Midweek Mention... Amadeus

Amadeus

Dan: I chose this, I did this three hours of it. Two,

Sidey: rock Me. Amadeus.

Yeah. Director's car. We both watch, watched the director's cut.

I think we

Dan: we went all in that for the extra 20 minutes. Right.

Cris: Okay.

Dan: Milo Foreman was the

Sidey: Yeah, we caught director one of his earlier in the year. That's right. One flew.

Dan: And he, he'd done this as well, I think it was his last film.

Is it, or, or coming up to it? Yeah, I think it was of an age then. And it's,

Sidey: well, let's just say it's highly acclaimed.

Dan: It

is highly acclaimed on Oscar

Sidey: win, big Oscar win. I think it did

eight

nominations and four wins, something like that.

Cris: Right. Okay.

Sidey: and I think we were shown some of this at school. That's all I'd seen of it. I don't even, we say didn't watch the three hour full whack, it's called.

And that's what I've seen. So I've, this was kind of like for the first time for me.

Dan: Oh really? Yeah. Okay. So I'd seen this years ago and, and really enjoyed it and wanted to revisit it. And that's where I, I come through, and this isn't a, a film full of.

Biographical facts about Mozart. Really, this is very much

Sidey: is, it

Dan: an interpretation

Sidey: Is I, I assumed I didn't really look it up, but the, the, his whole personality in this was a fabrication.

Dan: I, I believe so. I I think he was a bit of a wild child. Yeah. And obviously incredibly gifted and knew his value to some some way.

But yeah, this was all played with Hollywood license. Really.

Cris: Well, it's also, I think I, I, I've not watched the movie, but from, from what I've seen, just in the description, it says that it's viewed through the eyes of like, it's through the eyes of this other guy right through the air.

Yes. Okay.

Dan: that's right. Yes. So, the film is it's got brilliant cast.

You got the Rufuss is

Sidey: from Bill and Ted's excellent

Dan: Mozart?

No, Ru he's got a really strange name.

Sidey: Who Mosop

Tom. Tom Holz.

Dan: Tom Holt. Was it? There you go. What a strange name. Um, No, obviously it wasn't somebody, somebody else I, I got it mixed up with, but cuz that's not too weird.

Um, But he, he was fantastic as as Moza. But you've got Salle, who's played by f Murray.

Sidey: Abram f Murray. Abram. Yeah.

well, it starts off with him. Well, it starts off actually with a guy that we've seen a couple of times and we always comment on his appearance. It's maybe a bit unfair, but it's Vincent Skive. All I would say is that he has a kind of look that's very distinctive and he, they hear a commotion and they run upstairs.

Him and this other guy. And they've got they've got some food and a kind of canola broke cuz that's is that period. Yeah. And they're trying to get into sari's room and they're banging the door and they're like, if you don't come out, we're gonna eat all this food. And they, but they can't get in.

And then they hear a, a thud or a noise and maybe a scream.

Dan: That's right. Yep.

Sidey: And they

go into the, they have to like basically knock the door down or kick the door in. And he's slit his own throat.

Cris: Right. Okay.

Sidey: And that's the start of the film. And then we cut, we go into, and I think actually he's admitted there to either killing or causing the death of Mozart.

Dan: He's, well, he, he's, he, yeah, in his mind, he has killed Mozart. And he's then tried to kill himself, but they've taken him off to a psychiatric ward

Sidey: yeah,

we, so now Mills foreman back in the old psych ward territory. You

Dan: is, yeah, exactly.

Sidey: see some old man dick in this

Dan: It looked pretty much the same ward actually as

Sidey: It did actually had a big, long sort corridor. And straight away here I was thinking this is like an epic because it's, It, everything is going on. It's just lots of people like the cast of and extras. There's just fucking hundreds of people and, and it kind of carries on like that.

In fact, it's just fucking epic. It's really right. It must, I was just thinking like logistically and Yeah.

Dan: the,

Sidey: It's like

Dan: the settings. Amazing. And well, Sally Airi had become convinced that Mozart must be

having

God speak through him. He, it must be a, a gift from heaven. So he is really curious as to who this.

Who, who he would be, could I just spot him? Does do they give away these talents just by looking at him alone? So he goes to one of these parties, he's gatherings and Mozart's gonna be there and he's, he's looking around looking at all these young gentlemen thinking which one it is. And. Somebody's running through the crowd after a girl.

And then he sees a load of food go through and he thinks right, it's the food, obviously, you know, they're bringing that to the main person. So he follows it and he gets caught in a room where a young guy and a young girl like

Sidey: fairly bucks him like.

Well, proportioned lady and she's giggling and running away.

Dan: and and, and playing.

And he's pulling her by the leg and they're on the floor and laughing and she's saying, oh, never, you know, and he's hidden then behind the the couch and then he realizes this young lad that they're playing his music and we find out, oh, it's Mozart.

And he rush rushes through. And so Larry can't believe it.

He, he, you know, he's expecting an angel and he gets this kind of

Sidey: a bit of a loud,

It's just there for a good time. But he goes and does this performance and it's in front of

Emperor Joseph. I second.

Dan: There's a lot of emperors and royalty and dukes and,

Sidey: he's a real hardnosed.

Like, it just doesn't look like. He's having any enjoyment, even though he is got this vision, he, he kind of sits there in his throne and people come up and just kiss his ring law and he's got the, you know, this, this court and he's got all these players doing different things and, and Mozart's there to perform.

But really he's not that asked and he chastises him for being late. And Moz is like, well, you can fuck off. Like,

Dan: Well, he says, you can fire me then. And he goes, no, no, I'll be keeping you on. Don't worry. And Mozart is obviously in debt to him or, or promised him to be in his service for so long, but eventually he does get away and goes to, to Vienna and, and, and starts trying to get a, another job in the court.

Sidey: Well, it's Prince Archbishop of Salzburg, isn't it? That summons him through and he's got this he's kind of a bit of a drip, not like the the emperor dude. This guy's a bit more he's in charge, but really it's the guys behind him pulling the strings and he's like a bit of a, a puppet really. There's a kind of religious.

Element to it, because at the start we didn't mention it, but Sally Air he's always wanted to be a composer. He and his father didn't want that for him, so his father's prayed. So if you can at least make him good, then I'll be I'll be decent and honorable and whatever. So Sally Air is all into that and he believes that God must be punishing him by having given this talent to this guy who thinks he's just like an idiot, right?

But is capable of this unbelievable genius when it comes to music, but it's a complete like dickhead. And he keeps doing this laugh throughout the film and it start, it starts to fucking grate on me. This like, Immature giggle that he does

Dan: like a lot a high pitch

Sidey: Yeah. It's so, it is a, it is an artistic choice for him to have this.

And it just like makes him seem like preposterous, but at the same time, like an unbelievable genius, you know?

Dan: Yeah. He's Obviously Solari is, is just insanely jealous now, and he, he's trying to find ways in which to sabotage him, but still doesn't give it away.

He's a back stabber. He, he's trying to play it both ways and he's recounting this story to a priest who's come to hear. A confession of some sort. And he's saying, you know, if you've killed somebody, then you need to tell him. So this is, this story cuts back every now and again to him being sat in this psychiatric ward hospital

Cris: to, okay.

Dan: he's got a piano at one stage as he's introducing himself to this priest and he's playing a couple of tunes and he's ever heard that I used to be one of the most famous, you know, Vienna's court composers you've ever heard of.

And he'd play a little tune and he goes, no. He played another little tune and he go, no. And then he played another little tune, but it was one of Mozarts pieces. He going, oh yes, I'd heard of that. And he goes, yeah. You know, so he just, these little things kept on, unwinding him up. And he's still seething even today as he's telling the story of how really at one point he becomes a real bastard because he knows that Mozart

Sidey: well, it's, yeah, we need to

Dan: needs money.

Yeah.

Sidey: it's all very, very Everyone's quite financially motivated.

And even though you might make something that's absolutely brilliant artistically, if you're not bringing in the dough, people will still look down the nose at you. And so Mozart's father appears and he stood on the stairs when he arrives in this completely black outfit like Cape Hood, almost like a mask.

And it looks like a fucking demonn waiting from the stairs. And his actual like personality is not far off really. And he's. Constantly like putting him down and where's your maid and what's your wife doing? She doesn't do anything. And where's, you know, you've got no money. And I heard you were in debt and like constantly putting him down.

And in this world, the way to make money is to take on pupils. But Mozart, he's not bothered about that. It's all about writing operas. Writing concertos and that sort of thing. He's not, he doesn't wanna waste his time like teaching his own kid how to play the piano. This is not what he is about. So, He's under pressure like that.

And then when his well his father, they, they go out one night and he wears this costume. Again. It's all black, but he does have this mask on. It's like, what you call those dudes where everyone wears a mask.

Dan: Yeah. The

Cris: carnival

Dan: like the plague masks, you know, those kind of big beaks that, that come around the front. There's a especially known like Ibis almost and he's got one smiling and one sort of frowning face as he turns his head.

Different

Sidey: And he, after that, he's taken ill and he does die. And Sally Airi then uses him, his image to try and convince Mozart that he's come back from the dead and he's commanding Mozart to do different things,

Cris: Okay. Like exploiting

Sidey: him in that way.

Dan: he commands him to, to write a death requiem, like a, an opera on, on death.

And he knows that.

His mental state at the moment. His father's just died. He's really down on his luck with money and

Sidey: he's

Dan: He, he's boozing a lot. He's out partying, he's in debt, all these kind of things. This is just the last thing he needs, but that's why

Cris: why he is doing it.

Dan: And he, he's also, and I think it, it happened previous to this, that.

Mozart gets married because Yes, cuz he, he gets married.

Sidey: It's the same girl he was with her right from Yeah. From this first scene that we see them frolicking. They do get married and he does stay with her. He's, but he is probably putting it about a little bit as well, I think,

Dan: And yeah, well she, she's at one point really desperate for money and she's worried that he isn't working to, to make any money.

It's not that he isn't working, but he just doesn't want to show his work out. He just wants somebody to give him the job. He doesn't expect to stand in a line, but she takes the work to see Larry and, and shows him and says, look. And he goes, he can't believe it. You know, it's, there's no there's no amends or anything.

There's no crossing out for mistakes. It's just perfect. It's all in his head. It's these original first draft. But then he does his really underhanded move and he goes, You want me to put this in front of the emperor? You want me to get you a job? Come to my place tonight. Just you. And she's like, I'm married.

And he goes, Hmm, that's the price. Anyway, she goes, and, As she's undressing herself and you, she takes off her top and, and everything. And she's down, she's, she's down to like a, a nickers. He rings the bell for the servants to come in and they all come in looking at her and he goes, take this woman away from me.

And it, it's a real kind of,

I could have had you, but throwing you away kind of moment. A power

Cris: Right. Okay.

Dan: And she can't do anything of course, because she can't go back to her husband. Yeah. And say that happened. And when she get does get home, she's just crying, upset and saying how much she loves him and everything.

But it's that's how desperate their times were at the moment, how short they were of money. And then fast forward, he's writing this deaf Requiem for Solari who's in disguise. Yeah, he's his mental state and his color is running out of his

Sidey: Yeah. He, he's just like lying in bed and sweating and looking like shit, but, and Sam Aria's planted a maid in there, in their house and anonymously, he's paying for it all just so she can spy.

And she says, no, he's working like night and day, cuz he, he just fucking like sitting around doing fuck all. But it's like, no, he just works. Like, he just gets up and he works on the music and that's it. But it doesn't go anywhere. Just like. Sits there. And he's very uncompromising about his vision.

So there's another opera that he writes. Oh God, what was it called? A Don Don Giovanni one.

Dan: Right.

Cris: Okay. Which

Sidey: the, the, the guys in charge prince Archbishop of Salzburg and their cor the Corzan said, no, that's like immoral. It's caused load of fucking trouble in France. We can't have it. And he begs and pleads them and he says, we've got one section that's just 20 minutes of continuous music and singing if you ever, you've never heard anything like it.

And they kind of green light it. And then some of the guys behind the scenes just start ripping pages out. Much us just like, you can't fucking do that to my work.

Dan: Yeah. He's, he, he is all about the work as you imagine. There's a lot of, obviously poetic license in, in their dialogue in how he's approaching these different situations.

But the music is absolutely just huge. It's,

Sidey: speaking of that, Dan,

Dan: it's massive. Yeah. It's

You know, all his best kind of ballads in those plays in the operas. And he can write in German, he can write in Italian French, whatever, whatever you want. He's, he's got the ability to write music into it. And everybody, all the other musicians, I mean, he's, I dunno, I mean, you think of it now before the internet and before all these you know, any kind of modern communication people knew about Mozart is just because.

Word of mouth.

Sidey: Yeah. Sally Air does another dirty on him. He, he kind of plays, He has Mozart's performance done put out there, but he only gets nine nights of performing it. And then Sari performs another one, which he knows is gonna be a crowd pleaser.

And like USP's, Mozart, and

Dan: it's called the Best Opera of the Year by everybody else, but Mozart knows that.

You know, he, he did something really special there, but it got thrown out because politics, because they didn't want him there because he wasn't the right guy. And cuz a lot of jealousy with Siia as well. You know, there's, there's so much genius and jealousy and talent all the way through.

Sidey: But his

health just continues to deteriorate, doesn't it? And during one performance, he actually collapses and he, he can tell he is not, he's not got much left in him. Really? Yeah. On, on the hard booze.

Dan: And he has a, a huge kind of opera where his father is playing death, as it were coming from him. And so Larry understands this, and he's got such admiration for him, but at the same time, he just wants to see him fail because he's so jealous.

Yeah. And yeah, he, he ultimately, Kind of just works himself into a he collapses,

Sidey: of dies just from exhaustion.

Dan: He, he, he collapses down. They take him back to Solari's place. And he's

Sidey: An opposite.

Dan: yeah, he just doesn't come round.

Sidey: And he's taken, basically, despite all his work and all his genius, he's just taken out of the city and just dumped in a mass grave. I think they chuck a little lime on top of the, it's like something outta the fucking war.

It's hideous. And just, they just drive off and fucking leave him in a ditch. And then it cuts back to Sally Airi. And he admits all this to volar. I think the, the priest is priest. And he's shocked and he is like, I'm not gonna fucking absorb you of your guilt, like you're a fucking piece of shit basically.

And that's kind of the end. Okay.

Cris: Um,

Sidey: We watched the director's cart, which had an extra 20 minutes in,

Dan: I dunno where that 20 minutes

Sidey: is a blessing or occurs depending on whether you enjoyed the film or not.

Dan: Well, I did enjoy it. Probably not as much as I remember. Having enjoyed it. But I'm, I'm pleased. I, I watched it again.

I mean, it was a fantastic story. The director's cut with that extra 20 and it's probably more than you need for me. But yeah. What was your feelings? Would you,

Sidey: It's, it is epic. And you are looking at it the way it looks. The costumes, you know, the production is fucking absolutely insane.

I just didn't care for it particularly. It's far too fucking long. It's a lot of scenes in the same place. So you'll, and then you'll get Mozart standing in front of the things, waving his hands and looking like a fucking goofball cuz he is like off his tits. And it just, I found it quite repetitive and whilst I did enjoy the music in it, if it could have just fucking had it like 90 minutes, it would've been a lot better.

Dan: it, it

Sidey: but not a lot better. It just would've worked better for me.

Dan: A director's cut that made it shorter. Would've probably the

Sidey: the only one that's ever been shorter is Blade Runner is the only ever director's cut. That's shorter.

But yeah, like massive, massive success in terms of like, it made a load of money.

It was like sweep the

Cris: The cast looks good. I was just looking at it and the cast looks good and, and I wouldn't like

Sidey: really irritating in it. Him, he is fucking annoying.

Cris: I would imagine that most of these people, there's a few that I've obviously never heard of, but I would imagine the ones kind of towards the, the, the, the end of the, not necessarily Vincent Cavelli, but all the other ones are probably just actual singers or opera singers or, you know, actual talented people.

Sidey: Yeah. There will be Simon Callows in there. You'd recognize him. Yes. As a few other people knocking about

Cris: Jeffrey Jones. I've seen him before. Cynthia Nixon, I've seen her before.

Dan: was almost like young Frankenstein.

Sidey: the, she was the maid. Oh, now I didn't recognize her, but now you say it. Yeah. Sex and the city.

Cris: Yes. Yeah, yeah.

Dan: Oh yeah, yeah. No. Hi.

Sidey: Wanna know a couple of people who auditioned for the role of Mozart? Yeah. Tim Curry.

right,

And Luke Skywalker. Mark Hamel. That would've been something.

Dan: Okay. Well, yeah, he played it a little bit like young Frankenstein or something. It was very offbeat. Not

Sidey: you imagine when you think of that person and that music.

Dan: No, not at all. I'd like to think he was a little bit mad like that, but I, I'm not sure quite as I say how historically accurate it was, but I enjoyed it. It's one of those Sunday afternoon. Yeah. Raining, impress. That's the time and

Sidey: an award stat? Yeah, course. It's one of only four productions to win. Both a Tony Award for Best Play and the Best Pitcher, Oscar, the other three of my Fair Lady.

The Sound of Music and a Man for all seasons.

Dan: All

Sidey: of your sex tape. Yeah. So there's that. Yeah, I would say strong recommend.

Dan: Go for it.

Cris: Yep.