"Amadeus" opened the door to a fantastic world of whose existence I had not been aware. The movie changed my life. " (anonymous viewer of the film)
Amadeus remains one of the most beloved and decorated movies of all time. It is a beautifully crafted film that provides us a kaleidoscopic glimpse of a grand society in a time gone by, a place of aristocratic privilege, excess and insouciance, with artists whose works were not always recognized during their lifetimes, focusing on two composers, Wolfgang "Amadeus" Mozart and Antonio Salieri. The movie is a wondrous meditation, through the reminiscences of Salieri, on the ways of genius, the value of contrition, and the arbitrariness of metaphysical justice.
Millions around the world have enjoyed Amadeus that was the 1984 movie, and hundreds of thousands have also experienced the compelling eponymous play that opened in London's West End in 1979 and then moved to Broadway. Amadeus has been both applauded as one of the greatest films of the twentieth century as well as criticized by some nitpicking types who can find only the historical "inaccuracies" within it. There are some who even bristle at the title, Amadeus, since Mozart himself, in his copious writings and compositions, never used it as his middle name (N.B. : Mozart's often wrote his middle name as "Amade' " or "Amadeo", but never as "Amadeus." Mozart's baptismal name was Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart. The name Theophilus transliterates as Gottlieb in German and Amadeus in Latin).
But that's the whole point, and the point of this essay. Amadeus was a West End play, then a Broadway play, and then a Hollywood movie. It was not a documentary ! Those nitpickers are totally off the mark. There is a lot that Amadeus gets right !
Writer Peter Shaffer and Director Milos Forman never intended to be perfectly historically accurate when they created Amadeus. Rather, in both the play and the movie, they crafted a fantasy world, loosely based on facts and channeling Pushkin's 1830 play, Mozart und Salieri, in which they opined about the relationship between genius and talent, and the gulf between ineffable art and journeyman mediocrity. They stated from the outset that Amadeus would not be historically true, but rather, a dramatic fantasy, and in so doing, they crafted a work of art which has captivated us for over three decades.
In reality, Mozart and Salieri were cordial competitors in the musical scene of late eighteenth century Vienna. They collaborated on the pastiche, Der Stein der Wiesen (The Philosopher's Stone), Salieri attended several performances of Mozart's opera, Die Zauberflote ("The Magic Flute") and loved it. Salieri even gave piano lessons to Mozart's second son in the early 1800s. There is no evidence whatsoever that Salieri had anything to do with Mozart's last illness and death; Mozart died of the consequences of rheumatic fever and hypovolemic shock from the blood-letting ordered by his physicians.
Shaffer and Forman proved throughout both play and movie that they knew a tremendous amount about the historical Mozart, more than many who want to point out those moments where the movie and play deviated from reality and historicity.
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| Tom Hulce, as Wolfgang Mozart, in the movie Amadeus |
I would venture a guess that through Amadeus, more than a few viewers got their first deep introduction to classical music, Mozart's music in particular, as well as the beauty of 18th century Vienna (with the lovely and well-preserved Staré Město (Old Town) section of Praha (Prague), Czech Republic as its historical proxy). The sets and costumes were praised for their fidelity to what is known of Viennese culture of that era. These offerings alone are to be cherished, let alone the music (see below).
Even when the movie deviates from "the truth" about Mozart, Forman and Shaffer's deep understanding and scholarship about Mozart's creative process delights us even as it enlightens us.
For example, recall the famous scene where Salieri, as a musical amanuensis, is taking dictation from the dying Mozart as he creates the Confutatis movement of the Requiem. This event never took place in history. (It was actually Franz Xaver Sussmayr who took those notes and finished the Requiem).
Even though the scene never happened, through the magic of cinema, Shaffer and Forman brilliantly conjure and reconstruct the creative process of composition. The results are closer to "the truth" than anything I have seen. Here is that scene:
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| Tom Hulce, as Mozart, in the Confutatis scene in the 1984 film, Amadeus. Although it was really F.X. Sussmayr (and not Salieri) who "took notes", this scene brilliantly deconstructs Mozart's creative process in particella writing |
Some critics have commented on how "silly" and foolish" Mozart is made to appear in the movie, in the cackling laugh and puerile hijinks of Tom Hulce's characterization of the composer, while others don't accept that Mozart could have acted this way.
In fact, he did. Sexual and biological references were part of Mozart's dinner conversations with family in Salzburg and throughout his life. Scatalogical speech and coprolalia were a commonplace in the central European towns of the 18th century. Hulce's brilliant characterization of Mozart was actually sanitized from reality. Shaffer and Forman were spot-in caricaturization as well. Mozart's own letters to his parents, sister, and especially to his cousin, Anna Maria Thekla Mozart (nicknamed the Basle) when they were both teenagers, are replete with bathroom humor and sexual innuendo.
Shaffer and Forman took the viewer much farther, by letting them enter Mozart's sublime and serene sound world. The movie is replete with dozens of Mozart's musical masterpieces, splendidly performed by Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy-of-St-Martin-in-the Fields. This sonic Mozartean glory alone is priceless and uplifting.
Beyond honoring Mozart and his brilliant musical legacy, Shaffer and Forman actually did more to resuscitate and revive Salieri than anyone else in the music world had done to that point, by showcasing the finale of his greatest opera, Axur, Re di Ormo (Axur, King of Ormus), complete with over-the-top period costumes and set design. The scene is unforgettable.
Shaffer and Forman won eight well-deserved Academy Awards for Amadeus and have been lauded for having created a wondrous jewel that honors Mozart by having introduced his ineffable music to millions.
So, thank you, Peter Shaffer, Milos Forman, and Saul Saenz, for opening the eyes and ears of the world to Mozart. Thank you, actors Tom Hulce (Mozart), F. Murray Abraham (Sallieri), Elizabeth Berridge (Constanze), Jeffrey Jones (Emperor Joseph II) and your colleagues, for informing your characters with such depth and authenticity. You got Amadeus so right !
Ars longa !
Ars Mozartiae longior !
@ Vincent P. de Luise MD 2015
I am always fascinated by this Amadeus
ReplyDeleteAmadeus is an excellent film and a great story that opens the door to classical music for many people.
ReplyDeleteSome of the historical inaccuracies, however are not nitpicking. Among them:
-- Salieri and Mozart were good friends, not mortal enemies.
-- While "Le Nozze" and "Don Giovanni" received only a few performances in Vienna, they were repeatedly performed in Prague.
-- Mozart was not a "pauper" when he died, but solidly middle class. Mourners filled St. Stephens Cathedral for his memorial service.
-- His grave was unmarked due to the shortage of cemeteries in Vienna at the time. Everyone who died in Vienna around 1790 received a common burial.
-- As a Mason, Mozart mingled with wealthy and aristocratic folk. Whatever he may have written in his private letters, in public life he conformed to the norms of "high" society.
-- Rather than ignoring Mozart and consigning him to a life of poverty, the Emperor employed Mozart as his chamber music composer.
Again, Amadeus is a great story in its own right. One should not confuse it, however, with the historical record.
Thank you very much, Mr Dinsmore, for corroborating the thesis underpinning my essay.
ReplyDeleteYes, indeed, as you have accurately elaborated, there are a number of facts in the historical record about which Shaffer and Forman knew a great deal, but purposely deviated for the purpose of creating a historical fiction play and movie.
You might enjoy reading my essay in the International Journal of Medical Humanities on aspects of Mozart and the historical record ( "Euterpe Deconstructed: Reflections on the Health, Illnesses and Legacy of Wolfgang Mozart"), as well as Peter Brown's well-regarded essay in the Phi Beta Kappa quarterly journal, The American Scholar ( "Amadeus and Mozart: Setting the Record Straight").
Here are the links:
http://hekint.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1951
http://www.jstor.org/stable/41211976?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
https://reelrundown.com/movies/Historical-Inaccuracies-in-Amadeus
Merci beaucoup Vincent :)
ReplyDeleteOne should take Amadeus for what it is: a story about genius and mediocrity, set in a wonderful recreation of 18th century middle class and upper class life. That is its true merit. The merit beside that is that:
ReplyDelete1. It opened the harts of many people to classical music. (always a good thing)
2. It sort of rehabilitated the music of Mozart: its richness, proufoundness, technical challenging and just stunningly beautiful on top of all that. After Amadeus the opinion on the music of Mozart changed considerably and stimilated both advanced amateurs and even professionals to look past what was often considered the superficialness of his music and discover fugues as intricate as the best ones writtten by Bach, and drama in the music worthy of Beethoven (who up that time stood aloof alone as The pinnacle of western classical music, now he luckyly is shared in that spot by Bach and Mozart, but there are of course so many others.
3. Before Mozart, classical music was (apart from Bach, most often played in a heavy romanticising 19th century style) essentially Beethoven and everything that came after him. Amadeus appeared at a time the interest in earlier music was increasing among professionals and certainly contributed to the spread to the general public of that music. (and as aside certainly contributed to the "rediscovery "of Haydn)
3. The merit of the musical performances also lies in their search for historical accuracy in performances. No hammering on a big Steinway, but an almost intimate sounding 18th century Viennese piano, doing much more justice to his music. Also the use of basset horns etc....
Of course all of these trends did not just happen just because of Amadeus, but it did (i think) lend them some support.
In short: enjoy a good story open your hart to wonderful music and don't take everything in the movie dead serious.
Thank you sir..I am a mozart-ian.This movie is the bomb
ReplyDelete