Amadeus (1984)

There are so many Best Picture winners that I haven’t seen yet. The list is long and I’m sure I’ll get to a lot of them eventually. But I will say, it feels good to check one off of that list now that I’ve watched Amadeus. To be honest, I’ve never really been a fan of classical music. To a guy like me, my interests are pretty limited and that particular genre just doesn’t happen to be one of them. The movie, on the other hand, is one of the greatest Best Picture winners that I’ve ever seen. It had everything I could hope for in a classic film and it did not disappoint me in the slightest. I don’t know how much of it is true but I still found it to be a very engaging film experience nonetheless. It was emotional, intense, and it certainly sticks with you after the first watch. Okay, I’ll admit that I might have discovered a newfound appreciation for classical music after this film and I’ll probably listen to more at some point. I guess that’s how powerful this experience was. I have more to say about this historical biopic, so let’s travel back to 1700s Vienna and study the madness behind the music.

     The film follows Italian composer Antonio Salieri (F. Murray Abraham) as he recounts his experience and relationship with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Tom Hulce). As the story unfolds, we witness a tale of envy, rage, and unmerciful tragedy. I actually did a bit of research after the film and discovered that Salieri didn’t have as big a grudge as the movie demonstrated and that he and Mozart both had a mutual understanding of one another. Plus, they really did co-write and collaborate on a piece together. Whether or not the film was one hundred percent accurate doesn’t really matter to me because I still felt like the story completely sucked me in. I especially have to give major props to both Abraham and Hulce as they crushed the hell out of their performances. Every scene with Abraham feels unpredictable and he brought Salieri to life with such venom and spite. He even won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance. Rightfully so I might add. Hulce did a tremendous job as Mozart and I can’t imagine what it must be like to take on this role. The man even learned how to play the piano and it’s amazing how he did it in a lot of scenes. He also brought to life Mozart’s childlike behavior and how he was socially. Man, and I thought I was the weird one in social situations. Hulce was actually nominated in the same category as well so I’d say hats off to both him and Abraham. You know what, just about everything in this movie impressed me. From the music score, the costumes, the set pieces, everything was set up to absolute perfection and I felt like I was transported to 1700s Vienna. When a film has this kind of power over a nitpicky analyzer like me, you know that they’re doing something right.

     This wasn’t just a film, it was an experience that I believe any movie lover should go through at least once in their life. Even if you’re not a fan of the classical genre yourself, the film will still keep you on the edge of your seat and you won’t know what comes next. Overall, I would have to give this movie a perfect 10 out of 10. So, if you’re looking for the next Oscar worthy Best Picture winner, then here you go. Just like Mozart’s music, it hits all the right notes.