Canone Inverso (2000) User Reviews

Flawed but enjoyable!

[D_vd_B · 7/10 · 17 April 2009]

What a strange movie. It's flawed and messy, but I enjoyed it.

The story jumps from 1970 to 1968 to 1939 and back and forth for a couple of times, but this never annoyed me. The problem is that there happens just too much; like the movie doesn't know where to focus on (the music, the romance, brotherhood, mystery?). The beginning is perfect, but it descends into chaos.

The acting is very diverse. Hans Matheson plays the main character. I think he must be about 18 years old most of the time, but he giggles and jumps around like an 8 year old girl. And so do all is friends, who seem to overact in every scene. Other actors, like Mélanie Thierry, Gabriel Byrne, Ricky Tognazzi and Peter Vaughn act just great. (SPOILER)But it seems very strange that many of them are portrayals of each other in different stages of the lives, they don't look like each other at all!(/SPOILER).

The music must be mentioned. The music carries the movie. I do have the soundtrack by Ennio Morricone (and pieces by Bach, Pagiani, Dvorak and a Debussy) and it's excellent. The music, when preformed in the movie, literary brought me to tears. The Canone Inverso is a very moving piece, the concerto too (don't remember the exact name). A faintly distorted Clair De Lune is very beautiful, but is used a little too much (the piece on the CD only appears once and runs about 2 minutes, but appears maybe 10 times in the movie). Without doubt, the music is the best thing about this movie. It's the heart of the movie, and if music plays such a role, which composer is a better choice than Italian maestro Morricone? The production itself is very good. The sets look great and it seems that the put most of the budget for sets to good use. Most of the movie revolves around Prague and seems to be filmed there. It all feels very real, but don't expect Doctor Zhivago.

This movie by Ricky Tognazzi is flawed. But a flawed gem can be great too. It's very romantic and the film breathes romance most of the time. When it doesn't do this, it feels strange and a little weak. Overall: 7/10. Could have been better, but still enjoyable!

A romantic drama in Praha

[paolo-28 · 7/10 · 3 March 2000]

By the beautiful novel by Paolo Maurensig. It is the story of a Steiner violin and of his young owner Jeno Varga. It's a romantic drama filmed in Praha. Wonderful good music by Claude Debussy... I really enjoyed this film. Oh, by the way, Paolo Maurensig is from Udine, my town, in Italy...

poetic, nice plot, nice photography, nice soundtrack

[alexdara · 7/10 · 18 February 2000]

Another Italian film featuring poetry and drama by means of a very nice photography, an intriguing plot, the usual involving soundtrack by Ennio Morricone (Once upon a time in America), intense playing by Melanie Thierry (wonderful) and Hans Matheson.

Definitely to be seen.

Bravo

[guil12 · 10/10 · 19 May 2009]

Okay, I'm a hopeless romantic for love stories and classic music. I happened upon this gem of a movie by chance while searching for films that had Lee Williams cast in them. This young actor amazed me in another film called No Night Is Too Long. His sensitivity is abundant in this one as well. An extremely handsome expressive face, he plays his role of David with great depth. Add to this the excellent acting of his fellow actors, Hans Matheson in the leading role of a young violinist who falls in love with Sophie, played beautifully by Melanie Thierry, a concert pianist. The three stars bring honest performances in their fated relationships in the world of music and pre-Nazi Europe. The Photography was brilliant and the direction by Ricky Tognazzi, son of famed director Ugo Tognazzi, was wonderful.

In supporting roles I also liked Gabriel Byrne and director Tognazzi himself playing the father of both of the young men. If you get a chance to see this, do so. For you'll love the music, scenery and fine acting by an excellent cast.

Loved the actors, loved the film.

[lisa-leone · 10/10 · 4 April 2001]

I just saw this film at the Newport Beach Film Festival (CA, USA) and it really moved me. I decided to see it because Gabriel Byrne was in it, but I found a lot more to enjoy. Namely the three young actors chosen to play Jeno, Sophie, and David. They were fantastic, especially Hans Matheson (Jeno). I was captivated by each of them, by how well they conveyed love, fear, joy, and sadness throughout the film, often with just the expressions on their faces. Ennio Morricone provided his usual elegant score behind it all. And the scenery was beautiful, in a very Eastern European crumbly building kind of way.

Anyone who appreciates good music and good film should keep an eye out for this one. There are some minor plot flaws, some of the scenes border on schmaltzy, and they definitely shoot for the tear ducts at the end, but it's still worth watching.

A genuinely touching film

[scifibaby-1 · 9/10 · 15 October 2004]

I saw this movie with a large group of Jewish Film Festival Patrons and the

overall impression of everyone I spoke to was overwhelmingly positive.

Regardless of age or gender, this film touches and makes one feel truly moved. The performances were outstanding throughout the film. The actor who

portrayed Jeno Varga was inspirational. The actor who played Sofie Levy was

luminously beautiful. The film itself was filled with interesting plot twists and a interesting "mystery." The culmination was fulfilling and inspirational. The film also had great cinematography. While this was not a "perfect" film and one

could point out "flaws" in the ages or some details of the film, none of that distracts from this WONDERFUL film. For ANYONE (Jew, non-Jew, male,

female, young or old) wanting to see a genuinely touching and inspirational film about music, life, love, and a bit of everything, see Canone Inverso, a really delightful film.

beautiful

[Kirpianuscus · 25 June 2018]

...but not more. few great virtues - from photography to few performances, especially Hans Matheson - but the fog of soap opera kills many good points. short, it is unconvincing. one of romantic stories, dramatic, interesting but lost in pink water of a sort of too sweet fairy tale. and only problem remains its potential. sacrificed by director for a sort of easy story for large, large public. the good things - Mr Tognazzi gives chance to live to few scenes who transforms the film in a good memory. sure, a beautiful film. but it could be a real good film. it deserves that.

Serious Film Buffs Abstain!

[nihao · 5/10 · 12 April 2005]

Fabio Cianchetti's photography, Hans Matheson's passion and Ennio Morricone's music can't save this one... Sloppy direction and impossible age differences riddle this entangled plot and, eventually sink it. What remains is Beautiful locations in Czeck Republic, a few well handled minor roles (Giordano, Prodan and Pappalardo), and the conviction that music and love are twins. What Mr. Maurensig the author of the original, fine Novel thought of this cinematic spaghetti is a mystery.... we have our opinion. Nonetheless, if you are at a loss for cinema viewing and are a lover of pretty faces and Violin music... well, maybe "Canone Inverso" by director/actor(?!) Ricky Tognazzi, son-it appears of the great Ugo Tognazzi, will suit you quite nicely!

The best film I've seen in years!

[shenj1001 · 10/10 · 5 August 2002]

The film is captivating, inspiring, and touching. The cinematography and sound track are awesome! It has an intriguing plot with good character development. The acting is superb. Hans Matheson definitely stole the screen with his character portrayal and good looks. He is the most handsome and captivating man! It's a shame that US audiences are not familiar with the movie at all.

On my top 25 most romantic list.

[drober1980 · 10/10 · 26 September 2020]

I saw this movie at the East Bay Jewish Film Festival in March. The Director of the festival commented while introducing the film that a) it was one of the best movies he had ever seen (which, you always say to yourself OK, prove it) and b) that unfortunately the movie company that made it, went bankrupt, so he had gotten extremely lucky and found the movie in a European used DVD movie bin. So, don't go looking for it on your favorite streaming service or library. You won't find it. That said, when the movie finished, I just sat there. I realized, as had everyone that had seen it in my row, that we had seen one hell of a movie. Not only a great love story, but wonderful music. You can listen to some of the music on YouTube, but if you are lucky enough to find it somewhere, don't miss it. Forget what some people have said, Oh..............its not in Czech or Italian, doesn't matter. 10/10 for me

The best Italian movie on love and music

[eziovantaggiato · 10/10 · 7 June 2018]

I consider it one of the best movies in the history of Italian cinema. The book is very beautiful and the Director Ricky Tognazzi as been able to trasform the book in a masterpiece of cinema. You can feel love beetwen the man and the woman, and beetween friends and brothers, you can feel love for music. It's very dramatic and intense. Hans Matheson is the best actor, but Melanie Thierry is so a loving woman. All actors are very clever. It's a film that moves people towards love. Love is the centre of existence. This film is for all lovers.

Beware of the sentimental mush!

[eroka · 9 August 2000]

Saw this at the Jerusalem Film Festival 2000, and this was the worst European movie I saw this year. It has a ridiculous plot, silly twists, English actors who portray in English characters that would speak Czech and German shot somewhere in the Czech Republic. The only time someone speaks the language they should is when a German soldier is shouting "get away from here!"... Has subtle yet very strange gay-erotic undertones - and that is between two characters that end up being brothers! - very uninspiring acting and very badly written characters. Some actors do not look their character's age and if you really try and create the geneology of this broken family - you would come to some very strange conclusions (I refer you to the fact that Jeno's mother has a second child when he is about 20 yet she looks not a day over 25, Sophie looks like 13 years old but married to a guy over 40 and Jeno meets her when he is about 18, Costanza was born in a concentration camp (?!) and in 1974 looks like 21 instead of over 30 and so on). This is an example of what happens when good talents try to create a film that would sell "internationally", i.e. will be sold under the American distribution system. You get a horrible muddled plot spoken i the wrong language and shot in the best/worst way Italian manure can be shot in. It is artistically for the ignorant who won't even notice that the Cannon Inverso is not truly an inversed canon.. Now how dumn is that?! Avoid unless you want to see beautiful shooting locations. The music is OK but gets the standard not-more-than-2-minutes-a-piece-please attitude. A shame to the amazing legacy of Italian film making.

Good from start to finish.

[jerryjou · 10/10 · 12 November 2001]

This was a tightly directed movie keeping the storyline in tact through the whole story. Characters couldn't have been better. The locations were interesting. In all, one of the best movies of the year, if not the best.

Quite nice!

[Marlow-85 · 9/10 · 27 June 2000]

It was a really good movie, it would have been amazing if it hadn't been for the ending. I think it was resolved way too easily and simply. Everything was really good, but unfortunately they didn't know when to make it come to an end.

My compliments to the actors, they did a really good job. If you still haven't seen this movie, take a chance to do so, you can't miss it!

Beautifully written

[historygurl · 10/10 · 28 March 2024]

I have seen this movie for the third time just now. It is the most beautiful film I have ever seen. It's so joyous, real, emotional, romantic. It's people being people, falling in love, playing their music, laughing. I will never forget it, and it is now my favorite movie. I would recommend it to anyone I know! I love the end, which did not leave me unsatisfied at all! The actors did a wonderful job conveying their characters. While watching it, I forget that it is a movie and I am not really there! The score is gorgeous, I will never get over this movie. Am now eager to read the book! Fantastic film.

Life, music, love, and tragedy... Just superb!!!!!

[ave_cesar2 · 10/10 · 4 January 2012]

Life, music, love, and tragedy: four elements beautifully linked together in this Tognazzi's great Italian cinema jewel. Two musicians; a superb romance destroyed by the Nazis in its culminating happiness; a vague memory sprung by the notes of a violin's music piece; an astounding film, and a delightful score by Ennio Morricone which illustrates a love story between a violinist (Jeno) and a pianist (Sophie), both stigmatized by their Jewish origins.The first time I saw this film at Rome I was broken to tears... and every time I see it I can't fight with all the deep emotions and feelings this visual jewel provokes on me. I always finish crying, despite the hundred times I've seen it. The original story by Paolo Maurensig set in Italy here is placed during the nazi regime and the '68 Praga Spring, and I think that Tognazzi's choice is just accurate: it gives a historical, hence global, dimension to a tragedy based in endless love. How superb characterizations those of Thierry and Matheson, according to me superior to those of Winslet and DiCaprio in "Titanic"...!!! "Canone Inverso" demonstrates that you don't need to sink billionaire ships nor use info graphic (and expensive) effects to make a great, unforgettable film: only good actors, good story, good direction and good music are needed. If you're gonna do something, do it with all the passion of your soul, because life goes, and suddenly you could see all things gone away... life itself. Enjoy every second, love as if you would never do it again, live with intensity... I mean, make love to life at every moment. These are the inner messages of the film, treated in an elegant (European) way, without any Hollywoodean artificial taste. This is "ars gratia artis" cinema, and you will never forget it!!!!! When showing this movie to my university students at film clubs or school movies festivals, I've always made an "experiment": I ask them to close their eyes and listen the "Concerto Interrotto" end title music after seeing the entire movie. No one can stop the tears!!!!! That's the power of this Morricone's soundtrack: this is not Hollywood adagio sound (thank God!!!!), but an allegro con fuoco that only talks about joy, passion and contained pleasure... Despite the "Twilight" (awful!!!!) saga that has contaminated their young, tender souls, my pupils fall in love with Sophie and Jeno; because these characters are not superstupidheroes, nor they have strange (idiot) powers: they're just two boys that want to love, to have a chance to live; they're two young talents with all against them, only with their music as a sword and their love as a guide. They're so fragile, so passionate, so defenseless... so human. This is my film number one, and its soundtrack my favorite one. If I had to go to the moon in order to scape the crazy 2012 "world's end" circus, I would take with me this movie. Give yourselves the pleasure to admire it, and you'll know why. After seeing it, and when you'll make something with passion, 'cause you like to do it, you will say like me: "stiamo faccendo l'amore"!!!!!!!!

Excellent balance of dramatic and poetic tones. Touching sound track.

[rer.international · 10/10 · 3 April 2000]

I expected to see a simple plotted movie based just on a romantic love story. I was wrong. Beautiful plot, extremely well balanced between drama, poetry, musical vibrations, imagery and strong ecstatic emotions. My eyes, my ears, my skin were completely raped from the beginning to the end. The movie also discloses unusual parental relations teaching some lessons. I was pretty moved by the unlettered stepfather going beyond his poor origins and believes and granting his son the way to reach his dreams. My compliments to all: play writers, director, actors and music composers (included Debussy :-)). They have done an excellent work!