The Red Violin
Short description
The Red Violin follows a single instrument across three centuries. In 1681 Cremona, the violin maker Nicolo Bussotti finishes the finest violin he has ever built, intending it for the child his wife is carrying. Her death in childbirth changes the meaning of the work, and the varnish he gives the instrument leaves it with its unusual red colour. From there the film traces the violin through a series of owners in different countries, each of whom is touched by the beauty it makes and by the misfortune that seems to travel with it. In the present day, a Montreal auction brings the instrument back into view, and appraiser Charles Morritz examines its history while a group of collectors competes to possess it.
François Girard directed and wrote the screenplay with Don McKellar. The Red Violin is the first of the four features Girard has directed, ahead of Silk, Boychoir and The Song of Names, and it was produced by Niv Fichman. Samuel L. Jackson plays Morritz, heading a cast of 58 that also includes Carlo Cecchi as Bussotti and Irene Grazioli as Anna. The film had a budget of 18 million US dollars and took about 9 million worldwide.
On IMDb it holds 7.6/10 from 36,000 votes, while on TMDB it has 7.3/10 from 461 votes. A critics' rating of 7.3/10 from 41 reviews places it close to the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- Joshua Bell performs the music for this film, composed by John Corigliano. Based on this music, Corigliano later wrote a violin concerto specifically for Bell.
- The music performed by the gypsies on screen is based on genuinely old Gypsy melodies.
- At the time of filming, Christoph Koncz (who played Kaspar) was only nine years old. He is a conductor of Austro-Hungarian origin who performs internationally with renowned orchestras.
- Almost all of the name and surname combinations heard in the film are fictional, but constructed from the names and surnames of famous people of the corresponding era.
- The tarot card deck used by Anita Laurenci’s character was created specifically for the film.
- Joshua Bell served as a hand double for the violinists. When a close-up of an actor who didn't actually play the violin was required, it was Bell standing behind the actor, and it was his hand that was visible on the violin's fingerboard. According to Bell, director François Girard scolded him several times for 'overplaying'.
- The red violin owes its color to a varnish mixed with human blood. It is believed that the “Red Mendelssohn,” Antonio Stradivari’s (1596-1684) violin, which served as a source of inspiration for the film’s scriptwriters, was coated with a varnish mixed with blood, although in reality it was not blood, but Burgundy wine.
- The scene with Jason Fleming’s character and the letter in the bathtub references the famous painting “The Death of Marat” (1793) by Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825).
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
