Issue 26: Summer edition ☀️

Yin and Yang

“I speak for all mediocrities in the world. I am their champion. I am their patron saint.” -Antonio Salieri (Amadeus)

”But with opera, with music … with music you can have twenty individuals all talking at the same time, and it’s not noise, it’s a perfect harmony!” -Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Amadeus)

It was November 1980-something; a Tuesday or Wednesday. I was in junior high and classes were cancelled at around 11 am due to a massive snow storm. Of course, it had to wait until we were already on campus. The busses couldn’t run so the school frantically called all the parents to come pick up their kids.

Inevitably, most of them couldn’t get there on a moment’s notice so we were stranded for a few hours with nowhere to go but the student lounge. If you were a kid of the ‘80s, ‘90s, or early ‘00s then you’ll remember the famous cart with the TV and VCR combo that teachers would wheel into the classroom as a time filler on a half day or late afternoon before summer break. On that particular snowy day, the famous blue-gray steel cart of joy made its way into the lounge, and to our surprise the librarian didn’t put on a nondescript documentary produced in the 1960s. Instead, the school decided to entertain us with 1984’s Amadeus.

I only got to watch the first 35-40 minutes before my folks arrived to take me home but I was mesmerized and inspired enough to rent the movie during my next trip to Blockbuster Video. The rest as they say is cinema history and a love affair that began on that cold November day many years ago, and has endured to this very hot day in July, 2024.

-John

Moving Forward

Episode 475: Summer movie series: Amadeus (1984)

Catch this week’s episode on Spotify.

Moving Forward is also available on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeart, CastBox, Pocket Casts, Spotify for Podcasters (formerly Anchor), and Audible.

2024 Summer movie series

Amadeus (*****)

There’s a certain irony that F. Murray Abraham (Salieri) won the Academy Award for best actor, portraying the tortured composer Salieri who lived in the shadow of Mozart (Tom Hulce). Both he and his co-star were nominated in the same category for Amadeus. While Hulce’s whimsical, impish portrayal is a brilliant interpretation of the renowned musical genius, the Academy chose to award the gold statue to the more subdued Abraham. I imagine that Hulce might have felt a little like his co-star’s character at that moment.

The film smartly frames its story through Salieri’s eyes as he recounts his life, and by proxy, Mozart’s, to a priest while locked up in a psychiatric hospital. Through Salieri’s point-of-view, we get to experience a study in contrasts of these two characters. Mozart was a musical prodigy, raised by an encouraging father who was devoted to cultivating his son’s gifts. Meanwhile, Salieri was born with a desire to compose that far outweighed his abilities. Adding insult to injury, his father couldn’t care less about music.

There’s a duality in these two figures that makes them more like intertwined DNA strands than polar opposites. Mozart as portrayed here, is an 18th century rockstar with an eccentric personality, and an erratic lifestyle that is as wild as his spiky pink and purple wigs. He is brimming with sheer musical talent, but neither the emperor nor audiences of the time truly recognized just how ahead of his time he was. In contrast, Salieri is a refined gentleman who attains position, prestige, and power in Emperor Joseph II’s court. Yet, deep down he knows he is not the composer that he strives to be. Worse, Salieri is astute enough to recognize real genius, which he sees in Mozart. That Mozart is under-appreciated by society at large does not bring him any schadenfreudian comfort. It’s simply salt on a large open wound.

Throughout the film, Mozart is largely unaware of his colleague’s jealousy and pathos. He simply lives for the moment and for his music. Everything else: money, fame, politics, glory, competition, even family and health are mere distractions from doing what he loves most. In that regard, Mozart is also a tortured being, plagued by pedestrian obligations and struggles that prevent him from utilizing his gifts to the fullest. The punchline of Amadeus is that Salieri and Mozart are more composites than opposites. One is hampered by internal limitations while the other by external constraints. In another life, these two might have been best friends, as close as brothers.

There’s a lot to admire in Amadeus from the sublime performances to the breathtaking cinematography and meticulous attention to detail. That it is not an accurate biopic of either individual should not sway you from enjoying the notes of this cinematic experience. If you can enjoy Amadeus for what it is: a fictionalized tale with rich portrayals of historical figures, you’ll find yourself immersed in a drama that is as captivating as an opera composed by Mozart himself.

Amadeus was directed by Milos Foreman with a screenplay written by Peter Shaffer, adapted from his stage play. The film grossed $90M worldwide on a $18M budget.

Cast:

• Tom Hulce as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

• F. Murray Abraham as Antonio Salieri

• Elizabeth Berridge as Constance Mozart

• Roy Dotrice as Leopold Mozart

• Simon Callow as Emanuel Schikaneder

Amadeus (1984) usually pops up on Netflix, Prime, or Tubi but is not currently streaming as of the air of this episode. Check your local library. You can also purchase Amadeus(1984) on physical or digital media from Amazon (affiliate paid link).

The film is adapted from the stage playAmadeus: A Play by Peter Shaffer (affiliate paid link).

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A book that will inspire you to wave your arms and bring out your inner conductor 🪄🎶

Quirky reads 📚

Some great books to fill your summer hours.

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• And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie (****)

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Books

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• The Poshmark Guide for Individuals and Small Businesses (Paperback, Kindle, Audible)

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• The Corporate Cliches Adult Coloring Book

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