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Pam Cook’s “Baz Luhrmann” is the first major book-length
study dedicated to Luhrmann. The book provides a
comprehensive analysis of the life of Baz Luhrmann, from
his childhood in the rural town of Herons Creek, through
to the aftermath of his most recent film, Australia.
When I
first heard about the publication in early June 2010, I
found myself comparing the news to my initial concept of
Baz the Great! I created this website back in
2002, largely because there was no centralised source of
information about Baz Luhrmann on the internet. After
becoming infatuated with the magnificence of Moulin
Rouge!, I was left disappointed when I was unable to
find any website dedicated entirely to Baz Luhrmann.
There were, of course, various websites dedicated to
Luhrmann’s individual films, including an excellent
official website for Moulin Rouge!. However, the
official Bazmark website only featured the company logo
and some external links.
I remember
searching the internet, trying to find a website solely
dedicated to Luhrmann, with up-to-date news as well as
information about his past projects. Over time, my
disappointment led to confusion, and my confusion led to
frustration. I strongly believe that Baz Luhrmann fans
should have access to a centralised source of online
information, to enable his work to be more widely
accessible and appreciated on the internet. And so,
despite my limited knowledge of web design, my
unrelenting enthusiasm led to the creation of Baz the
Great!.
Eight
years later, I was thrilled to learn that a book had
finally been published that was wholly dedicated to Baz
Luhrmann. I couldn’t help but think, “It’s about time!”
I was also delighted that Pam Cook e-mailed me
personally to inform me about the release. I was very
pleased that Luhrmann had been chosen as the subject of
a book-length study in a volume that would form part of
the World Directors Series. I found it uplifting that
Luhrmann had finally received significant academic
recognition for his directorial ventures.
I awaited
the delivery of the book like an impatient child who has
waited years to open a much-desired gift, excited and
curious to learn what would be revealed within. I am
pleased to report that the long-awaited book does not
disappoint. On the contrary, the book is the
comprehensive study of Baz Luhrmann that fans have been
waiting for. The publication is certainly a must-read
for anyone who has ever been inspired by the creativity
and innovation of Baz Luhrmann.
Contents
After
Acknowledgments and Introduction sections, the book is
divided into six chapters:
1.
Once Upon a
Time in Australia
2. Strictly Ballroom (1992)
3. William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet (1996)
4. Moulin Rouge! (2001)
5. No. 5 The Film (2004) and Australia (2008)
6. DVD, the Internet and Nostalgia
These
chapters are followed by extensive listings detailing
references made within the book: Notes, Bibliography,
The Works and an Index. The book also features a variety
of black-and-white images taken from Luhrmann’s films
that serve to enhance the text, including eight pages of
magnificent colour images in the centre of the book.
Cook
sourced much of her information for the book from two
interviews with Baz Luhrmann at the House of Iona on 14
and 15 June 2005. Reference is also made to an interview
with Catherine Martin at the House of Iona on 16 June
2005. In addition to these personal interviews, Cook has
also taken information from and makes reference to
various media sources, details of which are listed at
the back of the book.
While
reading through these references, I noted that Baz
the Great! is referenced six times in Pam Cook’s
book. In the first chapter, at n50, Cook writes:
“The
excellent Baz Luhrmann fan site Baz the Great!
has an archive of selected news reports about Luhrmann’s
Alexander the Great project.” At n57, she writes:
“The fan site Baz the Great! has an archive of
selected news reports about No.5 The Film.”
And
at n60, she writes: “See Baz the Great! fan site
for media coverage of the development of Australia.”
Cook had
accessed my site in March 2009 however, in May 2009, I
gave Baz the Great! a makeover and removed a lot
of old material, including the links to these three
archives. However, I have now put the links, as quoted
in the book, back online for anyone who is interested in
reading the archives. I have added an Alexander the
Great link on my Facts
about Baz page, a News Archives link on my
Chanel No. 5 page, and a
News Archives link on my
Australia page.
In the
fourth chapter about Moulin Rouge!, on page 107,
Cook writes: “Despite Moulin Rouge!’s cultural
impact, academic writing about it was surprisingly
scarce. However, the film generated online fan and
information sites that grew in popularity and sustained
public interest in Luhrmann’s activities.”
After
this last sentence, n106 very kindly reads:
“The best
fan site is Baz the Great!, which was set up in
2002 and offers a wealth of information about all
Luhrmann’s film projects.” I am happy that my
website was
able to help ‘sustain public interest in Luhrmann’s
activities’, and this is the very reason that I continue
to maintain my site today.
In the
fifth chapter, when writing about the Australia
DVD on page 145, Cook writes: “A special edition DVD,
produced by Bazmark, was mooted for release in late
2009”, and n121 states that this was reported on my
website in the Australia DVD review section. Of
course, we now know that this special edition DVD did
not happen, and I have since updated my
Australia
DVD Review page to
reflect this. The final reference to my site is in the
very next notation, n122, stating that the two music
videos, ‘By the Boab Tree’ and ‘Waltzing Matilda’, are
available to view on my News Updates page. However, I
will point out here that these are no longer available
on my site, but should still be accessible through websites
such as You Tube.
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As stated
above, the book is a comprehensive study of Baz Luhrmann
and Cook goes into detail about all aspects of his
works. Cook is Professor Emerita in Film at the
University of Southampton and a highly regarded film
scholar, whereas I am simply a fan of Luhrmann’s works.
Therefore, in the following paragraphs, I will simply
attempt to summarise and quote from certain parts of the
book that I personally found to be most interesting;
those which made me reflect more about the wide-reaching
effects of Luhrmann’s remarkable works.
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Introduction
Anyone who
has seen a Baz Luhrmann movie knows that his films are
unique. They are not your typical Hollywood blockbuster,
and yet they do retain some elements, including
classical storytelling and simplified characters, as
well as big name stars and DVD/CD tie-ins that aim to
promote box office success. Another factor that has made
Luhrmann’s films so unique is his mutually beneficial
arrangement with 20th Century Fox, which has
enabled him to use their finances and facilities while
maintaining his own creative flair.
Luhrmann
aims to cross cultural boundaries with his own
distinctive film making style. Cook explains:
“There is something of the
agent provocateur in Luhrmann’s approach to his
artistic endeavours, and he has said many times that his
primary aim is to engage audiences by creating something
unexpected from the familiar. In this respect he is a
modernist who identifies with ‘the shock of the new’ …
Luhrmann uses classical story construction, in which the
outcome is often already known. The shocking and the new
lie in the way the story is told, in broad strokes using
cartoon-like imagery, clashing genre conventions and a
histrionic acting style that do not chime with cinematic
realism.”
Cook goes
on to discuss the significance of branding in the movie
industry, and how Luhrmann has
“embraced the branding process” by defining his
work through the Red Curtain style of film-making.
Luhrmann has always asserted his ‘Australian-ness’ and
acknowledges the contribution of his Australian team.
Cook also explains how Luhrmann himself is pivotal to
the branding process: “He projects
himself as a buccaneering adventurer – a risk-taker in a
high-risk industry – who pushes himself and those he
works with to the limit, which implies a certain
ruthlessness. He is often referred to by co-workers and
collaborators as a visionary.”
Chapter
One – Once Upon a Time In Australia
“Baz Luhrmann is a natural
showman. He delights in entertaining others with tales
of film-making adventures and misadventures, and in
telling his own life story, which he views as
inseparable from his creative journey.”
This is a
most fitting opening to the first chapter of the book.
Cook goes on to discuss how Luhrmann is fascinated by
myth and how he sees it as a way to communicate with
people across different cultures (For example, David and
Goliath in Strictly Ballroom and Orpheus in
Moulin Rouge!). She then goes on to summarise
Luhrmann’s childhood, his Strictly Ballroom play
and various other early ventures. It is not long before
she reaches his initial meeting with Catherine Martin:
“Of all the collaborators who have
crossed Baz Luhrmann’s path, none features more
prominently than Catherine Martin (known affectionately
as CM) … Theirs is an alliance in which each complements
the other. Martin insists that it is a partnership of
equals in which Luhrmann has the vision, while she has
practical craft skills of making things and
problem-solving. Their long-standing artistic and
personal coalition is so successful that the title of
this book – were it not part of a series about directors
– might have been ‘Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin’.”
Cook
explains that the success of Romeo + Juliet
marked a new stage for Luhrmann and Martin. They were
married on 26 January 1997 and, that same year,
co-founded Bazmark Inq and set up the company at the
House of Iona in Sydney. I did not realise that the
House of Iona was previously owned by the Duke of
Westminster, the second wealthiest man in Britain.
However, I have always known that the House of Iona has
played a pivotal role for Luhrmann and Martin, both
personally and artistically. Cook states:
“The ambience of this workplace is
distinctly personal, and the House of Iona has been
reconstructed as an arena where life and work, life and
art are inseparable. The colonial building has been
redesigned by Luhrmann and Martin as a location for
postcolonial cultural activity and business, and as a
statement about an unconventional, quasi-bohemian
lifestyle.”
Chapter
Two – Strictly Ballroom (1992)
This
chapter provides an extremely interesting account of
Strictly Ballroom’s evolution from the conception of
the initial NIDA play through to becoming Luhrmann’s
very first feature film. I have to admit, Strictly
Ballroom has always been my least favourite in the
Red Curtain Trilogy. Perhaps because I was too young to
appreciate it at the time of release, or because by the
time I rediscovered it, I had already been overly
influenced by my favourite title, Moulin Rouge!.
Whatever the case, I always found Strictly Ballroom
to be the most ‘simplified’ of the three movies that
form the Red Curtain Trilogy.
However,
Cook rightfully points out that
“the film’s apparent simplicity is deceptive. The
theatrical cinematic style has different levels, nowhere
more evident than in its approach to time and place.”
She goes on to say how the movie is not set in a
particular era, but instead uses a mixture of styles of
sets, costumes and music where different decades are
merged together. Her detailed explanation of Strictly
Ballroom in this chapter made me re-evaluate my
perception of the film and I felt the need to go and
watch it again with a refreshed point-of-view.
Chapter
Three – William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet (1996)
For me,
the most fascinating part of this chapter is Cook’s
discussion of Luhrmann’s use of hyperbole in Romeo +
Juliet. I had not heard of this term before and so I
found her writings on the topic to be very insightful.
Cook explains: “Technically,
hyperbole is a literary device that uses exaggeration to
evoke strong feelings or for dramatic effect … Hyperbole
was commonly used in English Renaissance literature, and
by Shakespeare in his poetry and plays. It is a
bombastic, vehement form of expression that assaults
listeners, aggressively claiming their attention.”
In her
discussion, Cook points out that Luhrmann had already
used hyperbole in Strictly Ballroom, depicting
the Australian characters “in an
exaggerated, comic-book style in order to differentiate
them from the more authentic Spanish characters.”
Cook asserts that in Romeo + Juliet, Luhrmann
used ‘hyperbolic hyperbole’, where a heightened
cinematic language was devised,
“emulating Shakespeare but taking his language further
by exaggerating it.” This method translated into
“an overwrought audiovisual
experience that assaulted the audience’s senses and many
of their preconceptions.”
I have
always loved the flamboyant cinematic style of Romeo
+ Juliet. I was only a teenager myself when the film
was first released, and I distinctly remember the
positive impact it had on my peers. Shakespeare was
suddenly ‘cool’ again. Luhrmann had redefined the text
and made it more accessible to young people. Indeed, I’m
sure Luhrmann’s film was especially appreciated by
English teachers all over the world, who would have used
it as a most welcome teaching platform to help students
better understand the text. Of course, the music in
Romeo + Juliet also played a pivotal role in
communicating the play to modern audiences, and it is no
surprise that the first CD sold over 7 million copies
and had a substantial influence on the music of the
90s.
Chapter
Four – Moulin Rouge! (2001)
Cook
begins this chapter by explaining that Romeo + Juliet
“had not only played a part in his
artistic and stylistic development, its unprecedented
success put him in a position to make choices about his
future direction.” Luhrmann and Martin
established Bazmark Inq and entered into a revised
agreement with Fox. It was decided that their next film,
Moulin Rouge!, would be shot entirely at Fox
Studios. Cook explains: “As with
the previous titles, there was a strong element of risk
attached to the concept: the musical genre was reputed
to be moribund, or at least deeply unfashionable. Once
again Luhrmann took on a major challenge: to breathe
life into the musical and to give contemporary relevance
to the period setting, while making a definitive
statement about cinematic style.”
Cook goes
on to explain how the emphasis of Moulin Rouge!
is on audience interaction. Although the tragic ending
is revealed at the beginning, viewers are confronted
with unexpected events and an assault on their senses
throughout the film. Cook elaborates:
“Luhrmann’s investment in artifice
creates a world that is distinct from reality, but is
nevertheless truthful in that it enables the audience to
respond emotionally to the ideals of beauty, truth,
freedom and love adhered to by the characters, and
emerge from that experience with a changed perspective.”
Cook
discusses the collisions of different musical styles
used in the movie and its emphasis on the stylised
performances, including the use of 'hyperbolic
hyperbole', which had previously been used in the first
two Red Curtain films. Once again, an imaginary world is
created that combines time and place so that seemingly
impossible obstacles can be overcome. Cook explains:
“This utopian construction,
founded in bohemian ideals of freedom, beauty, truth and
love, is in tension with its opposite, a Gothic
netherworld pervaded by greed, lust and murder, which
threatens utopian beliefs … The Moulin Rouge -is
situated somewhere between the two.” Cook also
reflects on the ending: “Despite
the tragic outcome, a fragile sense of hope remains in
Christian’s growth to maturity and his determination to
write the lovers’ story as a triumph of art over death.”
Chapter
Five – No. 5 The Film (2004) and Australia (2008)
In this
chapter, Cook writes about Luhrmann’s Broadway
production of La
Bohème, and how it could be
considered as “the final encore to
the three acts of the Red Curtin films.” She also
writes about the initial preparations for Luhrmann’s
Alexander the Great, which were taking place at the
same time Luhrmann was involved with La
Bohème, and
also during the Chanel No. 5 project. Cook makes
interesting observations about Luhrmann’s influences for
the Chanel No. 5 short film. For example, Catherine
Deneuve was featured in a Chanel campaign in the 70s,
with one advertisement depicting her in a black jacket,
white shirt and bow tie. Cook observes that this
androgynous image is reflected in Luhrmann’s short film
when Kidman stands playfully on her lover’s garret
wearing a black tuxedo, white shirt and unbuttoned bow
tie.
Cook also
suggests that the Chanel No. 5 film could be seen as a
form of closure to Luhrmann’s Red Curtain style of film
making. She states: “It is
tempting to see No. 5 The Film as Luhrmann’s
acknowledgement that the Red Curtain style was now
completely played out. Its visual design is dominated by
barriers and cage-like imagery, while the melancholy
tenor of the music intimates an ending rather than a
beginning. Indeed, it can be understood as a
transitional piece between the studio-bound Red Curtain
aesthetic and the expansive exterior mode of the
projected series of epics.”
Alas, as
we know, at the end of 2004, Luhrmann’s Alexander the
Great project was shelved after Stone’s version was
released to poor reviews. Several months later, Luhrmann
decided on an Australian-themed epic that would become
Australia. Cook explains:
“Luhrmann wanted to use a naturalistic mode that would
nevertheless incorporate undercurrents of the fantastic.
This aesthetic was no less self-conscious than the
theatrical cinematic style, and retained many of its
features, including histrionic performances,
particularly from the Anglo-Celtic Australians,
heightened romanticism and cinematic references.”
Cook also
observes that Luhrmann again attempted to communicate
across different cultures with Australia,
explaining: “The mixture of genres
provides the means to trace Sarah’s transformation from
tight-laced English aristocrat to dishevelled tomboy and
cattle queen, while bringing together different
storytelling strategies enables connections to be made
across cultures.”
Cook also
points out that Luhrmann uses Australia to
revisit his country’s troubled history. She states:
“In a twist that reverses the more
usual apportioning of blame to the British colonists,
Sarah acts as a positive catalyst for change. Her
transformation through contact with the harsh and
beautiful country, her love affair with the Drover and
her seduction by Nullah create alliances across
boundaries of class and race.” Cook also observes: “By
invoking Nullah’s uncompleted rite of passage at the end
of the film, Luhrmann implies that his country is itself
on the cusp of maturity, its destiny and identity still
unknown as it faces a final frontier.”
Cook also
discusses at length the aftermath of Australia,
outlining different people’s points of view. In her
Introduction to the book, she observes:
“The idea of a faraway place
defined by seductive and dangerous liminal spaces in
which it is possible to lose oneself entirely is
characteristic of the challenge Luhrmann offers to
audiences. The offer contains its own risk: that it
might not be accepted by viewers.” Later, in chapter
five, she states: “There is no
doubt that neutral and negative media response
contributed to the aura of failure, however
misconceived, that clouded Australia’s initial
release” but also “Before
long, it became clear that far from being a failure,
Australia was set to be come one of the
highest-grossing movies of all time in Australia, while
European box-office results were also strong.”
Cook concludes the chapter by pondering if Luhrmann’s
partnership with Fox might be coming to an end but, of
course, nearly two years after Australia’s
release, we are still no closer to knowing what
Luhrmann’s next project (and partnership) will actually
be.
Chapter
Six – DVD, the Internet and Nostalgia
Cook
finishes her book with a short chapter about how
Luhrmann has embraced the technological advancements of
DVD and the Internet. Most recently, there was the
excellent interactive official website for Australia, along
with the informative series of Set to Screen podcasts, and
the release of the Australia soundtrack on itunes
was accompanied by a stunningly designed 51 page
colour booklet. But Cook points out that the ultimate
Luhrmann release
was the Red Curtain Trilogy in 2002. She states:
“The DVD boxed set performed a
triple branding function: to identify the Red Curtain
Trilogy as a coherent body of work with a distinctive
style; to associate the style with a collaborative
creative group led by Luhrmann; and to locate the work
within his personal biography and his Australian base.”
Cook also
observes: “The evocation of the
House of Iona as a utopian creative ambience, achieved
through digital technologies, allows Luhrmann to
position himself at the heart of a nucleus of
collaborative creative energy situated outside the major
centres of production. This in turn enables Australia to
be viewed as a location for a vibrant independent film
culture and industry. The nostalgic use of digital
technologies, also evident in Moulin Rouge! and
Australia, encourages audience participation in
the individual and collective opportunities for
expression opened up by technological change.”
Conclusion
As stated
earlier in my review, this book is the comprehensive
study of Baz Luhrmann that fans have been waiting for. I
have only highlighted the quotes and sections that I
personally
found to be particularly interesting, but there is far more
detailed information within the book that fans will most
certainly enjoy. I highly recommend this book to anyone
who has ever been inspired by Baz Luhrmann.
Click here to order your copy
of the book from
the publishing company, Palgrave Macmillan.
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