This thing moves brilliantly, sparkling like nothing we've seen domestically since "The Wiz" or "Xanadu."
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The movie is all color and music, sound and motion, kinetic energy, broad strokes, operatic excess.
80
TimeRichard Corliss
TimeRichard Corliss
The film dances; the heart sings.
75
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
It's impossible to watch this beautifully chaotic, excessive movie impassively. You'll either embrace what Luhrmann has done here or run out of the theater, holding your head.
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
You get faux feelings -- but faux of the highest, giddiest order.
You can go with it or resist it, be exhilarated or worn out. But forgetting the experience is not one of your options.
60
Film.comPeter Brunette
Film.comPeter Brunette
Consistently runs the danger of substituting cool but ultra-hyper, modern special effects for boring old human sentiment.
50
Boston GlobeJay Carr
Boston GlobeJay Carr
The film musical is at the moment an even more devitalized art form than the Broadway musical. But Moulin Rouge doesn't revive it. It only rearranges the bones.
50
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
It wants to be like no other movie you've ever seen. It's more like every movie you've ever seen.