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Amadeus (film)

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Amadeus
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMiloš Forman
Written byPeter Shaffer
Produced bySaul Zaentz
StarringF. Murray Abraham
Tom Hulce
Elizabeth Berridge
Music byWolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Antonio Salieri
Distributed byOrion Pictures
Warner Bros.
Release dates
September 19, 1984
Running time
160 Mins
Theatrical Cut
180 Mins
Director's cut
LanguageEnglish
Budget$18,000,000 US

Amadeus is a 1984 film directed by Miloš Forman and based on the stage play Amadeus. It won eight Academy Awards in 1985. Considered to be one of the finest films of the 20th century, it compares the nature of genius versus mediocrity and examines the relationship between God and man.

The stage play was written by Peter Shaffer. He was inspired by "Mozart and Salieri", a short play by Aleksandr Pushkin (later adapted into an opera of the same name by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov), which was in turn based very loosely on the lives of the composers Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri.

Plot

The film starts with Salieri, as an old man, attempting suicide by slitting his throat. Placed in a lunatic asylum for the act, a young priest visits to take his confession but Salieri is uninterested. The priest mentions a rumour that Salieri may have murdered Mozart and, if true, must unburden his mortal sins. Salieri is still uninterested until, in passing, the priest mentions that, "All men are equal in the eyes of God." Suddenly, Salieri is hooked. "Are they?" he inquires cryptically and begins his long "confession" about the relationship between himself and Mozart.

Salieri begins his career as a devout, naïve, God-fearing man who believes his success and talent as a composer are God’s rewards for his piety. He is content as the court composer for the Viennese Emperor Joseph II until Mozart explodes onto the scene. The immensely talented Mozart repeatedly humiliates Salieri and belittles his work; Salieri smarts at the realization of his own lesser abilities. Gradually, Salieri’s faith is shaken to pieces. He believes God, through Mozart, is cruelly laughing at his musical mediocrity. Desperate for revenge on God, Salieri hatches a complex plan to kill Mozart and steal perhaps his greatest work, the unfinished Mass in C Minor. Salieri's struggle with God is intercut with scenes showing Mozart's own struggles with acceptance of his music by the Viennese Court, pride, dissipation, bereavement and grief. Mozart becomes more desperate as the family's expenses increase and his commissions decrease. When Salieri learns of Mozart's financial situation, Salieri finally sees his chance to avenge himself, using "God's Beloved" as the instrument.

Production

A young Kenneth Branagh was originally considered to play Mozart in the film, but was bypassed in favor of Tom Hulce when director Miloš Forman decided to make the film with an American cast so that audiences would not be distracted by the British accents. Meg Tilly was cast as Mozart's wife Constanze, but after tearing a ligament in her leg the day before shooting started, she was replaced by Elizabeth Berridge.

The film was shot on location in Prague and Vienna. Notably, Forman was able to shoot scenes in the Count Nostitz Theatre, where Don Giovanni had debuted two centuries before. Several other scenes were shot at the Barrandov Studios.

Cast

Actor Role
F. Murray Abraham Antonio Salieri
Tom Hulce Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Elizabeth Berridge Constanze Mozart
Roy Dotrice Leopold Mozart
Simon Callow Emanuel Schikaneder
Christine Ebersole Katerina Cavalieri
Jeffrey Jones Emperor Josef II
Charles Kay Count Franz Orisini-Rosenberg
Kenneth McMillan Michael Schlumberg
Barbara Bryne Frau Weber
Roderick Cook Count Johann Kilian Von Strack
Milan Demjaneko Karl Mozart
Peter DiGesu Francesco Salieri
Richard Frank Father Vogler
Patrick Hines Kappellmeister Bonno
Nicholas Kepros Archbishop Colloredo
Jonathan Moore Baron Gottfried van Swieten
Cynthia Nixon Lorl
Vincent Schiavelli Salieri's Valet
Douglas Seale Count Arco
Kenny Baker Parody Commendatore

Reception

The film featured F. Murray Abraham as Salieri and Tom Hulce as Mozart, and in an Oscar rarity both would compete for the annual award for Best Actor.

Isaac Asimov praised Abraham's depiction of Salieri in his essay collection "The Relativity of Wrong", noting that he deserved to win the Academy Award for Best Actor.

There was an awkward moment on Oscar Night, as aged icon Laurence Olivier presented the evening's final Oscar for Best Picture at a ceremony held March 25, 1985, in Los Angeles. As he thanked the Academy for inviting him he was already opening the envelope, and instead of announcing the nominees, he simply read "The winner is Amadeus." An Academy official quickly went onstage to confirm Olivier had correctly announced the winner, signaled that all was well and producer Saul Zaentz, in his acceptance speech, mentioned the other nominees: The Killing Fields, A Passage to India, Places in the Heart and A Soldier's Story.

The film was ranked the 53rd best American movie ever by the American Film Institute in 1998 during their special AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies list.

Awards

Academy Awards

Won

Nominated

Golden Globe

Won

Nominated

Film soundtrack

The original soundtrack to Amadeus reached #56 on Billboard's album charts, making it one of the most popular recordings of classical music ever. All of the tracks were composed by Mozart, save an early Hungarian folk tune and the final movement "Quando Corpus Morietur et Amen" by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, from his famous Stabat Mater. It should be noted, however, that the film features some music that is not included on the original soundtrack album release. As stated above, except where specified, all tracks were performed by the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, conducted by Sir Neville Marriner, and all were performed specifically for use in the film. According to the film commentary by Milos Forman and Peter Schaeffer, Marriner only agreed to score the film if not one note of Mozart's music was changed, yet Marriner did add some notes to Salieri's music (especially noticeable in the beginning of the film as Salieri begins his confession).

Disc One

  1. Symphony No. 25 in G minor, K 183; 1st movement (Mozart)
  2. Stabat Mater; Quando Corpus Morietur and Amen (Pergolesi - performed by the Choristers of Westminster Abbey, directed by Simon Preston)
  3. Early 18th Century Gypsy Music: Bubak and Hungaricus
  4. Serenade for Winds, K. 361; 3rd movement (Mozart)
  5. The Abduction from the Seraglio; Turkish Finale (Mozart)
  6. Symphony No. 29 in A, K 201; 1st movement (Mozart)
  7. Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 365, 3rd movement (Mozart)
  8. Mass in C minor, K. 427; Kyrie (Mozart)
  9. Symphonie Concertante, K. 364; 1st movement (Mozart)

Disc Two

  1. Piano Concerto in E flat, K. 482; 3rd movement (Mozart)
  2. The Marriage of Figaro; Act III, Ecco la Marcia (Mozart)
  3. The Marriage of Figaro; Act IV, Ah Tutti Contenti (Mozart)
  4. Don Giovanni; Act II, Commendatore scene
  5. Zaide; aria, Ruhe Sanft
  6. Requiem, K. 626; Intoitus (orchestra introduction) (Mozart)
  7. Requiem; Dies Irae (Mozart)
  8. Requiem; Rex Tremendae Majestatis (Mozart)
  9. Requiem; Confutatis (Mozart)
  10. Requiem; Lacrimosa (Mozart)
  11. Piano Concerto in D minor, K. 466; 2nd movement (Mozart)

Music featured in the film but not included on the soundtrack album:

  • The Magic Flute; Der Hölle Rache (Queen of the night Aria) performed by June Anderson, Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen... (Papageno), and Pa-pa-gena! … Pa-pa-geno! (Papageno and Papagena) (Mozart)

Trivia

  • In the DVD Amadeus filmology, John McEnroe's mood swings were mentioned as the key source for Tom Hulce's portrayal of Mozart unpredictable genius.
  • The movie was the inspiration for Falco's song "Rock Me Amadeus".
  • When Mozart meets the Emperor for the first time, Salieri presents Mozart with a little "March of Welcome". Mozart "improves" this piece later in the scene, transforming Salieri's "trifle" into the "Non più andrai" march from his opera, The Marriage of Figaro. [1]
  • Finnish metal band Children of Bodom uses F. Murray Abraham's quote "From now on we are enemies... you and I..." as the introduction to their song "Warheart".
  • Both F. Murray Abraham (Salieri) and Thomas Hulce (Mozart) were nominated for the Academy Award for Lead Actor for their performances in the film; Abraham won. Likewise, Ian McKellen (Salieri) and Tim Curry (Mozart) were nominated for a Tony Award for Lead Actor for their performances in the Broadway production and, once again, the actor portraying Salieri won.
  • The film is rated PG. The director's cut is rated R.
  • Was parodied in a Family Guy episode 'It Takes a Village Idiot, and I Married One'
  • Was parodied in an episode of The Simpsons called "Margical History Tour" with Lisa as Salieri and Bart as Mozart.
  • Was parodied in an episode of Freakazoid titled Normadeus.
  • Was parodied in an episode of Mr. Show titled Bush is a Pussy, in a sketch entitled "The Great Philouza".
  • In the film The Last Action Hero, Danny, a young boy obsessed with action movies, magically enters the "movie world" inhabited by his favorite action star (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger). In one scene, Danny and the action hero meet the villain of the movie world who is played by F. Murray Abraham. Danny warns Schwarzenegger not to trust him, giving the rationalization that "He killed Mozart!" Schwarzenegger asks "In a movie?", to which Danny responds "Amadeus! It won eight Oscars!"
Template:S-awards
Preceded by Academy Award for Best Picture
1984 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Golden Globe for Best Picture - Drama
1985 		Succeeded by
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