Of Passion, Music and Death

The Red Violin (1998) – A violin travels the world over centuries,
growing to legendary status. Everyone who comes in contact with it
has their life changed. Who will be the next owner of the Red
Violin?

Directed
by François Girard                          Starring – Samuel L. Jackson, Sandra Oh

Why
I Liked It – Interesting storytelling and beautiful visually.

The
legendary Red Violin, thought to have been lost years before, has
resurfaced. Interest in the high end music world is intense. It was
the final violin made by an equally legendary instrument maker. No
one knows the great secret it contains, but it is attracted to people
and events (or does it attract them to itself?). No one who plays it
is left unchanged.

The
story weaves the current excitement over the instruments identity and
sale, with the stories of those who owned it in the years since its
creation. Years spent as the instrument of orphan boys at a
monastery school leads to a great player. There is an attempted
murder of the violin and it is nearly burned during the Cultural
Revolution in China.

When I filled in the “Starring” listing above I laughed.  The star of this movie is the violin and the music it creates.  Most of the actors are unknown to American audiences.  The two listed are the ones most likely recognized.  Jackson has an important role, Oh has a small one.  It is Jackson’s Charles Morritz that first suspect what is coming up for sale.  His search for the evidence is the connecting sinew of the story. With the many story lines, the actors are the backdrop to the life of the instrument itself.  A convoluted and mysterious life.

What
stood out for me, beyond the outstanding cast’s work, is the great
storytelling, and the demonstration of the many artistic
possibilities of the movies. This is visually brilliant, interesting
and challenging. The story moves smoothly from present to past. The
introduction of new players in the race to possess the violin today
weave between the stories of those who have gone before. In a time when movies are dominated by stories that explode, it is a wonderful reminder of what else can be done.

 Is the Red
Violin a blessing or a curse? The passion and pain of its creator
lives on in the instrument itself.

“The
Red Violin” was both a movie I enjoyed and one that earned my
respect.

Rating
– **** Recommended