1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die- Moulin Rouge!

#1031- Moulin Rouge! (2001)
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, Jim Broadbent
Directed by: Baz Luhrmann


Plot Summary: Christian is struggling to write about love, having not felt love himself, when he is introduced to Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and the rest of his performers. Impressed by his writing skills, they ask Christian to help write their new show "Spectacular Spectacular." When they go to the Moulin Rouge to sell the show to the owner, Harold Zidler, Christian sees Satine, the star courtesan, and is captivated by her beauty. Zidler has promised Satine to the Duke of Monroth, in hopes to get the Duke to buy the Moulin Rouge, turn it into a theater house, and make Satine a real actress. After the Duke agrees to invest in "Spectacular Spectacular," Christian and Satine attempt to keep their romance a secret, in fear for what it would mean for them if the Duke were to find out.


I'm not sure why, but when I was younger, Moulin Rouge! was one of the first films to pop into my head when I heard the term "musical." Even though I had never seen it, I had heard enough people saying how great it was and how it looks great and how the characters are great and how the songs are great, and it went on, and on, and on. So when I finished watching it for the first time, I thought it was alright, but not what I was expecting. It took a while for me to warm up to the film once I started watching it. By the time all the music, dancing, and visuals started popping up, I was able to have fun with the film and not take it too seriously. Then I started to have fun with the acting performances and how over the top they were. I knew by the end of the film that I also had to blend my fun in with constructive thoughts about the film as well, with the result being a very muddled opinion about a film that is a lot of fun to watch, but in that "so bad, it's good" sort of way.

Moulin Rouge! stars Nicole Kidman as Satine. I was a bit disappointed with Kidman's performance because I had no idea what direction they were going with her. They explain that she can be seductive and alluring to men, but then they show scenes where she acts absolutely insane. Two scenes that occur in succession come to mind, one where she rolls on the ground making loud, over the top, moaning sounds (must be channeling her inner Meg Ryan), and another involving her prancing around like a bird making weird animal noises. She's also not the strongest singer in the film, but can hold her own like when she sings "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend." Kidman's performance leaves many mixed feelings because it's obvious that she's trying to do something worthwhile, but the direction of the script and her character make it really difficult to do so.

The film is told through the point of view of Christian, played by Ewan McGregor. I was pleasantly surprised by McGregor's performance. I was kind of expecting him to suck (that might be from my bias towards the Star Wars prequels), but he actually does a very convincing job of the bohemian-styled playwright. His singing voice isn't half bad either. He can hold a good opening note to get everyone's attention, theoretically with the audience and literally with the characters in the film, and could sustain a great musical performance with some vocal training. Actually, one thing I noted when hearing his voice was that I could have seen him play Javert in Les Misérables (instead of that other guy, but we'll get to that on another day).

Satine and Christian are really downplayed in comparison to many of the film's supporting characters. John Leguizamo plays Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and is a genuinely annoying character with how over the top he is. Here's what you need to know about him: he's short and has a funny voice. That's all he's got. Jim Broadbent plays Harold Zidler, the owner of the Moulin Rouge. Broadbent really knows how to play Zidler as a truly bizarre man. His look and voice combine to make one of the most uncomfortable characters I've ever seen (listening to him singing "Like a Virgin" made me feel the need to wash my eyes and ears out with soap). But my favorite performance in Moulin Rouge! is Richard Roxburgh as The Duke of Monroth. From his voice, to his teeth, to his mustache, to his mannerisms, the Duke is an absolutely phenomenal performance to watch (again, sort of in that "so bad, it's good" kind of way).

I'm not sure if this film can be considered a groundbreaking musical. I remember more of the characters and scenery than the music and dancing. The music is almost a guessing game "Which song did they just reference?" as majority of the songs in Moulin Rouge! are covers of other songs, but not full covers. Some of the songs are compilations of various songs blended in together, but I never felt that they fit well together. The biggest factor that makes it feel like a musical is that the plot centers on Satine trying to be an actress, the Moulin Rouge itself, and the production of "Spectacular Spectacular."

I've normally never been a fan of Baz Luhrmann's movies. From what I have seen of his work, he seems focused on style over substance. He seems to care more on what's appealing to the eye as opposed to fully developing his characters. With Moulin Rouge!, that seems to work in his favor. The characters are more over the top, even vaudevillian like in their performances (especially Harold and The Duke), and the sets are grand and lavish because it builds up the importance of the environment of sets and entertainers of the time period. My biggest problem with The Great Gatsby was that it got the grand and lavish design right, but desperately needed to have an equal focus on its characters because they are the focus of the film, not the set pieces. Moulin Rouge! throws everything at the audience in rapid speed with bright colors and sets representing numerous cultures, but almost too fast to the point where I can't focus on anything going on, making me wish the film could slow down and take its time to display the visuals so I can enjoy them fully.


Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

You have to be in the right kind of mood to watch a film like Moulin Rouge!. If you are looking for fun visuals, over the top acting, and a story that is in no way taking itself seriously, this one might be worth checking out, but probably as a rental on DVD.

Comment below to share your thoughts on the movie or to discuss a topic that I left out of my review

Moulin Rouge! and movie images are copyrighted by 20th Century Fox