Amadeus (1984)

The life, success and troubles of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as told by Antonio Salieri, the contemporaneous composer who was insanely jealous of Mozart's talent and claimed to have murdered him.

Director:

Milos Forman

Writers:

Peter Shaffer (original stage play), Peter Shaffer (original screenplay)

Stars:

F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Elizabeth Berridge

Top Rated Movies #83 | Won 8 Oscars. Another 33 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
F. Murray Abraham	...	Antonio Salieri
Tom Hulce	...	Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Elizabeth Berridge	...	Constanze Mozart
Roy Dotrice	...	Leopold Mozart
Simon Callow	...	Emanuel Schikaneder
Christine Ebersole	...	Katerina Cavalieri
Jeffrey Jones	...	Emperor Joseph II
Charles Kay	...	Count Orsini-Rosenberg
Kenneth McMillan	...	Michael Schlumberg (2002 Director's Cut)
Kenny Baker	...	Parody Commendatore
Lisbeth Bartlett	...	Papagena (as Lisabeth Bartlett)
Barbara Bryne	...	Frau Weber
Martin Cavina	...	Young Salieri (as Martin Cavani)
Roderick Cook	...	Count Von Strack
Milan Demjanenko	...	Karl Mozart

Storyline

Antonio Salieri believes that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's music is divine and miraculous. He wishes he was himself as good a musician as Mozart so that he can praise the Lord through composing. He began his career as a devout man who believes his success and talent as a composer are God's rewards for his piety. He's also content as the respected, financially well-off, court composer of Austrian Emperor Joseph II. But he's shocked to learn that Mozart is such a vulgar creature, and can't understand why God favored Mozart to be his instrument. Salieri's envy has made him an enemy of God whose greatness was evident in Mozart. He is ready to take revenge against God and Mozart for his own musical mediocrity.

---

Plot Keywords:

opera | composer | classical composer | 1800s | first person narration | 

---

Taglines:

Everything you've heard is true.

---

Genres:

Biography | Drama | History | Music

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for brief nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA France Czechoslovakia Italy

Language:

English Italian Latin German

Release Date:

19 September 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amadeus: The Director's Cut

Filming Locations:

Tyl Theatre, Plzen, Czech Republic

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$505,276, 23 September 1984

Gross USA:

$51,973,029

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$52,066,791

Company Credits

Production Co:

AMLF, The Saul Zaentz Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

160 min 180 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby Digital (director's cut) Dolby (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39:1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Milos Forman and Peter Shaffer spent four months adapting the very stylized play into a workable script. They added characters such as the priest, maid, archbishop, and mother-in-law; Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's character was enlarged beyond Antonio Salieri's perceptions; and Salieri's monologues were reworked visually.

---

Goofs

During the comic opera, a crew member is seen when the last of the small horses pops through the side wall. The person is wearing light colored pants and is standing behind the paper wall.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Antonio Salieri: Mozart! Mozart, forgive your assassin! I confess, I killed you...

---

Crazy Credits

"Amadeus" was originally a National Theater Production in London, then produced in America by The Shubert Organization, Elizabeth I. McCann/Nelle Nugent and Roger Berlind.

---

Alternate Versions

The Orion Pictures logo, which was seen at the beginning of the film when it was first released theatrically, was not shown when the film played on both cable and commercial television, and is not seen on the VHS or DVD releases.

---

Connections

Spoofed in Freakazoid!: Normadeus (1997)

---

Soundtracks

Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), K620/Act I: Overture
(uncredited)
Written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

User Reviews

A triumph of genius

"Amadeus", while historically inaccurate in numerous ways, is a brilliant film. Its central character is not a man but an attribute of man at his most remarkable: genius. Mozart's genius was at the highest level, on par with Shakespeare, Michelangelo and Balanchine. Forman knew this when he undertook translating Peter Shaffer's play. Although most of the acting is on a very high plane, the actors themselves are not top tier, not should they be. A famous, easily recognizable actor would have detracted from the central thesis that genius is greater than the one on whom it has been entrusted. Mozart was, of course, deeper than the character shown in the movie, but no personal life could equal the extent and depth of the musical genius that flowed from this little man. The letters he sent to his father show a remarkable sensitivity and depth of understanding. However, they are not paradigms of literary greatness. The immense contribution of W. A. Mozart lay in some of the most sublime music ever written. Fortunately, the film gave us snippets of some of the real gems in the Mozart canon: the great C Minor Mass, the Requiem and "Don Giovanni". Forman realized that no human being will ever be great enough or have the background to pen such masterpieces without intervention from elsewhere. This is certainly true of Shakespeare as well. So what we have here, ultimately, is a celebration of genius, that great gift to mankind that nearly always proves to be too much for the person who is chosen to manifest it to the rest of us. Many thanks to Milos Forman for the wisdom to keep out of the way and allow genius to shine through. In that sense, "Amadeus" is an exercise in humility. Few films come across as blessings for those who experience them. "Amadeus" is one such film.