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It appeals to any age group. On Oct. 15, classical violinist Elizabeth Pitcairn will be performing with the 1720 Red Mendelssohn Stradivarius violin … His wife Anna inquires from her housekeeper and Tarot reader about the child's life. In the nineteenth century, we find ourselves in England, where the violin's owner, a c Summary: Francois Girard's epic follows the history of a violin as it passes over continents and through lives over the span of three centuries. $3.99. [42], In Queen's Quarterly, Maurice Yacowar analyzed the film as presenting the characters of Kaspar, Xian, Peng and Morritz as manifestations of different aspects of Bussotti's passions, while the characters of Poussin and bidder Ruselsky wanted to use the instrument to further their own interests. It's about a violin's journey from owner to owner, and plays like an anthology film where you see what happened to the violin as it moved all around the globe. [56] Pitcairn brought the "Red Violin" to the Prince George Symphony Orchestra in 2012. Violin maker Nicolo, set aside his best violin as a gift to his unborn child. Cesca turns over the second card, The Hanged Man, which means disease and suffering for those around Anna. [27] A limited release followed in the United Kingdom on 9 April 1999. The site's consensus states: "A symphony of storytelling whose lulls lead to satisfying crescendos, The Red Violin weaves a centuries-long saga with the journey of a single instrument. Summary: The Red Violin was written by François Girard and Don McKellar. [39] Xan Brooks' The Independent review compared the production design unfavourably to a BBC work for students. Pope readily procures what he immediately perceives to be an exceptional violin. "The Red Violin" - Film Study 1,201 words, approx. Anna asks her servant Cesca to foretell her unborn child's future. [7], Girard and McKellar proposed their story and project to various Hollywood companies, but were unwilling to give up creative control,[9] or to limit the number of languages spoken in the film, as U.S. companies requested. When the results of the varnish tests arrive, Morritz is shocked to learn that the violin's varnish contains human blood. Through a series of five different stories, dating from different periods of time, ranging from 1681 to the present, we see the history of the violin and how it touched the lives of many people. In the meantime, Nicolò has fashioned a new violin. Overview System Requirements Related. [30], Composer John Corigliano was previously nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Score for the 1980 film Altered States before winning for The Red Violin. [38] The Washington Post critic Stephen Hunter assessed the score to be the strongest element of the film, and the story to be intriguing and occasionally "macabre". The Truth in Color The red violin is played by the most gifted of the orphans who is taken in hand by a French music master and groomed for an audition with the prince. This is not true. The violin passes from the rich to the poor, from Italy to … [9] Shooting in Shanghai took place on Hong Zhen Old Street in the Hongkou District. See the film with live orchestra on Fri, Dec 8 in Memorial Auditorium. [18] The film score was written by composer John Corigliano, with every violin solo in the film performed by violinist Joshua Bell. It's about a violin's journey from owner to owner, and plays like an anthology film where you see what happened to the violin as it moved all around the globe. 5 pages After the tragic death of his wife and child a 17th century Italian violin maker paints the finest instrument, which was meant for his then unborn child, in the blood of his wife. Due to the international production and amount of English, numerous English Canadians accepted awards. The film then proceeds to follow the violin's history as it passes from person to person beginning at an Austrian monastery where it goes from child to child, culminating its sojourn at the monastery with a talented orphan of about 6 years age, Kaspar Weiss. The screenplay was written by Don McKellar, who also acts, and Girard, inspired by a historic 1720 Stradivarius violin nicknamed the "Red Mendelssohn". As he prepares to fly home, Morritz stops by the auction house "Duval's", with the London copy in hand. Several Red Guards raid Xiang's apartment after learning of its existence, finding nothing. HoloLens PC Mobile device Xbox 360 Trailer. But when she arrives, she finds him in the arms of a new muse, the gypsy violinist woman. The violin "slumbers" in the grave with Kaspar, but is dug up and moves on to have several gypsy owners. [15], The most challenging part was securing permission from the government of China to simulate the Cultural Revolution in Shanghai, with Fichman travelling to China seven times before the government allowed shooting, which took place only five days later. It inspires lust, envy, passion, compulsiveness, and adoration. The red violin is buried with the boy but is stolen by gypsies. [14] Lord Frederick Pope's estate was Chicheley Hall while his concert were filmed at Sheldonian Theatre at Oxford University. The Red Violin. [32], On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 74% based on 40 reviews, and an average rating of 7.2/10. Rent. As the auction for the previous lot ends, Morritz switches the Red Violin for the London copy, which is sold for $2.4 million. In England in 1893, the Red Violin captures the attention of Frederick Pope (Jason Flemyng), a Byronic violinist who enthralls audiences with his flamboyant musical style. [41] In National Review, Jay Nordlinger praised Corigliano's soundtrack but criticized Girard's direction and film. There are still parts of this original varnish in place, even after almost three hundred years so it would be easy to put it paid to the notion in the movie about blood being used to stain it. The violin ends up in the hands of Frederick's Chinese servant, who returns to Shanghai and sells it to an antiques dealer, who repairs the damage. "[33] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 57 out of 100, based on 22 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Subsequently Pope kills himself and the violin gets taken to China by Pope´s former servant who sells it at the bond shop of a Shanghai merchant. The violin is later stolen by grave robbers travelling in a gypsy procession, who take it to England. June 16, 1999 Web posted at: 4:01 p.m. EDT (2001 GMT) By Reviewer Paul Tatara (CNN) -- There's a … Frederick finds great praise in his public concerts with the violin as well as his compositions, with his lover Victoria Byrd serving as his carnal muse. For starters, The Red Violin Movie explains that the violin is red from the maker’s wife’s blood. The first, The Moon, signifies that Anna will live a long life. "The Red Violin" takes its audience on a journey spanning five countries and three centuries. Poussin brings Weiss and the violin to Vienna. [14], Girard had no formal musical background; his main experience working with music was as a film director. Every aspect of this film reflects upon the love inherent (and evident) in its making. The Red Violin is buried with Kaspar, but grave-robbers steal it, and it ends up in the hands of nomadic gypsies. [29] By August 1999, the film grossed $6 million in the United States, which Lions Gate Entertainment declared "a huge success for a specialty film". [45] The Red Violin dominated the awards, with eight wins. The rare Red Violin is up for auction in Montreal. [4][5] Despite rumours and the film, the Red Mendelssohn is varnished with burgundy rather than blood. [43] In 2002, readers of Playback voted The Red Violin the third best Canadian film ever. Samuel L. Jackson gives a masterful performance as a musical-instrument appraiser caught up in a soul-wrenching moral conflict in … He relents and vows to keep it hidden, while Xiang leaves to face possible prosecution from Communist Party officials. The Red Violin (French: Le Violon Rouge) is a 1998 drama film directed by François Girard and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Carlo Cecchi and Sylvia Chang. [28] and the film opened in the United States on 11 June 1999,[2] distributed by Lions Gate Entertainment. [21] Bell said he was eager to join the film crew, citing his enthusiasm for Corigliano's work and his use of form. [6], Director François Girard opted to make a film about a violin due to his belief that "Making film is making music". The film won an Oscar for Best Original Musical Score, and the Canadian equivalent in the following Genie Awards: Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay, amongst others. In the chaos of China's Cultural Revolution, any ideas or items deemed "bourgeois" are denounced and should be destroyed. The Red Violin, film score by American composer John Corigliano for the 1998 Canadian film of the same name.In 1999 Corigliano’s music for the film—which follows a particular violin from its creation in the late 1600s through the centuries of its history to the late 20th century—won him an Academy Award for best original score.. [44], After the film's release, the Red Mendelssohn owner Elizabeth Pitcairn also learned its Chaconne, which she called "spooky", adding "that's when the violin can tell its own story; that's when it can actually speak". A nearly 300-year-old burgundy-stained violin, once bought for $1.7 million and ubiquitously known as the “Red Violin,” is coming to Austin. In 2005, it was performed at the San Francisco Ballet. Distraught, Nicolò returns to his shop and varnishes the violin with a red color. [9], The film is an international co-production, allowing for a larger budget to be accumulated from various sources, making The Red Violin one of the most costly Canadian films produced to date. In present day Montreal, a famous Nicolo Bussotti violin, known as "the red violin," is being auctioned off. Kaspar is taken under the wing of mentor Georges Poussin, but Kaspar comes to an untimely death auditioning to the Prince Mansfeld. One band of gypsies brings the violin to the English country lands of Lord Frederick Pope, who is a violin virtuoso. When Poussin inquires about the violin, the monks explain that they buried it with Weiss. The script and the casting, the cinematography, editing, and design are brilliant. Xiang then returns to her residence and retrieves the Red Violin, given as a gift from her mother. Fichman claimed "there was the possibility that we were going to cause a riot". [19] The score is mainly of the Chaconne genre,[20] while the ostensibly Romani music was also actually written by Corigliano. Upon this discovery, the present-day Chinese government ships these items to Montreal for appraisal and sale at auction. Weiss is buried at the orphanage he grew up in. When Victoria does not receive his letters for a full week, she resolves to return immediately. Morritz calls his wife at home in New York City and asks to speak to his daughter, telling her he has a special present for her upon his return. [44] He won over American Beauty, which he had considered the front-runner before the ceremony. Following the death of his wife Anna in childbirth, Nicolo varnishes the violin with ingredients from which it derives it red colouring. The film was an international co-productionamong companies in Canada, Italy, an… The instrument, made in Cremona in 1681 with a future forecast by tarot cards, makes its way to Montreal in 1997, where an appraiser identifies it and it goes to auction. [47], Corigliano adapted his score into a concert, Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (The Red Violin), performed in Baltimore, Dallas and Atlanta from 2003 to 2004. Parents Guide. Description. Plot Synopsis. It's about a violin's journey from owner to owner, and plays like an anthology film where you see what happened to the violin as it moved all around the globe. Instead of predicting the future of Anna, the tarot cards reveal the future of the violin. Lord Frederick Pope comes across the gypsy procession setting up camp on his estate, as a gypsy woman plays the violin. Lord Pope overhears the violin being played by the gypsies. Almost immediately, he notices the Red Violin and believes it may be the legendary last violin of Nicolò Bussotti. [22], Much of the score had to be written before principal photography, which is rare in film. [36] Stephen Holden wrote in The New York Times that the film did not live up to its score. [4][5] By the time the film was made, the Red Mendelssohn was owned by Elizabeth Pitcairn, heiress to the PPG fortune, whose grandfather purchased it for her 16th birthday for $1.7 million at auction at Christie's London. Xiang arrives at Zhou's house and pleads with him to take the violin to keep it safe. | [2] Since the violin movements seen in the film had to match Corigliano's music, real-life child prodigy Christoph Koncz was cast. [16] Hundreds of Chinese police, with guns, closed the streets where shooting took place, due to the 450 extras loudly calling for revolution. He has restorer Evan Williams perform some work on it, while sending samples of the varnish to a lab at the University of Montreal. The film was shot in Austria, Canada, China, England and Italy and features a soundtrack by John Corigliano, with solos performed by violinist Joshua Bell. He is aesthetically or carnally transfixed by this one violin in such a manner that his jealous lover first leaves him to travel to Europe, then returns unannounced. The film tells the subsequent fate of the violin in episodes, linked together by a fortune telling, read by the servant woman Cesca, for Nicolo´s pregnant wife, Anna. Ultimately, when the collector dies the Chinese government "inherits" the by now anonymous violin in a motley collection of stringed instruments, including at least one genuine Stradivarius. Available on. The Red Violin is the original soundtrack album, on the Sony Classical label, of the 1999 film The Red Violin (original title: Le violon rouge), starring Carlo Cecchi, Sandra Oh and Samuel L. Jackson.The original score and songs were composed by John Corigliano and performed by Philharmonia Orchestra with Esa-Pekka Salonen conducting. [13], The film finished its run having made US$10 million in the United States. There is a very clever twist at the end of the movie and one is left to wonder what the continuing journey of the red violin … It was the distributor's most successful Canadian film of the year. [57], 1998 Canadian drama film directed by François Girard, sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFJohnson1998 (, "Le Violon rouge (1999) – Financial Information", "History of the "Red Mendelssohn" Stradivarius", "Run Your Money Like It's The Red Violin", "Interview: From 32 Shorts to 1 Epic, François Girard Travels with 'The Red Violin, "John Corigliano remembers surprise Oscar win for 'The Red Violin, "Carlton Kids airs Bedtime Primetime Classics", "Egoyan tops Canada's all-time best movies list", "Film Review; That Old Fiddle Sure Got Around", "Red Violin Will Be Music To Girard Fans", "Time-Traveling 'Violin' Makes Haunting Music", "Where Films Made in English Can Seem a Cultural Betrayal", Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, "Elizabeth Pitcairn and her famous Red Violin come to Prince George", Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television for Best Motion Picture, The Best Damn Fiddler from Calabogie to Kaladar, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Red_Violin&oldid=1013281098, Best Picture Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners, Films about classical music and musicians, Films that won the Best Original Score Academy Award, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Marcel Pothier, Jérôme Décarie, Carole Gagnon, Antoine Morin and Jacques Plante, Claude La Haye, Marcel Pothier, Hans Peter Strobl and Guy Pelletier, This page was last edited on 20 March 2021, at 18:42. Vienna, 1793 (Language: German and French). Cesca cannot determine the future of someone not born, but she does offer to read Anna's future using tarot cards. The final card, Death, Cesca sees not as predicting death, but, due to its upside-down positioning, as rebirth. [10] As a result, they produced the film with Rhombus Media. He later wrote another adaptation, The Red Violin: Chaconne for Violin and Orchestra. Trailer for The Red Violin, part of the REEL CANADA catalogue of Canadian films. On the day of the recital, as he starts playing, Weiss's heart gives out from the stress and he collapses, dead. In 1893 in England, Frederick Pope (Jason Flemyng), a composer, is inspired by both the instrument's tones and his troubled relationship with novelist Victoria Byrd (Greta Scacchi). The intricate history of a beautiful antique violin is traced from its creation in Cremona, Italy, in 1681, where a legendary violin maker (Carlo Cecchi) paints it with his dead wife's blood to keep her memory alive, to an auction house in modern-day Montreal, where it draws the eye of an expert appraiser (Samuel L. Jackson). However, Girard tied up two musicians to actor Jason Flemyng to help him give his performance as a violinist, the "Octopus" method. [46] The film also competed in the 1st Jutra Awards, launched to honour the Cinema of Quebec. One target for public denunciation and self-criticism is a music teacher named Zhou Yuan, who is berated for his fondness for Western classical music. [24], The Red Violin premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 2, 1998, where it received standing applause. It traces the story of a violin ("the single most perfect acoustical machine I've ever seen,'' says a restorer) from its maker in 17th century Italy to an auction room in modern Montreal. The instrument is sold to a young woman with her daughter during the 1930s. The monks at the orphanage ask a violin instructor, Poussin, to adopt the boy to further his development. In a moment of rage, Victoria shoots the violin, grazing its neck and detaching its strings and tailpiece, before storming out. [17] Filming completed after six months,[9] with shooting on 60 of those days. [35] For The Guardian, Jonathan Romney wrote that "as flawed movies go, it's elegant, entertaining and quite breathtakingly ambitious". [35] For The Guardian, Jonathan Romney wrote that "as flawed movies go, it's elegant, entertaining and quite breathtakingly ambitious". [31] It was not a major hit overseas. The Red Violin. Shanghai, late 1960s (Language: Mandarin). Again tragedy ensues, and a Chinese servant takes the red violin to Shanghai where it is pawned. The violin then makes its way to an orphanage in Austria. Charles Morritz arrives in Montreal as an appraiser for the violins sent by the Chinese government. A magical red violin passes around the world from owner to owner. [12], The co-production also allowed for shooting in Canada, China and around Europe,[11] including the cities of Vienna, Shanghai and Montreal. He is about to varnish it when he finds that both she and the child have died. | [26] It was also screened in international film festivals in London and Tokyo. Summary Francois Girard directed this drama tracing the history of a musical instrument through five countries and three centuries. While Victoria is absent, Frederick loses his inspiration to compose and degenerates. Frederick's final letter to Victoria states that he will be committing suicide and that he is leaving his entire estate to her. The Red Violin starts off a little slow, but it gets more and more interesting as it goes along and winds up being a lot of fun. Ultimately, they decided they needed to film in Vienna and Shanghai to properly depict those cities. The Red Violin is entertaining, enchanting, wondefully cast and the music is INCREDIBLE! This guide traces its winding path through five distinct historical moments and cultural milieus. [7] The concept of a history of a violin was the starting point, with Girard not initially realizing the project would call for five languages or an unusually large budget. In 1681, to keep the spirit of his wife alive, an Italian paints the violin with a red varnish made from her blood. In our lives we find objects that mean the world to us. By 1937 the violin belongs to a bourgeois Chinese family.The violin then barely survives the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution of a communist China which at that time found western music unacceptable. The instrument, made in Cremona in 1681 with a future forecast by tarot cards, makes its way to Montreal in 1997, where an appraiser identifies it and it goes to auction. Nicolò Bussotti is a violin-maker whose wife, Anna Rudolfi, is pregnant. The Red Violin’s mosaic is, ultimately, an open-ended one. However, the regimen and the "Poussin Meter" (a primitive metronome) take a toll on Weiss' heart defect. [9][25] It opened in the Toronto International Film Festival in September 1998. Synopsis It received numerous honours, including the Academy Award for Best Original Score and eight Genie Awards, including Best Motion Picture. Cesca predicts the fourth card, Justice, means tough times ahead, featuring a trial and persecution, where Anna shall be guilty. The main return point in the movie is the auctioning of the Red Violin at the Duval auction house in Canada. [4] Stradivarius used red varnish on numerous other violins from 1704 to 1720, the so-called "golden period", and other red-coloured violins besides the Red Mendelssohn survive. —Compiled by Francesca Dawis [26] Roger Ebert called the film "heedlessly ambitious", possessing "the kind of sweep and vision that we identify with elegant features from decades ago". This suggests a musical structure, though Girard said this was not planned and only developed as he and McKellar continued to write. A red-colored violin inspires passion, making its way through three centuries over several owners and countries, eventually ending up at an auction where it may find a new owner. A political officer, Xiang Pei, successfully defends Zhou. The Red Violin (1998) tells the story of a mysterious red-colored violin and its many owners. [19], At the Genie Awards, Don McKellar was effectively competing against himself as a screenwriter of both Last Night and The Red Violin. [9] The action in the Montreal segments was the most complex, which Girard said put the greatest strain on himself and the cast. He offers his hospitality in exchange for the violin. The violin is the main "character" and is followed over centuries by all the hands it falls into. The film tells the subsequent fate of the violin in episodes, linked together by a fortune telling, read by the servant woman Cesca, for Nicolo´s pregnant wife, Anna. [13], By February 1999, The Red Violin had grossed $2 million in Canada, surpassing the previous year's winner of the Genie Award for Best Motion Picture, The Sweet Hereafter. It spans four centuries and five countries as it tells the story of a mysterious red-coloured violin and its many owners. They learn that Prince Mannsfeld is visiting Vienna and is looking for a prodigy to accompany him back to Prussia, promising a generous reward. [11] Its final budget was $15 million. The film was an international co-production among companies in Canada, Italy, and the United Kingdom. This film centres on a red violin created in 1681 by Cremonese master violinmaker, Nicolo Bussotti, for the forthcoming birth of his child. For others, it may even be a person whose absence is unfathomable. Cesca's third card is The Devil and she explains that Anna will meet a handsome and intelligent man who will seduce her. In Cremona, Italy, Girard visited violin-making schools and met some people who made the instruments, recruiting some as extras. This film centres on a red violin created in 1681 by Cremonese master violinmaker, Nicolo Bussotti, for the forthcoming birth of his child. [2] Girard stated Bell and Corigliano were involved from the outset, and reviewed every version of the screenplay as it was in development. Corigliano, looking for a romantic musical performance, also referred to Bell as the ideal choice for a musician, calling him "an aristocrat as a violinist". The violin was to become Nicolo´s final masterpiece, an impossible instrument with perfect resonance in all three characteristics. The film tells the subsequent fate of the violin in episodes, linked together by a fortune telling, read by the servant woman Cesca, for Nicolo´s pregnant wife, Anna. Nicolò had carried his wife's body to his shop after her death and slit her wrist to collect blood for making the red varnish. The Red Violin tells the extraordinary history of an instrument, which is described as being “acoustically perfect.” The film begins with an auction of a large collection of rare instruments (featuring Colm Feore, the sublime star of Gerard’s acclaimed recent masterpiece 32 … [2] Girard and McKellar employed a few crew members from their previous film, Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould (1993), including cinematographer Alain Dostie, editor Gaétan Huot and actor Colm Feore. [40] In The San Francisco Gate, Bob Graham accepted the film's ambition and judged Samuel L. Jackson to be cool in the role, in a very different way than in Pulp Fiction (1994). At the same time, he purchases a copy of the Red Violin from a private collection in London, the closest copy to the original available.

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