Immortal Beloved (1994)

The life and death of the legendary Ludwig van Beethoven. Beside all the work he is known for, the composer once wrote a famous love letter to a nameless beloved and the movie tries to find... See full summary »

Director:

Bernard Rose

Writer:

Bernard Rose

Stars:

Gary Oldman, Jeroen Krabbé, Isabella Rossellini

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gary Oldman	...	Ludwig van Beethoven
Jeroen Krabbé	...	Anton Felix Schindler
Isabella Rossellini	...	Anna Marie Erdödy
Johanna ter Steege	...	Johanna Reiss
Marco Hofschneider	...	Karl van Beethoven
Miriam Margolyes	...	Nanette Streicherová
Barry Humphries	...	Clemens Metternich
Valeria Golino	...	Giulietta Guicciardi
Gerard Horan	...	Nikolaus Johann van Beethoven
Christopher Fulford	...	Kaspar Anton Carl van Beethoven
Alexandra Pigg	...	Therese Obermayer
Luigi Diberti	...	Franz Josef Guicciardi
Michael Culkin	...	Jakob Hotscevar
Donal Gibson	...	Karl Holz
Matthew North	...	Young Karl van Beethoven

Storyline

The life and death of the legendary Ludwig van Beethoven. Beside all the work he is known for, the composer once wrote a famous love letter to a nameless beloved and the movie tries to find out who this beloved was. Not easy as Beethoven has had many women in his life.

---

Plot Keywords:

ludwig van beethoven | love letter | composer | death | love | 

---

Taglines:

The genius behind the music. The madness behind the man. The untold love story of Ludwig von Beethoven.

---

Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for scenes of violence and sexuality

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 January 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ludwig van B.

Filming Locations:

Kromeríz, Czech Republic

Box Office

Gross:

$14,351,546 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Icon Entertainment International, Majestic Films International

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS (8 channels) Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Anthony Hopkins was the original choice to play Beethoven.

---

Goofs

Beethoven plays Fur Elise for his nephew Karl, with his arms reaching around Karl's body, whilst Karl sits at the piano. There is no way Beethoven can reach the sustain pedal in this position, yet the piece is being correctly pedaled as we hear it played. Carl is not proficient enough to pedal for himself, let alone for another player, so it is not even an issue as to whether he may have been pedaling - he was not.

---

Quotes

Ludwig van Beethoven: [Miss Guiccardi's first piano lesson. She is playing, poorly, a little minuet. She errs, and begins pounding on the keyboard, perhaps to gets some kind of reaction from Beethoven. He says nothing until he realizes she has stopped. He gives his critique] You think that because I do not stop you, that I am not listening.
[She sighs in agreeance]
Ludwig van Beethoven: The manner in which you thump out the notes without the slightest thought as to their meaning is unforgivable. And your lack of passion is unforgivable. I ...
[...]

---

Connections

Referenced in Jeopardy!: Episode #26.146 (2010)

---

Soundtracks

"Violin Sonata in A Major, Op. 47 'Kreutzer'"
Written by Ludwig van Beethoven
Performed by Emanuel Ax, Steve Prutsman (as Stephen Prutsman), Piano - Pamela Frank,
Violin

User Reviews

Yet Another Mis-Interpreted Wonderful Film...

Once again, a film of such glory fell on deaf ears - no pun intended - in this country. I have spent hours reading reviews on this film, stating how awful it was, because it was not true to the real Beethoven's life.... Well, I believe that early on in my life, I learned about some- thing called "Poetic License"....and, in fact, this film IS, basically, a poem. The movie is BASED on a letter that Beethoven actually DID write, to his mystery lover. No one knows, for sure, who the woman really was. And, this is simply a beautiful interpretation of someone's dream of who she COULD'VE been.

This was regarded as an AWFUL thing to do, by many Beethoven authorities - and by people who simply DOUBTED.

Yet, what went overlooked because of these critics' lack of open-mindedness - was an exquisite blend of glorious music, and SUPREME acting.

Once again, Mr. Oldman gave a performance like no other actor in the world can quite match. His style, sensitivity, and

genius as the Tragic Beethoven, was magnificent.

Jeroen Krabbe's portrayal of Anton Schindler, Beethoven's friend and champion - was marvelous.

Johanna ter Steege - who portrayed Johanna, Beethoven's sister- in-law - was exquisite. Why did they ignore HER? It would've been nice to have her stay here, rather than return to her Dutch homeland - to become a major motion picture star, as well. She had one special attribute - she could ACT.

The sets, costuming, sound, and editing were all BEAUTIFUL. But the film was ignored.

Above all, however, Gary Oldman's performance ranked among the best in the world - but it, too, was ignored.

Give the film another chance. It deserves FAR more than it GOT. It was, simply, beautiful...