On today’s installment of Man Candy Monday, we are looking at the various portrayals of German composer, Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827).
The Life of Beethoven (1927)
Beethoven’s Great Love (1936)
The Great Awakening (1941)
Eroica (1949)
Napoléon (1955)
The Magnificent Rebel (1962)
Saturday Night Live (1975)
Beethoven – Days in a Life (1976)
Beethoven’s Nephew (1985)
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)
Beethoven Lives Upstairs (1992)
Immortal Beloved (1994)
Eroica (2003)
Beethoven (2005)
Copying Beethoven (2006)
Louis van Beethoven (2020)
Have you seen any of these films about Beethoven? Tell us your thoughts in the comments!
Always Gary Oldman
Oldman does a terrific job as Beethoven- the section with the 9th symphony always moves me tremendously. I also really liked Ian Hart in Eroica, which additionally includes a fine performance from Frank Finlay as Haydn. Just heard the 7th symphony played by the Philadelphia Orchestra a few days ago, with an audience of people who I think had rarely attended a classical music performance (they clapped throughout the symphony). It was nonetheless great to see how excited the music made everyone!
I remember having a little-girl crush on Karl Böhm.
Me, too!
Belushi was so effing brilliant.
I have to ask, does Beethoven ever smile in any of these movies? ;-) My dad loved Beethoven and I do too! Now I have to look these up! Thanks!
Eddy Chen from TwoSet Violin plays Beethoven in a series of music videos. Though the costume budget is modest, he’s my favorite Beethoven portrayal.
Brian D’Arcy James played an imaginary Beethoven in a cameo in ‘Mozart in the Jungle’.
I didn’t know there were so many films featuring “Ludwig Van” (to quote Alex from A Clockwork Orange). I’m intrigued to see Immortal Beloved now, but for now I must give the win to Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure for that scene where Beethoven is in a modern music shop playing a bunch of electronic keyboards together.
I’m partial to John Cleese’s portrayal in MP’s Flying Circus (and not historical, but also the bust of Beethoven from the Muppet Show. Is he the most parodied composer of all time? I think he might be.)
Tobias Moretti is just every famous Austrian of that period (archduke Johann, Andreas Hofer etc.). The movie had low production value although Moretti always is a good actor. Karlheinz Böhm is looking very interesting. The most real Beethoven maybe is Matthias Mattschke (Sketch History ZDF).