Friday, August 25, 2017

Thursday Movie Picks #163: The Stage



Hello there and welcome to Thursday Movie Picks a weekly series where you share movie picks each Thursday. The rules are simple: based on the theme of the week pick three to five movies and tell us why you picked them. For further details and the schedule visit the series main page here.

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This week's Thursday Movie Picks is The Stage

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I thought this week was the last week of the month and was preparing a list of TV shows to pick, but nope, this month is a 5 week month, so it's still a movie pick and it's The Stage.

Moulin Rouge! (2001)
I've picked this a few times before for other themes because I love love this movie! Set in the late 19th century it's a musical about a writer and courtesan falling in love at the Moulin Rouge as they work on a musical together.
 
Anna Karenina (2012)
I didn't love the movie, but I appreciated the way it was presented which was like a stage play. Most of the scenes take place indoors in like a theater, making full use of it so we'd see the actors act on the stage as well as the auditorium area. Doors would open to a new area of the theater or props would move around to introduce a new scene and setting; it's pretty amazing to look at, how the story flows from one scene to the next.
 
Black Swan (2010)
I've never seen an actual ballet performances before so I have nothing to compare it to, but I thought the Swan Lake scenes the short one at the start and the one at the end was just so beautiful. In the middle of that we follow Nina, the lead ballerina as she struggles with her sanity where her own life becomes a sort of manifestation of Swan Lake.

The Phantom of the Opera (2004)
I didn't love it the first time I saw it, however the second time I sort of do. They probably could have gone with an actor with a more stronger commanding voice for the Phantom, but Gerard Butler wasn't bad, certainly not like Russell Crowe in Les Misérables. My favourite scene is probably the masquerade where they had this gorgeous lavish sequence of finely dressed people all dancing.

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11 comments:

  1. I can't believe I still haven't seen Moulin Rouge!

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    1. Go see it. If you love pop music...it's going to be fun.

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  2. MOULIN ROUGE! Can't believe the thought didn't cross my mind, since I WORSHIP that movie. So great on every level.

    I ADORED the concept of Anna Karenina, and thought it was done really well, but setting it in and around a theater like that distances us from the story a bit, so I never felt fully connected. Still, it's GORGEOUS on every level and the performances are great.

    Black Swan is perfection. The Phantom of the Opera is decidedly not.

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    1. I agree with what you said about Anna Karenina being distant.

      The Phantom of the Opera - have you seen the stage one?

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    2. I have seen Phantom of the Opera on Broadway. It's a lush, often thrilling production, and I love the music.

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  3. Black Swan is excellent. Portman is perfect. Unfortunately, I haven't seen your other picks. I have seen the 1925 silent original of The Phantom of the Opera, but haven't gotten around to the remake.

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    1. I'm guessing the silent The Phantom of the Opera is going to be a lot different from the 2004 one, because that would be more of an adaptation of the novel, while the 2004 is the adaptation of the staged musical.

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  4. The only one I didn't see was Anna Karenia, I enjoyed all the others.

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  5. I haven't seen Anna Karenina but would like to. Moulin Rouge is ok but it irritated me..I need to see it again and see if I warm up to but it is a sorta remake of Camille. Phantom was a good movie but I also wished the Phantom was stronger in his singing. I can't stand Black Swan which my hubby and I refer to as psycho Swan.

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    1. Aww you didn't enjoy Moulin Rouge...it is a little loud in terms of its visuals so I can understand if you found it irritating.

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