Ennio Morricone - Der Maestro

Sometimes 2.5 hours is just not enough. Its a story over 60 years with a great artist that formed so much. Its the 60's Its the 70's and Its dedication to life to music and when He finally get his well derserved Oscar you will understand.

From the director of Cinema Paradiso comes an earnest, endearing & heartfelt tribute to one of the most popular, prolific & greatest film composers to have ever lived and whose contribution to film scores has been so immense, influential & groundbreaking that cinema will forever be indebted to him. An illuminating & well-rounded documentary, Ennio chronicles & celebrates the life & legacy of Ennio "The Maestro" Morricone.

Written & directed by Giuseppe Tornatore (The Legend of 1900 & Malèna), the film narrates the Italian composer's life story from his quiet & humble beginnings to garnering international fame & fan following with his distinguished film scores. Tornatore utilises interviews, recordings & film clips to paint a fascinating portrait of the legend whose body of work encompassed almost all styles and left an indelible mark on film, music & pop culture.

While the early years accounts are interesting, this documentary comes alive once his work on Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars comes forth. But with an oeuvre as extensive as Morricone's, even 156 mins runtime isn't enough to cover everything however it provides an insight into how his genius mind worked. And though Morricone never rated his scores for westerns as highly as the rest of the world did, he does acknowledge that he often isn't the best judge of his own music.

Overall, Ennio: The Maestro charts the unparalleled career of the legendary film composer with gripping flair but still feels rushed & uneven in its pacing as many events we would've liked seeing explored in detail are skimmed through. Nevertheless, the interest in the picture is never lost and what's included in this 2½ hour documentary is crafted with love & honesty. Serving as a strong testimony to the Maestro's profound impact which can still be felt in more art forms than one, Ennio is a definite recommend.

First of all I love Ennio's works and maybe I can have a little bias regarding this movie but it was fantastic, a very well made documentary about one of the most influential figures in the music world over the last 70 years. It was well crafted by director Giuseppe Tornatore, who had worked several times with Ennio and there are a lot of guests talking about what Ennio means to them. Clearly it's a documentary and not everybody likes it as a genre but if you are into cinema and scores this is a must watch. Great job!

This film is perfect: there are all the Morricone's genius and all his love for Music. This film is great in taking the spectator inside his composition and his works with the presence of several sequences of the films with Morricone's soundtracks.

Some moments and some sequences are heartbreaking for whom loves cinema.

What else? You have to watch it. And all it could be possibile thanks to the huge work made by Tornatore. Thanks for this.

A beautiful tribute, this by Tornatore, to an authentic genius whose value will be understood and metabolized more and more over the years, and not only with regard to film music. On the other hand Morricone was not only the author of some of the most famous soundtracks of the second half of the twentieth century, but also of numerous musical pieces brought to success in the 60s and 70s, as well as symphonies and pieces of contemporary music. (the first, true love of his musical career). Tornatore, who had the privilege of working with him and interviewed him here shortly before he left us, thus manages to show a portrait that for an enthusiast represents a sort of immersion in the history of cinema itself, and becomes gradually more intense. In investigating, thanks also to interviews with directors, actors and producers that Morricone met in his long career, the maniacal perfection of an author born trumpeter in the foretaste, who grew up later at the school of Goffredo Petrassi and literally exploded in the 60s. A career as a true workaholic of the note, but without affecting the production of a long series of masterpieces that have rightfully entered musical history. Two and a half hours of pure enjoyment that every film lover should indulge in.