Overrated

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

reconstruction of a period. eulogy to an artist. impressive picture. and new film with old ingredients. maybe, not accuracy is its virtue. or the performance who may be admirable. the story - in few extraordinary moments. the art of director - yes, it is OK. but more important is the flavor. the touch of things, the silk of gestures, the cotton of words, the feeling to be part of action and the final impression , after the lost of fairy-tale skin, to discover a parable. this is great director secret - an universal lesson about yourself. instrument - magnificent music and a remarkable cast. a large light circle. and a wonderful science of detail. An Italian word says - Si non e vero, e ben trovato ( even it is not true, it is conceived ). in this case, it is perfect definition.

In the 18th century, long before modern music could be canned for mass consumption, there existed a life-style which could only be sculpted from the unfortunate lives of prepubescent boys of Europe. This movie called " Farinelli " is the finest example of what was once deemed a most unique form of Opera. The story is based on the true story of two brothers who's father fettered them to a life of music and composition. Stefano Dionisi plays Carlo Broschi, AKA as Farinelli and his brother Riccardo Broschi (Enrico Lo Verso). Together they travel far and wide seeking not only an Opera loving audience, but also a rich patron who could afford their talent. The time of our story is set during the Baroque heyday of Frideric Handel (Jeroen Krabbe) who's great Classical music became the epitome of royalty and high society alike. The elder Broschi believes he did the right thing by suffering his younger brother to the excruciating pain of being castrated. However, he is then haunted by the fact his tortured brother has nightmares from the incident. Travel as the two boys do throughout the film, the story becomes more a testament of conscience, than one dealing with the audience appreciation of the day. Still, for Opera lovers or for those who enjoy good operatic theater, this movie delivers a cornucopia of both, with great period costumes and superior acting. Indeed, Stefano Dionisi and Jeroen Krabbé are superb as their lives play against each another. ****

This was a fascinating story. I find myself very drawn to the kinky drama of the castrato singer -- and longing to hear what his voice really sounded like. I've been listening to recordings of Mozart's "Queen of the Night" aria recorded by women and boys nowadays and frustrated that everyone who sings it sounds strained and harsh -- wondering what Farinelli, the greatest singer in opera history, would have sounded like singing it.Unfortunately, I don't think the voice or the body in this movie were accurate.A castrato singer would have the lightness of a boy's voice. Sometimes the synthesized voice in this movie captured that, but generally it was too heavy. I sort of imagine a castrato soprano sounding more like Michael Jackson in "Little Susie," only probably higher.Also, this actor had a prominent Adam's apple, heavy bony structure around the eyes and jaw, and rippling muscles all over his body. A castrato, a person who had lacked testosterone since childhood, would lack all these things. He would have an angelic face, with childlike eyes -- more like the boy actor used for Farinelli before castration. The castrato would also have few visible muscles -- and certainly no visible Adam's apple. He might have enjoyed sex, but would have been unlikely to be so aggressive as this character was. Also, the idea that castrati could not achieve climax, as indicated in this movie was likely wrong. Moreover, not having gone through puberty, the castrato would likely have had a more gentle, childlike personality than this character, also endearing him to women.Women reportedly fainted when listening to the castrati sing. No one would have really fainted for the character in this movie. He just did not have the kind of eyes or the kind of voice to make a woman faint. It's as if the people who did the movie just were clueless.At the high point of the castrati, they were castrating 4,000 boys a year in Italy, supposedly. Presumably they were drawn to all that barbarism because the voices were really extraordinary, not merely high but of a quality to be drug-like in their beauty.I hope someone will try again -- and do better on the casting and synthesized singing this time. I want to be drawn into the vocal experience that was so amazing that they would castrate little boys to achieve it.

Be prepared for something different, disturbing, and with a history lesson that is completely inaccurate. In fact, it is a blatantly convoluted tale that looks more like a Cinderella story than actual accounts of history. Director Gerard Corbiau's Farinelli is 'all that' but it also is visually stunning and represents castrati singing with richness and clarity. Farinelli is the artistic name of castrato (a male castrated at a young age) Carlo Broschi (Stefano Dionisi), a handsome young choir boy who was accidentally castrated at the age of 10 purportedly due to a riding accident. Ill and under the influence of powerful drugs (opium) at the time, Carlo has no recollection of his unfortunate accident. His brother Riccardo (Enrico Lo Verso), seven years his senior, tells him repeatedly the story of how he was riding a beautiful white horse from which he was thrown, causing an injury that led to his castration. Throughout his life, Carlo has a recurring nightmare about riding the white horse but in his dream he never falls off. The conflict between Carlo's dreams and Riccardo's stories hints at the horrible secret between the brothers that is ultimately revealed near the end of the film. Carlo's astonishing soprano voice (a digitized composition of the voices of Derek Lee Ragin and Ewa Mallas Godlewska) eventually makes him and his brother who composes mediocre operatic scores for Carlo to perform, a phenomenal success. Carlo relinquishes his born name with his professional name Farinelli. Although Carlo suspects that his brother had something to do with his childhood emasculation, he continues to perform his brothers badly written operas. Both brothers are aware that Carlo's superior talent is being undermined by performing Riccardo's operas.An ill-fated meeting with Maestro George Frederick Handel (Jeroen Krabbé), who desired a contract with Carlo, begins a contentious battle between the two for the lion's share of audience. Carlo turns down Maestro Handel's offer is hired to perform in a London theater to draw audiences away from Handel's operas. Farinelli performs wonderfully and eventually takes virtually all of the audience away from Handel. Carlo's looks, fantastic voice, and range make female audience members faint dead away. One woman tells Carlo that he is responsible for her first musical orgasm! A pact between brothers where women are concerned creates titillating ménage a trios scenes which earned the film its R rating. Carlo soon realizes that performing Handel's operas are so desirable to him that he tries to convince Handel to take him in. The rest of the story reveals the tragic secret that Carlo has always known but in the end brings brothers together for one more ménage a trios that would leave Carlo to become a father; the one gift that was taken away from him as a child. I really enjoyed this film and the music that accompanied it. I commend the director for his efforts to take a difficult subject matter and turn it into a story that is both entertaining and titillating at times. However, the early-on innuendo that Riccardo was somehow responsible for Carlo's difficult life took away the endings potential climax that could have left the audience hanging. --Lewis Saettel 2007