attempts to mimic Amadeus, but the comparison is certainly unavoidable. If, however, we judge Immortal Beloved in it's own right, it comes out quite ...Read more

Rating : 8/10

Posted : 2 years, 2 months ago at Nov 19 10:02

This biopic about Ludwig van Beethoven presents the composer as an insufferable asshole, paranoid and vindictive to the extreme. The film would ask us to forgive the man due to his immense talent and his having had a rough life (an abusive childhood and, of course, deafness during early adulthood), but I was left cold. The film begins with Beethoven's death amid a dark and stormy night, with the opening notes of his Fifth Symphony (perhaps the most recognizable 4 notes in all of music) signalling his demise. Most of the rest of the film is told in flashback, with the plot revolving around the mysterious identity of Beethoven's "immortal beloved" to whom he willed his estate. In fact, the best part of the film is its soundtrack, made up entirely of bits and pieces of Beethoven's m...Read more

Rating : 6/10