Mozart (1955)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Karl Hartl

Writers:

Karl Hartl (screenplay)
Karl Hartl (story)

Release Date:

20 December 1955 (Austria)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Music

Plot Keywords:

Vienna | Character Name In Title

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Oskar Werner	...	Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Johanna Matz	...	Annie Gottlieb
Erich Kunz	...	Emanuel Schikaneder
Gertrud Kückelmann	...	Constanze Mozart
Nadja Tiller	...	Louise Weber Lange
Annie Rosar	...	Frau Weber
Hugo Gottschlich	...	Don Primus
Angelika Hauff	...	Suzi Gerl
Albin Skoda	...	Antonio Salieri, Hofkompositeur (as Skoda)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Raul Aslan
Chariklia Baxevanos
Bettac
Ulrich Bettac	...	Vater Gottlieb
Boheim
Peter Brand	...	Schack, Darsteller des Taminos
Anton Dermota	...	Tamino (in "Die Zauberflote")
Eidlitz
Karl Eidlitz	...	Hoffmeister Musikallienhändler
Gottlob Frick	...	Sarastro (in "Die Zauberflote") (The Magic Flute)
Hilde Güden	...	Pamina (in "Die Zauberflote")
Hegelserger
Hennings
Erika Köth	...	Königin einer Nacht (in "Die Zauberflote")
Else Liebesberg	...	Papagena (in "Die Zauberflote")
Liese
Walter Regelsberger	...	Süssmayer Mazarts Famulus
Reiner
Reitzer
Raoul Retzer	...	Gerl, Darsteller des Sarasto
Rudolf
Leopold Rudolf	...	Ein Unbekannter Besteller des Requiems
Ruspprecht
Seidler
Alma Seidler	...	Muter Gottlieb
Servie
Helli Servi	...	Linda Dienstmächen bei Mozart
Skramp
Karl Skraup	...	Valentin
Spiess
Stimmvoll
Richard Szokoll	...	Mozart's son (as Szokoll Jr)
Elisabeth Terval	...	Eleonore Gottlieb
Egon von Jordan
Oskar Wegrostek
Elfie Weissenböck	...	Königin der Nacht (in "Die Zauberflöte")
Prof. Wobisch	...	Horn Player

Also Known As:

The Life and Loves of Mozart (USA)

Runtime:

USA:87 min | West Germany:100 min

Country:

Austria

Language:

German

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:12 | Finland:S

Company:

Cosmopol-Film

Trivia:

The alternative German release title "Reich mir die Hand, mein Leben" is the common German adaption of the lyrics "La ci darem la mano" from Mozart's "Don Giovanni". The film itself doesn't contain a single note from this opera.

Endearing and heartfelt, but over-romanticized

If you agonized through "Amadeus", cringing at the depiction of a giggling buffoon and his featherbrained Constanze, shuddering at the underlying premise that God gave the gift to the wrong man for reasons we just can't understand, then this film may provide you with a pleasant antidote. Filmed in 1955, probably in anticipation of the bicentenary of his birth, it gives a totally different view of the composer, and recreates the last year of his life on a more intimate anti-blockbuster scale. But though it is an engaging effort with many fine points, it doesn't succeed in redeeming Mozart from the fictions of Milos Forman's travesty, because it is itself a fictionalization that distorts in its own way the character of the composer.

The last year of Mozart's life was a living hell since he was physically very ill and financially in difficulty. The necessity to keep composing was all the more tortuous because of his suffering. The symptoms he had - pain, vomiting, fever, chills, swollen hands and feet, seem to point to kidney disease. He was taking large quantities of various drugs and medicines, no doubt compounding the ailment. He knew death was inevitable and his wife was terrified.

This script by Karl Hartl depicts a fun-loving girl-chaser who dashes through the fields in pursuit of his mistress, climbs trees with her, cheating on Constanze with the certainty that she will forgive him. The girl in question is Nannina (Annie) Gottlieb who created the role of Pamina. In this version it is she, not Constanze, who becomes distraught over Mozart's illness. In the two biographies I consulted no mention is made of this exuberant love affair. It may be true, it may have happened earlier in his life or it may be Hartl's attempt to provide Mozart with a soul-sister, since the name Gottlieb is the German equivalent of Amadeus meaning "loved by God". The effect is to diminish the tragic end of his life and to shunt Constanze to the sidelines.

Salieri is a minor figure; there are just hints of animosity between the two men when Mozart's face darkens at the mention of his name. No mention either of "La Clemenza di Tito" the opera that had just failed in Prague, thus placing even more pressure on Mozart to succeed the next (and last) time, with "The Magic Flute". Freemasonry is not alluded to except through excerpts from the opera, nor is there any analysis of the symbolic shift from heresy to the deepest ritual of the Catholic Church - the Requiem Mass. But the mysterious stranger who commissions the Requiem cannot be avoided since he is the messenger of doom.

If what emerges is a buoyant, appealing tale of young man whose precociousness was rooted in a deep creative matrix, it is thanks to the radiant performance of Oskar Werner. His elegant, sensitive portrayal disarms and charms us to the point where we forget the distortions. We see in his portrayal the hunger for life, the need for love and approval, the disgust at compromise, the rebelliousness, the playfulness, the terror and acceptance of death. And all within the severe limitations of this so-called "historical" scenario.

The other players are excellent, in particular Erich Kunz as Emmanuel Shikaneder/Papageno. His clever, humorous, impatient pragmatism is a perfect complement to the unpredictable ways of creativity. The women are intelligently portrayed. The music is heavenly.

Unfortunately, this video is dubbed. I was not able to find a sub-titled version. I cannot say with certainty that Oskar Werner dubbed himself.

We are on the eve of the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth. Vienna, I believe, is already celebrating. Let's hope that any books, films or dramatizations that emerge from the festivities reflect the man in all his complexity. Truth is not only stranger than fiction, it's a lot more interesting. It might be best to just read his letters and listen to his music.