This would have been a decent movie (although the plot isn't particularly strong or interesting) if it weren't for the many historical inaccuracies and, most importantly, the utterly disgraceful treatment of Wilhelm Friedemann Bach's music. Friedemann was quite a talented and fascinating composer in his own right (though probably not as great as his famous father), who composed some very interesting and beautiful music. Yes, he was quite a free spirit and was, both as a person and as a composer, remarkably different from his father.
But how, I ask, did those responsible for the soundtrack get it into their minds to transform Friedemann's fashionably (for the time) graceful and sensitive melodies into some grotesquely anachronistic post-romantic musical wallpaper? And why was it so hard to fill the entire soundtrack with period music - people did it in Amadeus, Immortal Beloved, and Farinelli (to name just a few), so why not here? With all due respect to the composer of the soundtrack's original music, I thought his music was just way too anachronistic for me to sustain my suspension of disbelief. I simply couldn't believe in the story anymore.
Among the countless non-musical historical inaccuracies, let me mention just one. Unlike in the movie, Bach, according to many reputable biographical sources, didn't flatly refuse to improvise anything on Friedrich's theme. In fact, he pulled off the three-part fugue originally proposed by the King, and only withdrew after the six-part fugue was proposed (the latter being too difficult to improvise).
So, no more than 4 stars for this cinematographic lemon. This could've been 7, had the soundtrack compilers done a better job.
But how, I ask, did those responsible for the soundtrack get it into their minds to transform Friedemann's fashionably (for the time) graceful and sensitive melodies into some grotesquely anachronistic post-romantic musical wallpaper? And why was it so hard to fill the entire soundtrack with period music - people did it in Amadeus, Immortal Beloved, and Farinelli (to name just a few), so why not here? With all due respect to the composer of the soundtrack's original music, I thought his music was just way too anachronistic for me to sustain my suspension of disbelief. I simply couldn't believe in the story anymore.
Among the countless non-musical historical inaccuracies, let me mention just one. Unlike in the movie, Bach, according to many reputable biographical sources, didn't flatly refuse to improvise anything on Friedrich's theme. In fact, he pulled off the three-part fugue originally proposed by the King, and only withdrew after the six-part fugue was proposed (the latter being too difficult to improvise).
So, no more than 4 stars for this cinematographic lemon. This could've been 7, had the soundtrack compilers done a better job.