Plot: What’s it about?
– Ludwig Von Beethoven (Gary Oldman) has just died, leaving behind a legacy of musical genius. His material possessions were left to one person, named only as his immortal beloved. In charge of his estate is Anton Schindler (Jeroen Crabbe), who plans to execute the will exactly as Beethoven had requested. Schindler had immense respect for Beethoven as both a composer and a man, so he wants to carry out his final wishes to the letter. But the identity of this immortal beloved is unknown, so Schindler visits the women he knew to be companions of the musician, to try to uncover the truth. As he speaks to the women who could be the immortal beloved, he hears memories of Beethoven, stories of his life. He listens and discovers more about the man than he ever imagined, but will it help him find the immortal beloved?
I think Immortal Beloved is a tough sell to most folks, a movie about classical music, period piece, this almost seems to be a lock to be slow and tedious. But not all period dramas are in fact dull and tedious, though to me, Immortal Beloved comes close to that classification. I assume we all know that historical fact is tossed out the window here, so don’t expect a fact based biography, as that isn’t what this is. A lot of gaps are filled in for dramatic effect, with information that is just speculated on or guessed at, which can take some out of the experience. Immortal Beloved is a film driven by passion, passion for Beethoven’s music and that music is the central core of this picture, without question. Gary Oldman’s performance is beyond superb and the supporting cast is excellent, but its the music that makes it all come together. This wasn’t a movie that I found myself engaged with, but Immortal Beloved is a well crafted period drama that is well worth a rental.
Video: How does it look?
– Immortal Beloved is presented in 2.40:1 anamorphic widescreen. The fate of catalog titles in high definition has been a mixed bag, but this one looks excellent. The movie’s lush visuals are able to shine here, with bright colors and impressive image depth. The detail level is high, perhaps not as crystal clear as more recent tiles, but still crisp and the visuals show much more depth than before. As I said before, the colors look incredible and the film’s reds and greens stand out as rich and bold, while black levels never fail to deliver. The print looks great too, no signs of wear and no real softness to speak of. Immortal Beloved looks fantastic here, so kudos to Sony on this one.
Audio: How does it sound?
This is a movie about music, so of course, the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 option is an active, immersive soundtrack. The music takes the center stage here, with intense presence that really lets the music unleash its power. The surround presence is immersive and powerful, you don’t just hear the music here, you also feel it. But not just the music sounds good, as other scenes have surround presence also and the film’s world has ample atmosphere. Not to be left out, the vocals are clear and never hard to understand. This disc also includes a French language track, as well as subtitles in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Arabic.
Supplements: What are the extras?
All of the extras from the standard release are here, so no worries on that front. Bernard Rose offers his director’s comments, but about halfway through the movie, you won’t hear much. At least he starts off well, with a lot of interesting information about the production, as well as his own passion for Beethoven and his music. If you can, just listen to the first hour or so, then turn it off to avoid the long silent stretches that follow. Beloved Beethoven runs about half an hour, most of which is spent on the cast, but there are looks at the costumes and locations as well. Not as in depth as I might like, but it is a solid piece. The last of the extras is a brief (six minutes or so) promotional featurette.
