Mozart

Amadeus

1. In the beginning of the movie Antonio Salieri tries to commit suicide. He doesn’t succeed in doing this and so he is taken to a psychiatric hospital. While he is staying here Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart comes to visit him. Mozart gets a lot of attention of the people and his music becomes popular and famous while Saleri’s music stays on the same level. Saleri is the composer of the Austria emperor. Then Mozart is invited to come to the palace where Saleri works. When Mozart comes in the emperor plays a melody on the piano composed by Saleri. When the emperor asks Mozart if he wants to have the music (on paper) Mozart says he already knows it. So he plays it and changes some parts to make Saleri look like a complete fool. From this point on Saleri hates Mozart. Mozart continues writing opera’s. When his father dies he shows the most depressing opera ever. His wife, Stanzi decides to leave him because he isn’t making any money and she can’t stand it. Then, on one night when Mozart is performing one of his opera’s, he is really into his music and then suddenly he falls down on the ground. Saleri, who is also watching the opera, takes him home. When Mozart wakes up he asks Saleri to help him with his music. Mozart tells him what to write and Saleri writes down the notes. Then they take a short break and Mozart and Saleri both fall a sleep. Then Stanzi comes back home and while she is arguing with Saleri Mozart dies. Stanzi is sad but Saleri couldn’t be happier. Saleri’s music isn’t successful and he blames god. He thinks god wants him to suffer this way.

2. Censorship: Court politics/ power: How higher you stand in the society, the more power you have. The emperor has lots of power; everybody does what he says. For example they cut out a piece of music in Mozart’s opera because they think it may upset the emperor. But when he sees it he thinks it’s ridiculous and they don’t know how fast the music is back in again. Jealousy: Saleri is jealous because God gave the talent of writing wonderful music to Mozart and not to him. He is so jealous he wants to kill Mozart. But Mozart dies before he can even try to kill him. Talent: Mozart has talent. He could write music like no one else could. He showed people that there was more in music then just a few notes. He was very young when he wrote his first piece of music. Saleri can’t believe why God gave just a great talent to a boy like Mozart. Popular & high culture: Death: When Mozart dies everybody is very sad, which is logical because they lost a great musician and friend. Death has a lot of influence in the movie; when Mozart’s father dies his way of composing music suddenly changes. Money: Mozart makes music not only because he likes it but because it is his job, his way of making money. His wife, Stanzi, tells him to ask money for everything and not to just write music for free. She leaves him because he has no money, money is really important in that time. Relationships/ family: Mozart has a good relation with his father; he taught Mozart how to play music. But when his father stays with Mozart and Stanzi the relationship starts to dilute. His father is annoying Stanzi and so he goes back to his own country. A few weeks later he dies. Remorse: Saleri has no guilt what so ever that Mozart died. It’s not his fault because he didn’t do anything but he wished him death. God: In that time God was very important and Saleri thinks God wants to punish him by letting his music suck.

3. Mozart’s music isn’t really my favorite, it’s to long-winded and the voices are very low or very high. But I think the movie gives a good view of how things were going back in that time. The way the movie is told (by the ‘older’ Saleri) is not really complicated. I think it’s good.