The movie was a cinematic biography of Niccolo Paganini, an Italian composer of the 19th century. The film centers on an excerpt from his life, concerning the man’s rise to fame, life in London, and the gradual decline of his career. At the beginning of the movie, the audience is informed that the main character has made a contract with the devil. His reckless behavior and womanizing nature bring misfortune to him and those around him, but the budding relationship the man has with the story’s love interest helps him reflect on his sins. One of the notable details about the production is its fantastical nature, and the steep exaggeration it uses to portray some of its characters. The motifs of supernatural powers and divine intervention are established early on and assist in contextualizing the behaviors and actions of the main character. The main point of the story is understandable if one were to suspend their disbelief. The setting of the movie changed throughout its runtime, but the majority of the film is set in London. Its misty streets and rowdy crowds amplify the feelings of both business and mystique.
The central point of the movie was a moral exploration of the main character.
Paganini was a talented artist, a prodigy, a genius that gave away his soul in exchange for recognition. The audience gets to see the consequences of his actions, the gritty, immoral life the man leads, the vices he indulges in daily. The film’s presentation makes the watcher question whether his existence is tainted by the devil’s influence, or is it just that the man was like this from the start. Various characters interact with him, play off of his nature, and bring a point of comparison to the protagonist. I think that the ultimate goal of the movie was to show the tragic existence of a genius drowning in worldly desires and sin, as well as his gradual redemption. Although the movie does not portray the main character in a positive light, Niccolo’s genuine (but futile) attempts to put his life on track show character growth. The film ends on a sympathetic note and makes the audience ponder on the nature of goodness, free will, and morality.
In regards to characters, I think that the movie had moderate success in bringing them to life. While many of the side characters do not have a lot of screentime, their basic characteristics are displayed, and many of them appear more sympathetic than the main character. The lead, Niccolo Paganini was largely unlikeable at the beginning of the movie, treating the ones around him with disregard. He plays around, spending all of his time in the casino and wasting the money he got from the concerts. Niccolo has a son but barely spends any time with him. Stuck in a perpetual cycle of drugs, alcohol, gambling, and women, Paganini is a repulsive individual at first. His attitude shift in a positive manner after meeting Charlotte, a young girl he fell for. Trying to impress her, he plays the violin and speaks about his passion for music. After getting to know the lady, Paganini seems to behave less rashly and tries his best to appear courteous. The other central character of the story is Urbani, a devil-like gentleman that forges a contract with the main character. Urbani is polite and punctual, looking after the violinist and attempting to keep his life on track despite the man’s insistent attempts at ruining his own life. Despite being a mysterious and, probably, dangerous figure, the man does bring Paganini a lot of benefit by keeping him on track. At least at first. Seeming to dislike Charlotte, at first sight, Urbani first tries to buy her favor towards Paganini, and after that fails, to separate the two altogether. His scheming, forceful, and manipulative nature shines best at that moment, with the audience being witness to his diabolical plan of tearing the two apart. These two characters have received the most development over the course of the story, and I think that their actions were interesting to witness. Charlotte, the love interest in the question, is also one of the more thought-out characters, with understandable motivations and ambitions. Living in the care of her impresario father, the woman is especially talented at singing. Being a young but courageous woman, Charlotte does not initially show interest in the famous composer’s charms. As the movie goes on, however, Charlotte seems to notice a more human side to his character and admire his musical talent. The lead’s budding romance is cut short when Urbani’s scheme falsely accuses Paganini of raping her. Over time, Charlotte moves on, building her own independent and successful career, as well as finding another love.
The main characters of the movie, were, overall, well-portrayed, the emotions were shown through both dialogue and acting.
The storytelling of the film was rather straightforward, with a few jump-cuts to signify the passage of time. The movie has briefly shown the main lead’s childhood, afterward jumping straight to his adulthood. His transitions between different locations were quick, with not much time being spent on moving from place to place. Following a linear narrative structure, the piece was able to convey its plot understandably. In regards to the pace, I think that some parts could be improved. Suspenseful moments evoked the right emotions, but their outcome was too predictable and by-the-book. Many of the impactful moments have not managed to build enough tension to fully pay off.
The cinematography was one of the aspects the movie was alright in. Some of the shots were creative or symbolic, as the image of the devil appeared behind Paganini at one of the later concerts. More often than not, the shots were used to straightforwardly deliver information, with scares attempts at conveying a deeper message. Lighting was mostly sufficient, but not overly impressive. Only twice throughout the movie has it felt interesting or special, during Paganini’s arrival in London and his death? In some places, like the prison and the bar, and large crowds, it was difficult to distinguish the characters from their surroundings. Having only a single action scene, the movie has not managed to present it well. The scene is scarcely lit, and the quick cuts do not allow the audience to follow the actions on the screen. The organization ends up looking confusing as a result.
The sets varied in their quality and realistic properties. The port, in the beginning, was fake, and its modeled parts were painfully evident. London’s color pallet was rather bland, with a lot of muted, white colors, which felt unnatural. The fog filling the streets especially looked like a large exaggeration of reality. Although I admit that these might have been deliberate stylistic choices, I find them to be out of place. The houses and buildings are nice to look at, rich and extravagant, with many of them being well-decorated. The costumes of the characters fared a lot better in my opinion. With many of them being very aesthetically pleasing, the use of capes, cloaks, hats, and jackets was appropriate to the setting and fit many of the characters. The dresses of female characters looked expressive and varied, and the accessories many of them used further enhanced the image.
I cannot say that I am proficient in understanding editing techniques and noticing mistakes in cut and shot composition. I felt the movie has done a sufficient job and setting a consistent pace and utilizing scene transitions. Although I have been able to notice some inconsistencies between the shots, they were not severe. Some of the shots were cut, some ended with a fade-out, but overall, I would say that they are not egregious.
As mentioned before, the pace of the movie was okay, with some of the scenes being in serious need of a reworking. While most of the shots and events were of an appropriate length, one or two-stage performances lingered on for too long, effectively killing the sense of tension and wonder.
Most of the dialogue sounded understandable and compelling. Were was not a lot of meaningless chatter, and conversations served well to propel the plot. The dialogue fits the tone of the movie and its cast, with actors showing the crucial parts of their character primarily through talking. Although, I do feel that the development between the main character and Charlotte needed more time, as their relationship required further investment to feel justified.
The music score was one of the outstanding qualities of the movie. With multiple full performances from both the main character and Charlotte, compositions have added much-needed substance to the movie. Their inclusion in the early parts of the movie is one of the redeeming factors for how badly the lead has behaved in the beginning. The score outside of concerts or performances was not very remarkable, but, like many things in this movie, served its purpose. The two notable times of musical score being effectively used were when debt collectors came to take John Watson’s property and during Paganini’s death. The use of classical music in these sections was both touching and beautiful.