The Czech composer who inspired Mozart is the subject of Il Boemo, a handsome period biopic that premiered in competition at the San Sebastian Film Festival.
Written and directed by Petr Vaclav (Marian), it’s an entertaining insight into Josef Mysliveček’s music and his hedonistic lifestyle, with an operatic running time of 140 minutes.
While the film is mostly in Italian, it’s the Czech entry for the International Feature race at the Academy Awards and should attract an audience of mature music lovers.Czech actor and musician Vojtěch Dyk puts in a dashing performance as the musician who became a celebrated composer in 18th century Italy, and was all but forgotten by a history that celebrated the younger Mozart.
But there’s no doubting the talent of the man nicknamed “Il Boemo,” as the film’s many musical scenes attest.We first meet Mysliveček when he’s dying of syphilis, his disfigured face hidden by a Venetian mask.
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