The Red Violin **1/2
not rated Lions Gate Films in English, Mandarin, Italian, German, and French with English subtitles starring Samuel L. Jackson, Don McKellar, Carlo Cecchi, Irene Grazioli, Jean-Luc Bideau, Christoph Koncz, Jason Flemyng, Greta Scacchi, Sylvia Chang written by Don McKellar with Francois Girard directed by Francois Girard
In Francois Girard's "Red Violin", the title object changes hands many times over the course of two centuries, but it is never made clear to whom, how and why this happens. The journey takes us from a modern Canadian setting where the flawless violin is being auctioned, to Vienna, China, Oxford and Italy before returning to the auction. This foreign-language ensemble piece has some noteworthy moments in each of its segments but on the whole it's a mess. As I already mentioned, not much is made clear, so the segments don't have a connection. It seems to be a different violin in each part. The standout in a fine cast is Samuel L. Jackson, taking a different path this time around as a Canadian violin expert. Don't worry, fans; Jackson shows off his trademark tenacity yelling at a hotel manager. Director Francois Girard and writer/actor Don McKellar, who combined their talents on "Thirty-Two Short Films About Glenn Gould", have crafted a film that is interesting at times, and dull at times. The main flaw of "The Red Violin" is that it doesn't use its title object to connect the stories. I recommend this film to fans of classical music; all others steer clear.
a capsule review by Akiva Gottlieb, The Teenage Movie Critic akiva@excite.com http://teenagemoviecritic.8m.com
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