by Nathaniel R
Moulin Rouge! opened wide in the US twenty years ago today. We had already seen it in limited release on opening night at the historic Ziegfeld Theatre in NYC, a night we will literally never forget. It was immediately polarizing but also instantly beloved to those on its wavelength. Nicole Kidman ascended. Ewan McGregor became the ultimate dreamboat. And Jim Broadbent won the Oscar (we pretend it was for this instead of Iris... hey, it sorta was!) The hit musical made a huge difference for Hollywood, leading to a still-going-strong resurgence of a long dormant movie genre. It also made a huge difference to this very site; The Film Experience had been taking baby steps up until then in various forms and the rise of the movie coincided with a surge in popularity for the site that effectively put us on the map. We will love this movie until our dying day.
Here are twenty ways to celebrate Baz Luhrmann's masterpiece this week. How many will you accomplish? Report back in the comments as to how it went...
1. Recite the bohemian ideals "TRUTH. BEAUTY. FREEDOM. LOVE." each morning to bless your day.
2. Alternate your personality between Wilting Flower, Bright and Bubbly, and Smoldering Temptress all week. How will your friends and lovers react to your trifurcated personality?
3. Cue up Elton John's "Your Song" and sing it with as much passion as you can muster to someone you love whether that's your significant other, you piece on the side, a family member, a pet, a narcoleptic Argentinian, or your own reflection
4. Channel Harold Zidler every time you have to introduce something, begin a new project, or when you feel a dark mood descending. REALLY SELL IT!
5. Pour yourself some absinthe (or any kind of green drink and pretend). Make sure Kylie Minogue is blaring for your background music.
6. Contemplate why Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor never worked together again despite having screen chemistry so potent, it makes absinthe jealous. Let us know when you solve the mystery.
7. Invite someone over for a "poetry reading" (this item is only for the vaccinated)
8. Pick one of the "Four Whores of the Apocalypse" (aka the principal Diamond Dogs) as your spirit animal this week: Will it be Mome Fromage, Nini Legs-in-the-Air, Arabia, or China Doll?
9. Consider how few film entrances have ever equalled Nicole Kidman's, descending from the ceiling of the Moulin Rouge?
10. Remember that Moulin Rouge! won 12 gold (Picture, Director, Actor, Supporting Actor, Costumes, Art Direction, Original Song, Makeup and Hair, Actress in Limited Role, Kiss, Character Intro, Title Sequence) 6 silver (Actress, Cinematography, Adapted/Song Score, Diva of the Year, Sexpot of the Year, Musical Number) and 4 bronze medals (Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, Actress in Limited Role, Villain of the Year, Musical Number) in The Film Bitch Awards... which are therefore far greater than the Oscars in perpetuity.
11. When you sit down to write -- or stand to text -- let yourself get really emotional as you type a la Christian.
12. Draw an elephant. Now doodle your dream apartment on top of it. What would it look like?
13. Restage the "Spectacular! Spectacular!" number with your silliest friends or by yourself playing every role. An emphatic burst of silliness now and then is great for the soul.
14. Only wear underwear worth flashing all week.
15. Pretend you wrote a lyric from any song in The Sound of Music . Caveat: you can't choose "the hills are alive with the sound of music" because that one belongs to Christian.
16. Listen to "Come What May" on loop and gripe at The Academy for ruling it ineligible for Best Original Song, it could have easily been Moulin Rouge!'s third Oscar win!
17. Pine away for a boy who will never love you. (But look really fabulous and colorful while doing so)
18. Relitigate the 2001 Best Actress race. Who gets your vote: Halle (Monster's Ball), Dame Judi (Iris), Nicole (Moulin Rouge!), Sissy (In the Bedroom), or Renée (Bridget Jones Diary) ?
19. Go big this week; risk failing spectacularly.
20. Rent Moulin Rouge! or throw in your DVD or Blu-Ray and watch it for the _____th time.