Ludwig Van Beethoven was born in December 1770, but no-one is completely sure on which date. Vivid production design by Jirí Hlupý, expansive scope photography by Peter Suschitzky filmed on location in Prague.Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) was a German composer and pianist, who is arguably the defining figure in the history of Western music. The music is arranged with exquisite grace by Georg Solti, conducting the London Symphony Orchestra: Standout episodes include the moment when Beethoven first plays the 'Moonlight Sonata', and the breathtaking 'Ode to Joy' sequence, framed against an unhappy memory from Beethoven's youth, which culminates in a moment of supreme cinematic glory, one of the most beautiful images this reviewer has ever seen.

Just as tellingly, Rose's handsome film details Beethoven's stormy relationship with a favored nephew (Marco Hofschneider), who was driven to extreme rebellion by the composer's overreaching ambitions. The director's episodic screenplay relays events in flashback, as Beethoven - played with multilayered conviction by Gary Oldman - is inspired to new heights of artistic endeavor by the three women who dominate his life (Isabella Rosselini, Valeria Golino and Johanna ter Steege), and rendered increasingly bitter by encroaching deafness. Comparisons with AMADEUS (1984) are inevitable, but Bernard Rose's sumptuous biopic is in a veritable league of its own. IMMORTAL BELOVED Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Panavision) Sound formats: Dolby Digital / SDDS-8 Following Beethoven's death, his closest friend (Jeroen Krabbé) goes in search of the composer's sole heir, an unnamed woman described as his 'immortal beloved' in a letter which betrays their secret love affair.

His carriage has broken down in the rain. What was in my mind when I wrote this? Hmm? A man is trying to reach his lover. It is the power of music to carry one directly into the mental state of the composer. If you hear a marching band, is your soul exalted? No, you march. What does it mean?Īnton Felix Schindler: It - it exalts the soul. Ludwig van Beethoven: I cannot hear them, but I know they are making a hash of it.

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