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Beloved Beethoven: The Film That Oscar Missed
In 1994, British director Bernard Rose released "Immortal Beloved". The full-length film is now on DVD, with commentary by the director, trailers for the film, a documentary on the real life of composer Ludwig Van Beethoven and behind-the-scenes look at the making of the movie. It's a must have for fans of the film, which had a following mostly of music lovers or history buffs. I want to convince you that this film is Oscar worthy for Best Picture or Best Actor (Gary Oldman as Beethoven). Or it could have at least won Best Costumes. It's a terrific film that the 1995 Oscars neglected. The Academy failed to see the powerful drama of this film. It's a work of art. I don't understand how if Amadeus, a film about the fictional account of Mozart and Salieri, two music composers, could win Best Picture in 1984 (only 10 years before Immortal Beloved) why did they ignore the Oscar potential of this movie ? And Gary Oldman truly deserved recognition for his work as Beethoven. I believe that year, Tom Hanks won Best Actor for Forrest Gump, a good performance as well but Gary Oldman truly deserved it more in my opinion. Oldman (from 1992's Dracula) is a veteran British film star with many American films to his credit, an excellent actor and captivating screen presence. As Beethoven, he truly transformed himself into the very essence of Beethoven himself. Not only does he physically and anatomically look like a Beethoven brought to life on the screen, but his acting was able to tap into the spirit of Beethoven's personality. He is mercurial, he is intense, he is passionate, he is tormented, he is romantic and gentle. The film seems to indicate that Beethoven's deafness was due to the beatings his abusive father gave him as a boy. His escape of the trauma inspired his greatest work of music- the revolutionary Ninth Symphony. Like Amadeus, some of the film is fiction and fabricated simply for the sake of drama or plot. But a lot of it is true to the time of Beethoven (early 19th century 1800-1820's) and some portions remain accurate to Beethoven's career as a composer. The mysterious Immortal Beloved was true. Love letters to this Immortal Beloved were found upon Beethoven's death and to this day there are different theories on who the enigmatic lover must have been.

The film opens with Beethoven's death. Beethoven, frail and pointing towards heaven as lightning strikes, takes his final breath. This is reportedly true by an eyewitness account of the time. Afte his funeral, Jerome Krobbe's character and Beethoven's brother decide to investigate who the Immortal Beloved was by digging up as much information on the women he loved in his life. They encounter that there are three "suspects"- a divorced Countess with children (Isabella Rossalini in a great performance), Beethoven's brother's wife, or a beautiful piano student of his. The lush cinematography and vibrant location- the film was shot on location in Beethoven's native Austria- enhances the milieu of the film and it's gorgeous to look at. Authentic costumes is another superb element of the film. The scenes of Napoleon's invasion of Vienna are historically accurate as well. Beethoven and Napoleon were contemporaries and initially, tricked by Napoleon's propaganda, Beethoven believed that Napoleon's government was going to open up doors of opportunities for equal rights in a new Enlightenment. But Napoleon's promises were false and he crowned himself Emperor and his reign was totalitarian. This upset Beethoven so much that he tore off the dedication to Napoleon from his Third Symphony (Eroica).

The final portions of the film are probably the best. Beethoven, approaching old age, has trouble with his nephew Karl, who attempts suicide at one point, and is still pining over the woman he loved but could not have. Especially fatalistic was the lost encounter between the two during a rainstorm at a hotel. This is also taken straight from letters that were found and are true to Beethoven's life. Beethoven composes his final symphony- the Ninth- as he remembers his tragic childhood. He conducts the Ninth himself, eventhough he is much older, and dazzles the Vienna public with a bold new creation- the symphony with a chorus (the Ode to Joy). The film uses the music from the symphony very dramatically and effectively, visually and score-wise in the soundtrack. The soundtrack is also available on Amazon.com and is a must buy if you loved the all-Beethoven program featured in the film- his Eroica Symphony, the Moonlight Piano Sonata, The Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, The Kreutzer Violin Sonata and the Emperor Piano Concerto No. 5, which is used brilliantly as the film closes. Beethoven's Immortal Beloved reads the letter that Beethoven wrote to her on the occassion of that fateful night at the hotel, becomes emotional and visits the tomb of Beethoven. This was the actual tomb of Beethoven in Austria that is seen in the film. This film is worth watching time and again, is perfect for music appreciation courses and as already mentioned, a film that cries Oscars but that Oscar was blind to.

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you can always just close your eyes and listen to the music
Ludwig van Beethoven has died and bequeathed his estate to an unnamed woman. This is the tantalising premise for director Bernard Rose's film, and for it's first half it's compelling and beautifully made. Then Rose blows it, with a red herring about Beethoven's adoption of his brother's son, and though we do eventually return to the search, this misguided structure loses the audience. Fortunately, Rose floods the soundtrack with that glorious music. Rose coached a magnificent performance out of Virginia Madsen in Candyman, and does the same thing here for Valeria Golino, Isabella Rosellini, and to a lesser degree, Johanna Ter Steege. These women's eyes and skin and voices are shockingly intimate. As Beethoven, Gary Oldman looks right but is all externals. He bases his performance on the composer's deafness, turning him into a tormented neurotic which undermines Rose's romantic conceit (though isn't it always the miserable ones who creates things of great beauty?). Rose has eerie fun with acoustics, giving us Ludwig's distorted perspective, although he lacks the tabloid sensibility to match Ken Russell's flamboyant bio's. Russell too supported the exclusively autobiographical notion of an artist's work and Rose even makes the deafness Freudian. The stunning opening scene with crowds grasping for the coffin is evidence of Beethoven as pop star.

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Great actor, awful plot.
Honesetly speaking, I love this film only because I am a great fan of Gary Oldman. His performance is powerful and adorable, and you will be helplessly fallen in love with HIS Beethoven. Yet, back to the movie and the plot...

Hm. You have to admit, you just don't know why people would like to romanticise historical figure and make a great artist to be a character in those soap opera. Hm. No offense but this movie, to a certain extent, make things so superficial. The psychological twist of Beethoven's immortal beloved is omitted- everything was then become so awkward, and I can't help wondering whether or not shall I continue the movie~

Just watch the performance of Gary, and forget everything about the plot. Sigh.