A crimson stain…born

The music travels through time

Returned to a child

Remember that late 90s movie with Samuel L. Jackson playing an expert in 17th century violins? You know, the one that jumps through time, exploring the lives of various people who played a mysterious red violin?

No?

Us too. But wow - what a great movie.

We’ve just sketched out the main movements of The Red Violin, but don’t worry: there’s plenty more to unpack.

The movie begins in Montreal, where the film’s namesake is about to be auctioned off. A bunch of people fill the room…pay attention to them - most will play into the later story…but the film immediately flashes back to 17th century Italy, where a guy named Nicolo Bussotti (Carlo Cecchi) is making the violin as a gift to his unborn child. We won’t get too Spoilery, but things don’t go as planned.

The movie then jumps back and forth between the auction, Bussotti’s wife (Irene Grazioli) having her fortune told by a tarot card wielding servant (Anita Laurenzi - The Sicilian), and the violin passing through the hands of various owners: a young German boy named Kaspar (Christoph Koncz) in the 1790s, a gypsy family (who are woefully underdeveloped), a manic 19th century British Lord and musician named Frederick Pope (Jason Flemyng), and a Chinese woman (Sylvia Chang) in the 1960’s Cultural Revolution.

So…there is a lot that is great in the movie. The cast and on-location shooting is superb. And the story has a depth that is not immediately apparent (Spoilerish Big Cat tip: our take is that the fortune read to Bussotti’s wife isn’t actually hers but the fortune of the violin).

Any downside?

After almost two hours of a brilliant study in character and culture, the film suddenly morphs into a heist movie. It makes sense in its own way, but feels like it was welded on and lowers the rating by a star.

But take a look at it yourself and let us know what you think.

You can catch the Red Violin HERE.

A Strong Three Out of Five Crimson Kitties.

Like the tune? You might want to check out one of these.