3 reviews
Great artists aspire to transcend the confines of their ordinary existence. Their art is their escape. Thanks to this worthy effort by the French, it is clear Vivaldi had a surfeit of stress to escape from. But this film does not demonstrate how that stress was the impetus behind the music.
Recall for a moment the highlights of Vivaldi's vast oeuvre. There is a trio sonata that gracefully rises up, evoking a better world; an aria from Moctezuma that hovers peacefully above a far-less tranquil world below; the opening chorus of the Gloria, which ascends to the heights of nobility, without even acknowledging the ignoble. These, and many more pinnacles of his accomplishments were omitted from the film, literally and figuratively. The meaning behind the music is not made clear.
By way of analogy, I might lend clarification from my own experience. For many years, I worked in an open office with several associates. Much to my dismay, I soon found that they chatted incessantly in the intervals of work about the most vulgar and abhorrent topics. There was but one escape: good music via earphone, of which Vivaldi was a cornerstone. Invariably, when the quiet was adulterated by obscene chit-chat, I found a lofty refuge in the red priest's contemplations. His compositions were, no doubt, intended to dispel the very same ennui. His was a delicate, noble constitution, incompatible with the cannaille.
Towards the end of the film, the word "Amsterdam" had been spoken often. I realized that it was a siren-call for this poor composer, kept forever under the thumb of a philistine patron. And I was moved profoundly, not by the film, but my recollection of having once toured Amsterdam for hours, to the accompaniment of Moctezuma, among the greatest of Vivaldi's 40+ operas. I had taken his music physically to the place he could only reach in his dreams.
Recall for a moment the highlights of Vivaldi's vast oeuvre. There is a trio sonata that gracefully rises up, evoking a better world; an aria from Moctezuma that hovers peacefully above a far-less tranquil world below; the opening chorus of the Gloria, which ascends to the heights of nobility, without even acknowledging the ignoble. These, and many more pinnacles of his accomplishments were omitted from the film, literally and figuratively. The meaning behind the music is not made clear.
By way of analogy, I might lend clarification from my own experience. For many years, I worked in an open office with several associates. Much to my dismay, I soon found that they chatted incessantly in the intervals of work about the most vulgar and abhorrent topics. There was but one escape: good music via earphone, of which Vivaldi was a cornerstone. Invariably, when the quiet was adulterated by obscene chit-chat, I found a lofty refuge in the red priest's contemplations. His compositions were, no doubt, intended to dispel the very same ennui. His was a delicate, noble constitution, incompatible with the cannaille.
Towards the end of the film, the word "Amsterdam" had been spoken often. I realized that it was a siren-call for this poor composer, kept forever under the thumb of a philistine patron. And I was moved profoundly, not by the film, but my recollection of having once toured Amsterdam for hours, to the accompaniment of Moctezuma, among the greatest of Vivaldi's 40+ operas. I had taken his music physically to the place he could only reach in his dreams.
Movie is well written, photography is immaculate. It shows Venice and it's people at its highest glory
- juniorwitkowski-01746
- Apr 10, 2020
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