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Farinelli: Il Castrato

Play trailer Poster for Farinelli: Il Castrato R 1994 1h 51m Biography Drama Music Play Trailer Watchlist
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60% Tomatometer 25 Reviews 82% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Carlo (Stefano Dionisi) and Riccardo Broschi (Enrico Lo Verso) are a brother act: Ricardo is a composer who writes the music and Carlo a castrato who sings it beautifully. But Carlo is clearly the more talented of the two, and soon becomes wildly famous -- first in Italy and then throughout Europe -- as the legendary castrato Farinelli. Riccardo takes to managing his celebrity sibling, but, when the composer Handel (Jeroen Krabbé) begins working with Farinelli, Riccardo's resentment surfaces.
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Farinelli: Il Castrato

Critics Reviews

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Kevin Thomas Los Angeles Times 02/13/2001
4/5
Artistry abounds in every aspect of the film. Go to Full Review Hal Hinson Washington Post 01/01/2000
Because Carlo Broschi, the 18th-century castrato singer known as Farinelli, was himself such an exotic and sensationalistic figure, you'd think that creating a dull movie out of his flamboyant life would be next to impossible. Think again. Go to Full Review Edward Guthmann San Francisco Chronicle 01/01/2000
1/4
Glossy and histrionic, salacious and empty, Farinelli reduces a fascinating story to a series of hissy fits and leering glances. Go to Full Review Mal Vincent The Virginian-Pilot 02/25/2022
3/4
In an age in which the castrato voice no longer exists, the moviemakers recreated an intriguing facsimile. Go to Full Review David Bax Battleship Pretension 05/24/2019
Farinelli is lush and theatrical in the way you'd expect a movie about an opera singer to be but, somehow, it's also dry and dull. Go to Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy 04/24/2019
2.5/4
While visually vibrant and generally well-acted, Farinelli is strangely not very compelling. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Angela R. @rossangela Jul 8 A beautiful film for the music, costumes, period recreation and acting. The erotic scenes were presented as an integral part of the story in the movie, though most likely completely fabricated to make the story more compelling and relatable. Stefano Dionisi was excellent as the title character, evoking sympathetic reactions from viewers. It all makes for a good movie experience. See more 08/22/2018 A lot of people seem to confuse their lust for a beautiful actor with the artistic merit of a film. This one really isn't very good, though rescued by the opera scenes. See more 09/14/2016 Un film che romanza fin troppo la vita dell'artista e che alla fine lascia ben poco allo spettatore. See more 07/23/2015 I know the movie isn't based on true history of Farinelli because little is known for that period, but i liked the end of the movie, in which Farinelli is fulfilled in love despite his cruel fate . See more 07/13/2015 Looks good but feels somehow empty, disjointed, and hard to be invested in. See more 02/13/2014 Farinelli, gives an idea of how it was the art of the period and the suffering of a Castrati such as Farinelli despite having apparently everything. The big flaw it suffers it's that drama and modernism exaggerate and breaks what happened in reality, but otherwise, is a well done film about the considered greatest castrati of all time. See more Read all reviews
Farinelli: Il Castrato

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Cast & Crew

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Gérard Corbiau

Director

Stefano Dionisi

Carlo Broschi

Enrico Lo Verso

Riccardo Broschi

Elsa Zylberstein

Alexandra

Jeroen Krabbé

George Frideric Handel

Caroline Cellier

Margareth Hunter

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Farinelli: Il Castrato

Farinelli: Il Castrato (1994) Farinelli: Il Castrato (1994) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Carlo (Stefano Dionisi) and Riccardo Broschi (Enrico Lo Verso) are a brother act: Ricardo is a composer who writes the music and Carlo a castrato who sings it beautifully. But Carlo is clearly the more talented of the two, and soon becomes wildly famous -- first in Italy and then throughout Europe -- as the legendary castrato Farinelli. Riccardo takes to managing his celebrity sibling, but, when the composer Handel (Jeroen Krabbé) begins working with Farinelli, Riccardo's resentment surfaces.
Director
Gérard Corbiau
Producer
Véra Belmont, Linda Gutenberg
Screenwriter
Marcel Beaulieu, Andree Corbiau, Gérard Corbiau
Production Co
Italian International Film, Stéphan Films
Rating
R
Genre
Biography, Drama, Music
Original Language
Italian
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 7, 1994, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 23, 2019
Runtime
1h 51m
Sound Mix
Surround
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