Carlo Broschi, known as Farinelli, was one of the most notable opera singers of his time, the golden age of baroque opera. He became the highest paid artist in the world. This film explores his life, his artistic career, the difficult relationship he maintained with the composers of the operas he sang (particularly Handel) and his problematic relationship with his brother, the composer Ricardo Broschi.
Well, what can we say? The film is good, but there are problems here. It has a good story, full of drama and moral and ethical issues of various kinds, but it is not captivating nor does it tie us to the film, and much of what is told is invention. For us today, the simple idea of men being castrated to sing in choirs and operas is controversial and the film explores this by showing the sexual difficulties of the protagonist, who shares his lovers with his manly brother. There are still dubious moments: who was that man who, early in the film, committed suicide naked? How, when and by whom was young Carlo castrated (the film suggests a theory but honestly I felt that even the script did not give it credit)?
The actors do a satisfactory job, but far from brilliant. Stefano Dionisi is a convincing Farinelli and had a good relationship with Enrico Lo Verso, who gave life to his brother Ricardo. The fights between them are some of the most dramatic and intense scenes in the film. Jereon Knabbe also shone like Handel, and I enjoyed hearing him speak the various languages that the great composer probably dominated (Italian, French, English, German).
Technically, the film satisfies. It is visually magnificent thanks to the pompous and exaggerated Baroque style. The sets and costumes are historically rigorous and pleasant to look at. The soundtrack is loaded with very famous Baroque tunes like "Lascia ch'io Pianga", from Handel's opera "Rinaldo" and many others, and that was a safe and sure bet by Gerard Corbiau. A single mistake: in more than a moment, the bad synchrony of sound and video made it evident that the songs were not from the main character but from a recording.
Well, what can we say? The film is good, but there are problems here. It has a good story, full of drama and moral and ethical issues of various kinds, but it is not captivating nor does it tie us to the film, and much of what is told is invention. For us today, the simple idea of men being castrated to sing in choirs and operas is controversial and the film explores this by showing the sexual difficulties of the protagonist, who shares his lovers with his manly brother. There are still dubious moments: who was that man who, early in the film, committed suicide naked? How, when and by whom was young Carlo castrated (the film suggests a theory but honestly I felt that even the script did not give it credit)?
The actors do a satisfactory job, but far from brilliant. Stefano Dionisi is a convincing Farinelli and had a good relationship with Enrico Lo Verso, who gave life to his brother Ricardo. The fights between them are some of the most dramatic and intense scenes in the film. Jereon Knabbe also shone like Handel, and I enjoyed hearing him speak the various languages that the great composer probably dominated (Italian, French, English, German).
Technically, the film satisfies. It is visually magnificent thanks to the pompous and exaggerated Baroque style. The sets and costumes are historically rigorous and pleasant to look at. The soundtrack is loaded with very famous Baroque tunes like "Lascia ch'io Pianga", from Handel's opera "Rinaldo" and many others, and that was a safe and sure bet by Gerard Corbiau. A single mistake: in more than a moment, the bad synchrony of sound and video made it evident that the songs were not from the main character but from a recording.