La otra cara del amor

Although this film is difficult to follow at times (and, reportedly, historically inaccurate, too; I wouldn't know), there are still several reasons to see it:

1) Glenda Jackson's outstanding performance (you won't believe that the actress we see at the final stages of the film is the same one who played Tchaikovsky's wife early on, but it is - her transformation is amazing).

2) Some truly impressive sequences; be sure to watch this movie on tape, so you can rewind it and watch them again.

3) Tchaikovsky's music, of course.

4) Lush sets and costumes.

Ken Russell is a very unpredictable director; just when you think the film is about to start boring you, he'll give you a wonderful moment out of nowhere.

"Music Lovers" has long been labored over as another of Ken Russell extravagant excess baggages. Seeing it again has made me realize that the film is rather brilliant--not in cinema style but in conception. From the very start it seems to capture the schizoid world of Tsaichovsky and the social milleau he was forced to grip with. The point of view shots and the subsequent dream sequences in the early portion of the film capture this in brilliant colors and sharp editing. As the musician falls into his double life the scnes build to the scarring climax. Performances are excellent. The film may not be totally accurate, but who cares?

This film is one of Ken Russell's best dramatic romps. He dashes through late 19th Century Russian history without a care to whether it is all in the correct place or not. But that doesn't matter. It's your typical Russell film: Overstated dramatic acting, madness, mental institutions, frilly frocks and women with low-cut dresses and big boobs. As this film recounts the life of 19th Century Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Russell manages to capture a feeling this is essentially Russian. You could almost swear that the story was straight out of a Checkov play, it has that Russian warmth to it. Far more interesting than a long, drawn-out serious biography, The Music Lovers is fun and entertaining in a dramatic way, worth watching. However, keep to the encyclopaedia if you want a proper history of Tchaikovsky's life.

One of Richard Chamberlain's most memorable and fringe roles. Glenda Jackson is brilliant. The romance, passion, melodrama, and ultimate tragic fate of the main characters are all intensely portrayed with rich cinematography and the most lavish sets Russell ever used. The film carries that subtle yet omnipresent surreality which is a trademark of Russell's films, and which some find so annoying, and others so seductive and heightening of the experience. A truly wonderful but sad film.

His films are weird, unique, cool, regal, purposeful, wild, modern, obnoxious, empathetic, uncomfortable, hilarious...there's never a dull moment. The heart this film has for closeted gay people is so far ahead of it time, showing the danger of pretending to be who you think people want you to be. It furthers the argument many storytellers make about composers, that they could be nightmares to those closest to them. Just wish there was more music composing / performing.