The Magic Flute

This movie is well done and the plot is unique. A teenage boy who attends the Mozart Academy of Music is magically transported to the world of The Magic Flute. There he actually performs in the opera. It's great to see F. Murray Abraham play the headmaster considering he played Antonio Salieri so well in the movie Amadeus. I do recommend that people see the original opera on stage to fully grasp the scope of the music and story, or as it is called the libretto in opera terms.

This movie is entertaining and puts this opera in a whole new light. It's great for Mozart fans and fans of a good love story. It introduces the magic of Mozart to the next generation.

There are so many great things going on in this movie that it's kind of sad that it has some big issues that keep it from being a great success. The concept is interesting, the cast is wonderful, and the story moves very quickly, although sometimes to its own detriment. Two major things could have saved this movie for me. It would have been a mini series, so it wouldn't have felt so rushed and the relationships between the characters could have felt more developed. Because there was so much underdevelopment in the characters and plot, I had a hard time understanding the parallels between the stories of the real and magical worlds. I'm still not sure if there's any more of a parallel other than the protagonist proving his worth. If that was all, then it was a pretty big "to do" for such a simple theme. Also, I didn't care for the production design for the magical world. I honestly feel that the real world setting of the school was so much more interesting and charming than the beigeness of the magical world which often resembles the desolate, depressing landscapes of Dune. One would expect the magical world to be more vibrant and exciting to visit than the real one. I found myself more enjoying the real world and its storylines, just not enough.

My wife and I took my five year old daughter to go see this. I don't know much about Mozart or this particular opera but I knew there were fantasy elements and were all huge fantasy nerds. The first twenty minutes set up the main character of Tim and his relationship with his father, who was a famous singer of sorts (to what extent is never explained fully) and he gives his son a magic book. He's sent to attend the same music school as his father, one dedicated to Mozart. But soon we realize he's set to relive his fathers legacy by playing the lead in The Magic Flute. F. Murray Abraham is deviously wonderful as the strict headmaster, although he is drastically under used. Tim soon finds himself using the magic book and a magic portal behind a clock to transport himself to the world of The Magic Flute where he meets Iwan Rheon as Papagenu who absolutely steals the show. The resulting film is filled with fantastic music and visuals, including a giant snake, an evil Queen, and a daring rescue of a kidnapped princess by the unlikely heroes. The scenes at the school seemed to drag from time to time, but toward the end I was happy that they included as much of that storyline as they did because it was heartwarming at the conclusion. My 5 year old and I loved, my wife didn't like it at all unfortunately. But we will definitely be watching this again.

An ad usum Delphini version of the masterpiece by W. A. Mozart. Its basic virtue - you love more the great Austrian composer.

Sure, it seems superficial and fake in few scenes and forced in others but it represents a reasonable adaptation , using, in fair manner, old ingredients - from romance to passageway and beautiful voices interpreting familiar arias.

Good points - just I liked the way to create Papageno by Iwan Rheon. Or the nice used youth and physical traits preserving childhood touch of Jack Wolfe. Or the special effects. A reasonable introduction in the univers of The Magic Flute. Charming, simple, seductive for the recipe of classic books for children and for the motivational message.

I am not quite sure why this movie only scores 5.9 (as of today, April 2023). There maybe a few opera snobs around who think it cheapens the Mozart original, but they're wrong.

This movie should be taken for what it is: a good way of introducing opera to a younger generation who probably never hear such wonderful music otherwise.

The cast do a good job and the twin storylines, running in parallel, with the real life romance playing out while the Magic Flute story plays out in the world that Tim/Prince Tamino travels to through the magic clock.

Mozart's score is, as always, enchanting. And there's a nice cameo at the end from a rather well-known operatic tenor....