aspiration-ini
An awkward, ridiculous, pathetic interpretation! Beethoven loved only music and himself. He hated his father. He hated all women and all children because they were mere distractions from his work. The immortal beloved is music. That is the truth. Script 4
Director 4
Actor play 8 Gary Oldman 5 the others subtotal 6.5
Entertainment 7 (6 nice decorations and costumes +1 for scene of Starlight sky) TOTAL 5
Kirpianuscus
a portrait of Beethoven. a not ordinary one. because, at the first sigh, it is a sketch. in fact, it has the virtue to become, scene by scene, a confession. not exact about the life of a great composer but about his forms of solitude, vulnerability, generosity and fears. and, a good part of the fascination about the looking for the mysterious woman, who was the choice of Beethoven, has as root the beautiful performance of Gary Oldman. not surprising, sure. but convincing at whole. for small gestures and for the dialogues. for a Beethoven who escapes from the circle of legend. for a sort of romanticism who seems be so realistic than has the status of history lesson. because , in fact, Immortal Beloved is only the story of a man. and his right to happiness.
SnoopyStyle
After the death of Ludwig van Beethoven (Gary Oldman) in 1827, Schindler (Jeroen Krabbé) is tasked with dealing with his last will and testament. He leaves his estate to his "immortal beloved". Schindler sets off to find whoever this immortal beloved may be. He interviews Beethoven's love Giulietta Guicciardi (Valeria Golino), Anna-Marie Erdödy (Isabella Rossellini) as well as others. Johanna Reiss (Johanna ter Steege) is also his lover but she marries his brother Kaspar instead. She has Karl van Beethoven assumed to be Ludwig's son.Oldman is terrific in this luscious costume drama. Beethoven is portrayed as an arrogant bastard which Oldman plays beautifully. However, the plot lacks a certain tension. It depends on how interested one is about finding the identity of this immortal beloved. It doesn't really interest me. There is no denying the ability of Oldman and the beauty in the movie. This doesn't have the clarity of a straight forward biopic or the energy of an exciting plot.
iamyuno2
I don't give out 10 star reviews very often, but this film is one of my very favorites - and not just because I'm a huge fan of Beethoven (because this film is about something much larger than Beethoven). This is a romantic tragedy on one level - and a real tear-jerker - but it is also brings to life the composer's times and the many fascinating people who surrounded him. The story is surprising on many levels and rises far above the typical movie about great composers. This movie is a great movie in its own right - from the script, to the acting, the cinematography (absolutely gorgeous), the directing, the camera work, and of course the music which is used naturally and to great effect. This is perhaps Gary Oldman's very best movie (and that's saying a lot, because he is, of course, a brilliant actor and great chameleon, able to play any kind of role) - you really believe you're watching Beethoven himself. And Jeroen Krabbe is incredible, too - what a moving performance he puts in as Beethoven's loving assistant. Isabella Rosellini puts in a fabulous performance, too, (perhaps her best) as does Johanna ter Steege. (If you didn't think Isabella was a fine actress because of her sometimes dubious choice of roles, you have to see her in this movie! Her mother would be proud.) Aside from biographical surprises, too, there are historical surprises you'll learn in this film - realities not brought out in those old history books you read in school. You'll find yourself recommending this film to all of your friends and relatives and wanting to see it again and again over the years. If you don't realize how great an actor Gary Oldman is yet, you must see this film.