Immortal Beloved

1994
15
2h 1m

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

27K

YOUR RATING

Home Video Trailer from Columbia Pictures

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99+ Photos

Costume Drama Dark Romance Docudrama Period Drama Psychological Drama Tragedy Tragic Romance Biography Drama Music

A biopic exploring Beethoven's tumultuous life, focusing on his romantic pursuits. The film investigates the identity of the mysterious woman to whom the composer penned a passionate love le... Read allA biopic exploring Beethoven's tumultuous life, focusing on his romantic pursuits. The film investigates the identity of the mysterious woman to whom the composer penned a passionate love letter, delving into his complex relationships.A biopic exploring Beethoven's tumultuous life, focusing on his romantic pursuits. The film investigates the identity of the mysterious woman to whom the composer penned a passionate love letter, delving into his complex relationships.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

27K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 nomination total

Videos1

Trailer 2:43

Immortal Beloved

Photos246

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Gary Oldman actually played all of the Beethoven pieces he performed in the film. A different musician performed in the official soundtrack. When Oldman learned he would be playing the lead role, he spent six weeks practicing on a Steinway piano for six hours a day in his hotel, and completely immersed himself in the music as his research for the character. In an interview with the South Bank show in 1997, Oldman quoted an article that said "he mimes very well" in the film. He then laughed and said "I'm playing it! I can play that!"

Goofs
At his first public recital, Ludwig was eight years-old (some sources report seven) and his father announced him as six, yet the movie conveys, via voiceover, that Ludwig was "12 and his father told the court he was nine".

Quotes
Ludwig van Beethoven: [in reference to "Violin Sonata in A Major, Op. 47" - "Kreutzer"...] Do you like it?
Anton Felix Schindler: Shh!
Ludwig van Beethoven: I cannot hear them, but I know they are making a hash of it. What do you think? Music is... a dreadful thing. What is it? I don't understand it. What does it mean?
Anton Felix Schindler: It - it exalts the soul.
Ludwig van Beethoven: Utter nonsense. If you hear a marching band, is your soul exalted? No, you march. If you hear a waltz, you dance. If you hear a mass, you take communion. It is the power of music to carry one directly into the mental state of the composer. The listener has no choice. It is like hypnotism. So, now... What was in my mind when I wrote this? Hmm? A man is trying to reach his lover. His carriage has broken down in the rain. The wheels stuck in the mud. She will only wait so long. This... is the sound of his agitation. "This is how it is... ," the music is saying. "Not how you are used to being. Not how you are used to thinking. But like this."

Connections
Featured in Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: Disclosure/Drop Zone/Nell/The Last Buffalo/Into the Deep/Immortal Beloved (1994)

Soundtracks
Missa Solemnis in D Major, Op. 123
Written by Ludwig van Beethoven
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Georg Solti (as Sir Georg Solti)
Performed by Renée Fleming soprano - Ann Murray alto - Vinson Cole tenor - Bryn Terfel bass with London Voices
Chorus master: Terry Edwards

User reviews150

Featured review

9/10

Underrated masterpiece

IMMORTAL BELOVED

Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Panavision)

Sound formats: Dolby Digital / SDDS-8

Following Beethoven's death, his closest friend (Jeroen Krabbé) goes in search of the composer's sole heir, an unnamed woman described as his 'immortal beloved' in a letter which betrays their secret love affair.

Comparisons with AMADEUS (1984) are inevitable, but Bernard Rose's sumptuous biopic is in a veritable league of its own. The director's episodic screenplay relays events in flashback, as Beethoven - played with multilayered conviction by Gary Oldman - is inspired to new heights of artistic endeavor by the three women who dominate his life (Isabella Rosselini, Valeria Golino and Johanna ter Steege), and rendered increasingly bitter by encroaching deafness. Just as tellingly, Rose's handsome film details Beethoven's stormy relationship with a favored nephew (Marco Hofschneider), who was driven to extreme rebellion by the composer's overreaching ambitions. The music is arranged with exquisite grace by Georg Solti, conducting the London Symphony Orchestra: Standout episodes include the moment when Beethoven first plays the 'Moonlight Sonata', and the breathtaking 'Ode to Joy' sequence, framed against an unhappy memory from Beethoven's youth, which culminates in a moment of supreme cinematic glory, one of the most beautiful images this reviewer has ever seen. Vivid production design by Jirí Hlupý, expansive scope photography by Peter Suschitzky; filmed on location in Prague.