Amadeus: Play and Movie Review | Free Essay Example
the film released by milos foreman in 1984 is based on the play written by peter shaffer, an english playwright. The plot of the work is typically based on the lives of the masters of music, namely Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Saleri. music composed by mozart and salieri and other composers is used extensively in the scenes of the play. classical symphony no. 25 and no. 29 captures the audience with his impulsive manner. he captures the state of salieri who is old, he loses hope while he is in the emperors asylum and tries to commit suicide. grandiose music such as requiem in d minor to don giovanni, and figaro’s marriage, encompasses the thought of mercy and forgiveness offered to the countess’s husband in the final scenes. the various movements of the symphony and the piano concertos used in the production effectively capture the mood (in the opening scene in a wheelchair) and the emotional state of the characters. the quality of the music shows salieri’s envy of the talented young amadeus who is the main character (shaffer, 1980)
The main driving conflict of the piece is based on an uncontrollable envy. Saleri, who is a musician, hears about a young musician whose work is better than his. Salieri loves Mozart’s music so much that he believes this composition by a young Mozart is a gift sent from God. he understands the amazing qualities that amadeus uses in his music. music means a lot to salieri, he once said that when he was ten years old any sound made him dizzy and he would fall. he hopes to meet the young composer. To his astonishment, he finds that Mozart is self-centered, immature and very young. he despises him and wonders why god would give a person like mozart who didn’t conform to catholic traditions a talent for the quest. he renounces god and jealousy of him drives him to hatch a plan to assassinate mozart. By using a spy, he plans to pay Amadeus to compose a hymn for him. his plans fail when mozart dies and salieri does not get any fame (shaffer, 1980)
The acting of the film is a top job. Tom Hulce out made himself acting Wolfang Amadeus Mozart, his odd laugh brings comic relief. f murray abraham gave the film the best acting talent required to clearly nominate salieri by earning him an academy award for best actor. jones and elizabeth are charming when they act as emperor joseph and his wife constanze. Needless to say, each actor was stunning.
directing the film was really a big task. milos foreman translated peter shaffer’s script to be screened in an impressive way. the storyboard of him and the breakdown of the scenes add credit to his production prowess. the sensational look of cinematography features the aesthetic touch and craft techniques in continuity, sequence and lighting balance.
The sets and costumes used in the filming of the movie were colorful and somewhat luxurious with the help of lighting. In essence, the costumes and set designs used were opera premieres and brought the style and richness of class evident in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. costumes are vibrantly decorated and exaggeratedly show off, for example, wigs, full banded skirts, lace and silk, tight-fitting corsets, and feathered hats and veils. the scenery of individual characters is remarkable, the make-up in f. murray abraham transforms it to embody salieri’s old nature and mozart’s wigs are excellent (wilkins, 2009)
Most importantly, the excellent acting of the cast members highlights the film’s quality in the spotlight of drama and choreography. there was a clever choice of setting, this contributed to the overall production quality of the film. although the film was rated ‘best’ there were some glaring weaknesses for example the film is set in venice the actors are antonio and wolfang but all the actors speak english, with that heavy colorful costumes it would have been more satisfying and real to act in the original language of the playwright’s characters! the movie is quite long and other characters are not allowed enough screen time. The work focuses mainly on Mozart’s life, it would have been better for us more of his masterpieces than opera performances that would make us dizzy.
references
shaffer, p. (1980). amadeus: a drama (1st ed.). perennial harper.
wilkins, d., schultz, b. lamp; katheryn, m. (2008). past art, present art (6th ed.). new york, new york: prentice hall.
