Change Your Image
mcgreig
Reviews
Beethoven (2005)
Disappointing
I expected this to be really good due to the high rating given it by others. However, both my wife and I found this very disappointing. We felt the mix of drama and documentary didn't work very well. The drama was rarely believable and was so long-winded that it left very little time to discuss the music. How many times, and for how long do we need to see Beethoven looking grumpy or shouting? I also never found Paul Rhys believable. I've seen other Charles Hazelwood documentaries and they seemed to be much more informative. At the end, I felt that I had learnt very little.
Immortal Beloved may have been inaccurate, but it seemed to communicate the character and passion of Beethoven much better.
Joan of Arc (1999)
Dustin Hoffman saves the day
If your a teen grrrl, you'll love this film. Those of us older, less filled with teen angst and with knowledge of the Joan of Arc story will find most of the film cliched and irritating.
If you make it through the first 2/3 of the film, you'll find Dustin Hoffman's character adds some decent, thoughtful insights into her story. This alone elevates the film from appalling to OK.