It's long, to the point of long-winding. I actually watched it for two-days with much effort. In spite of the corny flash-back narrative technique, which appeared to be the favorite during the year 1998, it garnered a considerable number of awards, including a Golden Globe for Original Score. The story, and much of what the movie has to say is original, and some "snatches" are actually beautiful, but its just so reminiscent of Titanic, which I'm not sure whether that's good or bad. And as the movie is long, more like watching Ben-Hur, certain problems with tightness caused it to drag.
Clarence Williams III's portrayal of Jelly Roll Morton, though, for me was best performance in the film, and the Piano Duel, its highlight. I felt I have never heard of what the piano can do as an instrument, until I heard it in this film, in this particular part (which I have played back a couple of times). The cigarette lighting on the heated piano strings which might sound cheesy is no where near that description, it was just plain unbelievable. Definitely the best reason for anyone to watch the movie. The rest after that was just plain excruciating mush, and one can't help but be impatient to know what the ending will be.
No comments:
Post a Comment