Film reviews
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Mozart's Sister (Film)
Rating: PG
Running Time: 115
Country: France
Director: René Féret
Cast: Marc Barbé , David Moreau , Marie Féret , Delphine Chuillot
Distributor: Rialto
Release Date: July 07, 2011
Film Worth: $17.50
FILMINK rates movies out of $20 - the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worthUnderstated and intimate, this ends up a lushly filmed, insightful, and moving account of a woman overlooked in history.
"They say you're a genius, but you're an idiot," so says Marie-Anna (Marie Feret), nicknamed Nannerl by the Mozart family, to her puckish younger brother, Wolfgang (David Moreau). Driven by their demanding father, Leopold (Marc Barbe), to succeed as musical prodigies, travelling around Europe to perform, music is literally everything for the young siblings. But as Nannerl is pushed aside in favour of her brother, with her gender seen as a hindrance to any further career as a composer, she considers a life away from the controlling Leopold.
A cracked carriage axle and a forced stay at a convent offer tantalising possibilities. There Nannerl meets Louise De France (Lisa Feret), and becomes confidante to the young daughter of King Louis XV, through her gaining an introduction to Le Dauphin (Clovis Fouin), the future monarch. With Leopold preventing her from sharing in her brother's musical instruction, as well as insisting that the violin is a masculine instrument and so forbidden to her, Nannerl is excited at the prospect of gaining her own patron, as well as a possible lover.
Director Rene Feret presents an understated and intimate portrayal of the Mozart children's struggle to live up to their father's ambition. While the parents and offspring share a strong love for one another, Nannerl chafes at the restrictions placed upon her because of her gender. Her raised hopes of an association with the future king are strained when the heir to the throne becomes unable to distinguish between court intrigue and Nannerl's sincerity, setting in motion a tragic denouement. Marie Feret, daughter of director Rene, perfectly captures the quiet desperation of Nannerl, just on the cusp of rebellion and creative fulfillment, but with the tide of history against her. Shot in the halls of Versailles itself, Mozart's Daughter is a bittersweet triumph.
