Le violon rouge (1998)

Director:

François Girard

Writers:

Don McKellar (written by) &
François Girard (written by)

Release Date:

11 June 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | Mystery | Music

Tagline:

Passion Is Timeless

Plot:

A perfect red-colored violin inspires passion, making its way through three centuries over several owners and countries, eventually ending up at an auction where it may find a new owner.

Plot Keywords:

Violin | Auction | Secret | Violinist | Passion

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 19 wins & 13 nominations

Cast

Carlo Cecchi	...	Nicolo Bussotti (Cremona)
Irene Grazioli	...	Anna Bussotti (Cremona)
Anita Laurenzi	...	Cesca (Cremona)
Tommaso Puntelli	...	Apprentice (Cremona)
Samuele Amighetti	...	Boy (Cremona)
Jean-Luc Bideau	...	Georges Poussin (Vienna)
Aldo Brugnini	...	Assistant (Cremona)
Christoph Koncz	...	Kaspar Weiss (Vienna)
Clotilde Mollet	...	Antoinette Pussin (Vienna)
Florentín Groll	...	Anton von Spielmann (Vienna)
Johannes Silberschneider	...	Father Richter (Vienna)
Rainer Egger	...	Brother Christophe (Vienna)
Paul Koeker	...	Brother Gustav (Vienna)
Wolfgang Böck	...	Brother Michael (Vienna)
Josef Mairginter	...	Brother Franz (Vienna)

Also Known As:

The Red Violin (Canada: English title) (UK) (USA)
Il violino rosso (Italy)

MPAA:

Rated R for some sexuality.

Runtime:

131 min | France:140 min

Country:

Canada | Italy | UK

Language:

French | English | Mandarin | Italian | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:LH | Philippines:PG-13 | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:11 (TV rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | France:U | Germany:6 (bw) | Hong Kong:IIB | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:18 | Spain:13 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Chicheley Hall, Chicheley, Newport Pagnell, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Channel Four Films

Trivia:

When Frederick Pope prepares to play his original, inspired piece in the rotunda, just after the conductor raises his staff you can see Joshua Bell (who is the actual solo violinist who performed on the movie soundtrack) as one of the violinists in the orchestra.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The date in the auction showroom reads "mardi, le 17 fevrier 1997", or "Tuesday, February 17, 1997." February 17, 1997 was a Monday.

Quotes:

Charles Morritz: What do you do when the thing you most wanted, so perfect, just comes?

Movie Connections:

Featured in Weird Sex and Snowshoes: A Trek Through the Canadian Cinematic Psyche (2004) (TV)

Soundtrack:

O Richard! O mon Roi!

An ambitious story that delivers

What can you say about a film that covers three centuries, people from all stations of society, and several European countries and Canada. Ambitious is a good start. This film was very well crafted and at about one hundred forty minutes was too short for me. The story follows a red violin, an inanimate object, although at times it seemed alive to me, thru three centuries and the influences good and ill that it has on its possessors. It does ever seem to be owned. Each of its possessors lives a life of passion and turmoil. The violin's birth is during turmoil and during its life it buried, shot, and almost burned. The writing which includes this parallel between the violin and its possessor , five somewhat independent segments that mell and converge in the final scenes, and a story told by tarot cards make for an extremely unique experience. Add to that the musical score, scenery, the varied languages and cultures and you have a great offering. The performances were all strong, but I thought Jason Flemyng as Lord Frederick Pope stood out. To say his character was eccentric and maybe a little over the top is justifiable but I'm sure that was intended. English nobility has always been known for its idiosyncrasies. The ending has incongruous feel with the remainder of the film but is satisfactory and I can not suggest a better one. Great entertainment! Three and a half stars!!!