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Moulin Rouge

Reparto: Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, John Leguizamo, Jim Broadbent
Director: Baz Luhrmann
Año: 2001
País: USA-Australia
Duración: 127min

Sinopsis

Moulin Rouge! (Moulin Rouge in Spain and Moulin Rouge, Love in Red in Latin America) is a 2001 musical film directed by the Australian Baz Luhrmann and starring Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor. It is largely based on Giuseppe Verdi's opera La traviata, as well as on the novel La Dame aux Camélias by French writer Alexandre Dumas fils.

Moulin Rouge! premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2001 and was released in theaters on May 18, 2001 in North America and May 25, 2001 in Australia. The film was praised for Luhrmann's direction, the cast's performances, the soundtrack, costume design, and production values. It was also a commercial success, grossing $179.2 million worldwide on a budget of $50 million. At the 74th Academy Awards, the film received eight nominations, including Best Picture, and won two (Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design). In the BBC's 2016 poll of the 100 greatest films of the 21st century, Moulin Rouge! ranked at number 53.

The film is set in 1900s Paris. The bohemian writer Christian (Ewan McGregor) falls in love with the star of the Moulin Rouge, Satine (Nicole Kidman), and one night, after a misunderstanding, their paths cross. Christian woos Satine with his poetry, and she enchants him with the light that radiates from her eyes. However, everything changes when she discovers that Christian is not the wealthy duke she is willing to convince to finance a theater production. She is then torn between her love for the bohemian and her interest in the duke (Richard Roxburgh) and becoming a great actress.

The film is set in early 20th century Paris, a city that sought to break conventional norms in all possible areas. The movie also revolves around the theme of love and is set in an environment that mixes luxury and bohemia, reminiscent of the art of Toulouse-Lautrec, who appears as one of the protagonist's friends.

The film received mixed reactions. Like Ridley Scott's Gladiator, it was praised for reviving a seemingly outdated and cinematically abstract genre, in this case, the musical, offering a visually stunning and commercially successful three-dimensional and atypical vision.

However, it is important to note that the film featured very few original songs, instead using popular hits from genres such as pop and rock, fitting them more or less justifiably into the plot. Among these songs are "Your Song" by Elton John, "The Show Must Go On" by Queen, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana, "Like a Virgin" by Madonna, and "Roxanne" by The Police, in a tango format devised by Mariano Mores, as well as the well-known theme from The Police, "Tanguera". Icons of music such as David Bowie and the emerging Rufus Wainwright, who would later contribute a song to Brokeback Mountain, also appeared in the film's soundtrack.

The harshest criticisms were centered on the deliberate anachronisms, which altered the historical context (the late 19th century) to offer a mixture of pompier aesthetics, almost kitsch, with a rebellious contemporary vibe. The film was also criticized for the excessive focus on visuals over plot and music: dizzying camera movements, an overuse of warm colors, and an aggressive editing style that aimed to overwhelm rather than suggest. The plot was deemed simplistic and not particularly daring - a conventional Romeo and Juliet story of a romance hindered by external factors and ending tragically.

However, praise was given for the risky endeavor of reviving the musical genre with a large budget and casting lead actors who, while well-known, were not professional singers and used their own vocals.

In conclusion, Moulin Rouge! is a visually stunning and audibly captivating film set in the bohemian Paris of the early 1900s, exploring themes of love, passion, and the clash between luxury and bohemia. Its unique approach to the musical genre, combined with Baz Luhrmann's visionary direction and the exceptional performances by Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor, have contributed to the film's enduring legacy as a modern classic.