In the 18th century, long before modern music could be canned for mass consumption, there existed a life-style which could only be sculpted from the unfortunate lives of prepubescent boys of Europe. This movie called " Farinelli " is the finest example of what was once deemed a most unique form of Opera. The story is based on the true story of two brothers who's father fettered them to a life of music and composition. Stefano Dionisi plays Carlo Broschi, AKA as Farinelli and his brother Riccardo Broschi (Enrico Lo Verso). Together they travel far and wide seeking not only an Opera loving audience, but also a rich patron who could afford their talent. The time of our story is set during the Baroque heyday of Frideric Handel (Jeroen Krabbe) who's great Classical music became the epitome of royalty and high society alike. The elder Broschi believes he did the right thing by suffering his younger brother to the excruciating pain of being castrated. However, he is then haunted by the fact his tortured brother has nightmares from the incident. Travel as the two boys do throughout the film, the story becomes more a testament of conscience, than one dealing with the audience appreciation of the day. Still, for Opera lovers or for those who enjoy good operatic theater, this movie delivers a cornucopia of both, with great period costumes and superior acting. Indeed, Stefano Dionisi and Jeroen Krabbé are superb as their lives play against each another. ****

This was an extremely pretty, but ultimately pretty unengaging film. The sets are lovely and the singing, for those who like this kind of music, is great but ultimately the story failed to engage me on anything but a superficial level. The based on truth story just doesn't have enough going on to merit a movie. Yes, Farinelli has no testicles and can't ultimately satisfy his lovers. In steps his brother to "finish the job". About the only interesting tidbit I gathered was that you ultimately find out this brother is the one who actually arranged to turn Farinelli into a castrato. Yuck. I get that. So what is next? Unfortunately, not much.

I was quite intrigued by the scenery in the film. I also like the acting. The actors in the film were perfectly chosen. They fit right into their characters. One thing I didn't like about the movie was that whole brotherly thing in the movie. They kept saying that they had a pact or something like that to the women. And the opera was nice to a point, but then I just kept forwarding. It was the same thing over and over again, but to different tunes. If you like operas and, Italian and French actors, this movie is worth seeing. I give it an 8.5 out of 10.

Based on the true story of Carlo Broschi, Farinelli is an opera singer from Europe, hailed for the beauty of his voice and his fine musicianship. Unfortunately for the people who love opera music, this film is a real disappointment. Since it is not about music, but about the costumes, the setting and the boring and pointless relationship between the two brothers, proving to each other they are not `gay'. Compared to Amadeus, this film is worse than a B-movie. It's a B-minor movie.