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Has there ever been a movie quite like Moulin Rouge? An oddity,
a tough sell, hopelessly retro, or simply ahead of its time -
this is one that refuses to be pigeonholed. An imaginative, often
breathtaking work of imagination, Moulin Rouge may ultimately
be too much for some, yet not enough for others. Harking back
to the golden era of classic Hollywood musicals (with more than
a nod towards today's MTV-bred generation of short attention spans)
director Baz Luhrmann attempts to take us on a magical mystery
tour of image, light, song, and dance. Filled with lavish sets,
slapdash collages of hits new and old, and gorgeous production
design and cinematography, Moulin Rouge is indeed a wonder to
behold. So why did I feel so empty when it was all over?
Like the famous nightclub it was named after, the "Moulin
Rouge" teases with an invite to tax-free hedonism, the luxury
to indulge every whim and fantasy without remorse or discourse.
But as a film, Moulin Rouge fails to deliver on the promise that
"nothing matters but love." It does have a love story
at its center, albeit a simple one, but unfortunately it never
rises above the pedestrian boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl, "oh,
the tragedy of love!" cliches. So it is up to Luhrmann's
seemingly limitless visual imagination to carry the film. But
while the formidable army of talent never fails to stun - one
can't help but be awed by Donald McAlpine's cinematography, Brigitte
Broch's set design and Catherine Martin's costumes - this
world just never feels real, merely artificial and contrived.
With such a highly stylized, overproduced world to contend
with, the performances are largely lost amid the chaos. Nicole
Kidman and Ewan McGregor star as the hopeless lovers, and they
sure do look great. But the highly technical nature of Luhrmann's
vision creates a crushing obligation no actor could hope to fulfill.
Neither Kidman nor McGregor - both possessing merely adequate
singing voices - can overpower the visuals, and there seemed to
be little room for improvisation. The supporting cast, including
John Leguizamo - who made such an impression in Luhrmann's own
Romeo + Juliet - are uniformly strong, but even they can't surmount
the overkill.
Speaking of overkill, is there a reason I long for the death
of computer-assisted film editing? Just because you can make a
fast cut every half-second, does that mean you have to?
Running 126 minutes, not since The Phantom Menace have I seen
a film so overstuffed, with every frame filled to the rafters
with light, color, sound and movement. Unfortunately, while such
a full-frontal assault can be highly stunning for a moment, after
a minute it is nauseating, and the film lacks the simple ability
to be quiet.
While an instant cult hit and a most unique vision sure
to find favor with many, perhaps I would have appreciated Moulin
Rouge more had I felt I was watching an actual film, not a montage
(or listening to a real soundtrack, not a megamix.) Some
of the most affecting, powerful moments - too few and far between
- are the quietest ones. Luhrmann and company could have turned
it down a notch, and I wouldn't have been reminded of that oft-repeated
quote that just about sums up the unrestrained postmodernism that
is Moulin Rouge. "So much sound and fury, signifying nothing."
Video: How Does The Disc Look?
Despite no indication on the packaging and a press release stating
otherwise, Moulin Rouge sports a THX-certified, 2.35;1 anamorphic
widescreen transfer struck from a pristine print, and is simply
lovely. Easily one of the best-looking films of the last decade,
Moulin Rouge is filled with some of the most vibrant rainbow hues
witnessed since the days of Technicolor. This transfer handles
it beautifully, with a wonderful palette that is perfectly saturated,
almost painterly. Indeed, the film is quite surreal, and features
a variety of film stocks and effects trickery, as well as short
sequences in black and white and sepia tones. But colors never
smear nor bleed, appearing rock solid with accurate fleshtones,
aside from the often harsh, garish lighting. Velvety smooth and
beautiful!
Blacks are also dead on, though contrast inconsistent, if keeping
entirely within the intended look of the film. Some scenes play
with various photochemical techniques, so occasional contrast
appears blown out or dulled. Detail is often extraordinary, with
a three-dimensional appearance that is very smooth, supple and
film-like. Shadow delineation only suffers at times in the darkest,
most stylized scenes, and those with exceptionally high contrast.
Aside from a thin amount of grain in a few shots (mostly those
involving miniatures), edge enhancement is thankfully nil and
nary a compression artifact noticeable. A gorgeous transfer all
around.
Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?
Though not labeled on the packaging nor announced as such, Moulin
Rouge includes both Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 surround tracks.
This is a musical extravaganza if ever there was one, and this
is a sonic experience sure to please, if not quite as aggressive
as I had hoped.
As this is a song-driven film to be sure, the music is the main
focus. But a side from a few surround effects, the score and songs
are primarily confined to the front soundstage. The overall dynamic
range is excellent, as is fidelity, and stereo separation among
the fronts is excellent. Highs are clear and free from that tinny,
often harsh sound endemic to Dolby Digital tracks, and the DTS
mix improves frequency range even more.
While imaging on the DTS track is a bit more transparent and
surrounds fuller, the rears are active but still rather subdued.
Some of the aggressive musical numbers (okay, most of the film)
boasts some striking discrete surround effects, the mix still
sounds front heavy. Low end is terrific on both mixes, though
again the DTS track gets the edge with a bit more punch. Both
mixes are sure to please, though not quite as involving as the
transfer.
Note that similar to The Phantom Menace, Fox is releasing two
separate Region 1 DVD versions of Moulin Rouge, one with an alternate
French 2.0 surround track, the other Spanish 2.0 surround. Also
included are English Closed Captions and subtitles.
Supplements: What Goodies Are There?
Bursting with extras, kudos goes to producer Holly Radcliffe,
her production team, and Fox Home Entertainment for putting together
a lavish two-disc set with supplements that were, for me, often
more entertaining than the film itself. There's so much here it
is easy to be overwhelmed, but I'll give it the old college try...
Let's start with disc one. After the fully-animated and narrated
menus (»
Click for gallery), you'll find the mysterious Behind
The Red Curtain branching version of the film. Click this
on, and wait for the green fairy icon to appear onscreen during
the movie. Our little flying friend will then branch off to various
featurettes throughout the movie for a little glimpse behind the
scenes, then take you back to the main feature. I counted 8 segments
in all totaling about 25 minutes, ranging from a look at the blue
screen and effects work used to create the opening sequence, to
an in-depth look at the design of the main set pieces, and even
a segment on creating Christian's poetry. Pretty neat-o.
Up next is not one but two screen-specific audio commentaries,
the first with director Baz Luhrmann, production designer and
costumer Catherine Martin, and director of photography Don McAlpine,
and the second with Luhrmann and writer Craig Pearce. I was surprised
at how technically-minded these commentaries were, and largely
analytical. Luhrmann is surprisingly restrained, and both tracks
allow all the participants a chance to shine and discuss their
contributions to the film. Among some of the most interesting
antecedents were Luhrmann and Pearce's discussion of the film's
incredibly complex soundtrack, Martin's often amazing costumes
and sets, and the rather progressive integration of live-action,
miniature and CGI effects work. Pearce also goes more in-depth
into the screenplay, which for me was overshadowed by Luhrmann's
visual bravado - I wonder if someone else remade Moulin Rouge,
would Pearce's ultimate themes have came through a bit more loud
and clear?
Aside from the THX Optimode test patterns, the remaining
features can be found on disc two and divided into 8 sections,
with all video material presented in non-anamorphic widescreen
and full frame. First up is a rather straightforward HBO First
Look featurette, The Making Of Moulin Rouge. Like all such
HBO features, this one is snappy and entertaining, and features
onset interviews with Luhrmann, Pearce, Martin, producer Martin
Brown, select crew, and actors Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, John
Leguizamo, and Richard Roxburgh. Most cool is the look at some
of the recording sessions with composer Craig Armstrong for the
film's soundtrack, though far too brief. The behind-the-scenes
production montages are as nice as the sets are lavish, and this
28-minute feature is actually quite in-depth, and certainly fun.
Next up is The Stars, a rather unique interview gallery
with the film's main principals McGregor, Kidman, Leguizamo, Roxburgh,
and Jim Broadbent. (»
View excerpt) Select a cast member from the submenu,
and get a short 3- to 5-minute clip, with movie and early preproduction
test footage thrown in for good measure. This Story Is About...
is divided into three sections: a 4-minute interview with
Luhrmann and Pearce (which is cool 'cause it includes the pair
reading early pieces of the script), Pearce reading an early treatment
(which is actually just a freewheeling interview with Pearce on
the genesis of some of the film's characters), and text-only storyline
and script comparisons dating back to 1998.
Moving down the menu we have The Cutting Room, which includes
three subsections. We get a short 4-minute interview with Baz
Luhrmann and Jill Bilcock on the approach to editing and structuring
such an unusual film, six different montages of abandoned edits
running 12 minutes total - "Come What May," "Dance
Across The Sky," "Sidler's Rap," "Outside
It May Be Raining," and "Green Fairy" - and some
early previsualizations of 3 scenes (with "apologies
to the actors" from Luhrmann.)
Way cool is The Dance, a section with four full-length
dance sequences that were heavily cut to fit into the film. After
a short intro from Luhrmann, you can watch "Hindi,"
"Tango," "Can Can," and "Coup D Etat"
in their full versions and, except for "Hindi," in either
one-camera or "Multi-Cam" mode. I actually preferred
these versions to the ones in the final film, as they are less
heavily edited and the choreography and design is so spectacular
that the film just didn't do them justice. My only complaint is
that these are presented in non-anamorphic widescreen and the
quality is not as strong as the main feature, but this is still
cool.
But wait, there's more! The Music section includes four
segments detailing the film's bold approach to its soundtrack.
A Musical Journey is a 10-minute interview with composer
Craig Armstrong and musical director Marius De Vries, complete
with rare preproduction and recording session footage montage,
while Fatboy Slim contributes his own 6-minute interview,
and then there is the Come What May music video. We even
get a peek inside The Lady Marmalade Phenomenon(!?), complete
with the MTV Movie Awards performance of the song and a short
2-minute behind-the-scenes clip with Missy Elliott.
Up next is The Design, boasting no less than 6 sections
on the film's magnificent visuals. The Set Design and
Costume Design still archives feature about 100 stills for
9 of the film's locations and 6 costume galleries, and each presented
with o supporting text but easy-to-use interfaces and nice layouts.
Most unique is the Graphic Design animated still gallery,
which scrolls along a panoramic view of the film's many icons,
billboards, backgrounds and images, all set to music. Also included
in this section are two interviews running 8 and 6 minutes,
respectively, with designers Catherine Martin and Angus Strathie.
Each also includes a wealth of production footage including looks
at the costumes and sets in various stages of creation, as well
as a glimpse at concept and storyboard designs and meetings. Last
but not least is Smoke And Mirrors, featuring interviews
with conceptual artists and effects supervisors Andrew Brown,
Grant Freckelton, Brent Feeney, and Belinda Bennets on the creation
of "The Evolution Of The Intro" and "The Green
Fairy" sequences, complete with early 3-D renderings of the
film's surreal world. Whew!
Last but not least, we get to the Marketing section, features
ad campaigns, trailers and TV footage. The International Sizzle
Reel is a cool montage of all sorts of television and media
coverage of the film. Kinda neat, and you fans of premieres and
red carpet appearances will love this. Three still galleries are
also included - Photo Gallery, Poster Gallery, and
The Little Red Book - with (you guessed it) more behind-the-scenes
and publicity stills, ad materials, and "The Little Red Book,"
which is some sort of story told in pictures that went over my
head! In all, you'll find close to 60 images. Rounding out the
extras is a music promo spot for the soundtrack, and three
trailers - the film's theatrical trailer, a Japanese trailer,
and a DVD promo for Baz Luhrmann's Red Curtain trilogy.
And, last but certainly not least, if you're a treasure hunter,
you'll find plenty of easter eggs to keep you buys. I found
five so far, all relatively short video bits including outtakes,
rehearsals and alternate song takes. Cool!
DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop
the disc in your PC?
Oddly enough for a Fox title, there are no ROM extras included.
Parting Thoughts
Free your mind, the rest will follow. This is a no-brainer for
$29.95 - great transfer, DTS and Dolby mixes, tons of supplements,
and plenty more. If you're a Moulin Rouge obsessive - and your
numbers are growing - you can't miss this one, now can you? A
feast for the eyes and the ears, so enjoy!
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