| Moulin Rouge! | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Baz Luhrmann |
| Produced by | Baz Luhrmann Fred Baron Martin Brown |
| Written by | Baz Luhrmann Craig Pearce |
| Starring | Ewan McGregor Nicole Kidman Jim Broadbent Richard Roxburgh John Leguizamo |
| Music by | Craig Armstrong Marius de Vries |
| Cinematography | Donald McAlpine |
| Editing by | Jill Bilcock |
| Studio | Bazmark |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | June 1, 2001 |
| Running time | 128 minutes |
| Country | Australia United States United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $52.5 million[1] |
| Gross revenue | $179,213,434[2] |
Moulin Rouge! (English pronunciation: /muːˈlɑːn ˈruːʒ/, from French: [mulɛ̃ ʁuʒ]) is a 2001 romantic musical film by Baz Luhrmann. Following the Red Curtain Cinema principles, the film is based on the Orphean myth and on Giuseppe Verdi's opera La Traviata. It tells the story of a young, English poet/writer, Christian (Ewan McGregor), who falls in love with the star of the Moulin Rouge, cabaret actress and courtesan Satine (Nicole Kidman). It uses the musical setting of the Montmartre Quarter of Paris, France. The film was nominated for eight Oscars, including Best Picture, and won two: for art direction and costume design. It was the first musical nominated for best picture in 22 years. It was filmed at Fox Studios in Sydney, Australia.
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Beginning in 1900, the story introduces the protagonist, an English writer named Christian (Ewan McGregor), depressed and surrounded by bottles of alcohol. He then gets up and heads over to his typewriter, and begins telling the story.
A year before, in 1899, Christian moves to the Montmartre district of Paris with few possessions to follow the Bohemian revolution. By luck, he encounters a musical troupe led by Toulouse-Lautrec (John Leguizamo) that is attempting to present a new play for Harold Zidler (Jim Broadbent), the owner of the cabaret, the Moulin Rouge. Christian's writing helps to finalize the show, entitled "Spectacular Spectacular", and the troupe take Christian to the cabaret to present the work itself to its star courtesan, Satine (Nicole Kidman), in private to win her favour. However, Zidler has arranged for Satine to spend the night with the wealthy Duke of Monroth (Richard Roxburgh) who is looking to invest in the cabaret. Through miscommunication, Satine mistakes Christian for the Duke, and the two depart to her private chambers. She begins to seduce him despite his insistence he is only there to present his poetry, but the two slowly realize they have fallen in love with each other. The Duke then enters while Satine is trying to hide Christian. Satine pulls the Duke onto the bed and quietly urges Christian to leave without the Duke noticing. After Christian refuses, she tells the Duke that they should "wait until opening night" and pushes him out of the door. Once he is out of the room, Satine faints. Christian carries her over to the bed and falls on top of her. The Duke returns, and discovers Christian and Satine in a compromising position. Satine quickly states that Christian is only there to rehearse the play. With the help of the troupe, Satine, and Zidler, Christian quickly improvises a new plot to "Spectacular Spectacular" as a thinly-covered veil of their current situation, with an evil maharajah attempting to woo the love of an Indian courtesan who is actually in love with a poor sitar player. The Duke, unable to see through the show's meaning, agrees to finance the show, but on the condition that he is the only one allowed to see Satine. Unfortunately for the Duke, Satine and Christian continuously make up excuses as to why he can't see her.
Over the next several weeks, the entire Moulin Rouge troupe prepares for the show as the cabaret is turned into a theater. On a day that the Duke has invited Satine to his place for the evening, Satine insists that she must practice her lines with Christian, and they depart. The Duke then goes to Zidler, complaining that Satine is spending too much time with Christian (although he is still clueless about what is going on) and Zidler tells him that Satine will be there to have supper with him. Zidler then spies the two lovers and tells Satine to end it. Zidler walks away and Satine then faints again, but this time, she is unable to get out of bed until the next morning. The Duke is enraged when Satine does not show up to dinner, but Zidler quickly tells him that she is at a confession because she wants to be cleaned and looks upon that night as her wedding night. The Duke agrees to stay the patron of the Moulin Rouge, but the next morning, Satine tells Christian that they must end their relationship. Christian convinces her that they should stay together by writing a secret song (Come What May) that he will put in the show, and that when ever either of them hear it that they will remember their love for each other.
Later Nini Legs-In-The-Air (Caroline O'Connor), a jealous courtesan, points out to the Duke that the play is obviously a metaphor for Christian, Satine, and the Duke. The Duke tells Zidler to change the ending so that the courtesan ends up with the maharajah. Satine quickly insists that they spend the night together to discuss the ending. That night, Satine backs down and refuses the Duke's advances; the enraged Duke attempts to rape Satine. She is then saved by another dancer, Chocolat, and then flees to Christian. The two plan to run away together. The Duke reports this to Zidler, and states that unless Satine is his, he will have Christian killed. Zidler enters her dressing room to find her getting ready to leave. He tells her that the Duke will kill Christian, but Satine still continues. Zidler then tells her that she is dying of consumption and she gives up. Zidler tells her to make Christian believe that she doesn't love him and she reluctantly agrees. The next day, Satine sadly makes her way back to Christian's loft and claims that she is staying with the Duke. Heartbroken, Christian follows Satine back to the Moulin Rouge and calls for her, only to be beaten by two men and refused entry.
On the opening night of "Spectacular Spectacular", Toulouse-Lautrec tries to convince Christian that Satine still loves him, and he decides to go to the Moulin Rouge to make sure. As the show starts, Christian approaches Satine, trying to pay her for the sex that she had freely given to him with her heart, but Satine tries to send him away, fearing that the Duke's bodyguard will kill him. Suddenly, the two find themselves in the spotlight on stage, momentarily confusing the performers and audience. Zidler quickly improvises, stating that Christian is the sitar player in disguise. Christian tells the Duke that Satine is his now, throws money at her and tells her that she means nothing to him and walks offstage. As he leaves the theater, Toulouse-Lautrec shouts from the rafters "The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return." Satine sings their "secret song", showing Christian that she still truly loves him. Christian joins her in singing the song and walks back onstage, angering the Duke. The Duke's bodyguard attempts to kill Christian, but the courtesans and Bohemians stop him; the Duke then tries to finish the job himself, only to be stopped by Zidler, who knocks the Duke to the ground, sending the gun out of reach. The lovers finish their song to a standing ovation and the Duke storms out of the Moulin Rouge. As the performers get ready to take a bow, Satine finally succumbs to her illness, and dies in Christian's arms after convincing him to tell their story.
When asked about his inspiration for Moulin Rouge, Luhrmann remarked:
| “ | Catherine Martin (production designer and Luhrmann's wife) and I went to India to work on Midsummer Night's Dream. We went out one night and there was a big poster up for a Bollywood movie. I said, "Let's go see that." We did — 2,000 audience members, high comedy, high tragedy, brother kills brother, [they] break out in some musical numbers, all jumbled up together in 4 hours of Hindi. We thought that was amazing. So our question was, 'Could we create a cinematic form like that? Could a musical work?' A musical must be able to work in western culture again, and could it be comic-tragic? So then began this commitment of moving toward 'Moulin Rouge.' I decided I'd do Romeo + Juliet and then a musical film.[3] | ” |
There was also a play within the film, "Spectacular Spectacular". which itself may have been based on an ancient Sanskrit play, The Little Clay Cart. In addition to the Indian influence, Luhrmann has revealed in the DVD's voice-over commentary that he drew from the Greek tragedy of Orpheus and Eurydice. Orpheus was a musical genius far surpassing anyone in his world; the filmmakers chose to replicate this by using songs from the mid-to-late 20th century, many decades after the film's 1899 setting. In this way, Christian would appear to the other characters to be a brilliant musician and writer.
Kate Winslet, Charlize Theron, Renée Zellweger, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Uma Thurman, Sharleen Spiteri, Courtney Love, Winona Ryder, Patricia Arquette, Naomi Watts, Gwyneth Paltrow, Claire Danes, Kate Beckinsale, Madonna and Catherine Zeta-Jones were all contenders for the part of Satine; Nicole Kidman received the role. Heath Ledger, Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Leonardo DiCaprio, Sam Worthington, Christian Bale, Justin Timberlake, Robbie Williams, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Scott Speedman, and Russell Crowe were all considered for the part of Christian; Ewan McGregor was chosen for the role.
Production on the film began in November 1999 and was completed in May 2000, with a budget of $52.5 million.[1] Filming generally went smoothly, with the only major problem occurring when Kidman injured her ribs while filming one of the more complicated dance sequences. The production also overran in its shooting schedule and had to be out of the Fox Studios in Sydney to make way for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (in which McGregor also starred). This necessitated some pick-up shots being filmed in Madrid.
In the liner notes to the film's Special Edition DVD, Luhrmann writes that "[the] whole stylistic premise has been to decode what the Moulin Rouge was to the audiences of 1899 and express that same thrill and excitement in a way to which contemporary movie-goers can relate." With that in mind, the film takes well-known popular music, mostly drawn from the MTV Generation, and anachronizes it into a tale set in a turn-of-the-century Paris cabaret. The movie also features editing that several critics compared to a music video, involving swirling camera motion, loud music, dancing, and frenetic cutting. Some of the songs sampled include "Chamma Chamma" from the Hindi movie China Gate, Queen's "The Show Must Go On" (arranged in operatic format), David Bowie's rendition of Nat King Cole's "Nature Boy," "Lady Marmalade" by Patti LaBelle (the Christina Aguilera/P!nk/Mýa/Lil’ Kim cover commissioned for the film), Madonna's "Like a Virgin" and "Material Girl," Elton John's "Your Song," the titular number of "The Sound of Music," "Roxanne" by The Police (in a tango format, composed by Mariano Mores), and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana, a song rarely used in films. The film uses so much popular music that it took Luhrmann almost two years to secure all the rights to the songs.
Originally set for release on Christmas 2000 as a high profile Oscar contender, 20th Century Fox eventually moved the release to the following spring so director Baz Luhrmann would have more time during post production. The film premiered at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival[5] on May 9 — making it the festival's opening title. A limited release on May 18, 2001 in the United States followed, and the film was released to theaters across the United States on June 1, 2001.
The film was an instant success in limited release, grossing $185,095 in only two theaters on opening weekend. Representatives from the studio said that many audiences even burst into applause during the screenings. The numbers continued to increase over the Memorial Day weekend, with the film making $254,098. When it expanded into over 2500 theaters, it made $14.2 million in its first weekend of wide release. The film eventually grossed over $57 million in the United States. It had a brief re-release in October 2001 for Oscar consideration, with Luhrmann stating that his intent was to get Kidman and McGregor nominated.
The movie was even more successful internationally. It broke box office records in Australia where it was given a rare theatrical re-release at the end of 2001, and found a stable audience in almost every country. It eventually made over $120 million internationally, resulting in over $177 million worldwide.
| Academy Awards record | |
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| 1. Best Costume Design | |
| 2. Best Art Direction-Set Decoration | |
| Golden Globe Awards record | |
| 1. Best Picture - Musical or Comedy | |
| 2. Best Actress - Musical or Comedy (Nicole Kidman) |
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| 3. Best Original Score | |
| BAFTA Awards record | |
| 1. Best Supporting Actor (Jim Broadbent) |
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| 2. Best Film Music (Craig Armstrong) |
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| 3. Best Sound | |
The film was selected by the National Board of Review as the best film of 2001.Entertainment Weekly put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "Baz Luhrmann's trippy pop culture pastiche from 2001 was an aesthetically arresting ode to poetry, passion, and Elton John. It was so good, we'll forgive him for Australia."[6] After that, it picked up six Golden Globe nominations including Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy, Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy (for Nicole Kidman), Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy (for Ewan McGregor), Best Original Score (for Craig Armstrong), Best Director (for Baz Luhrmann) and Best Song ("Come What May"). It won three including the coveted Best Picture trophy. A few weeks later, it received 13 nominations at the BAFTA Awards, making it the most nominated film of the year for that ceremony. It took home three, including Best Supporting Actor for Jim Broadbent.
When Oscar nominations were announced, the film received eight nominations including Best Actress in a Leading Role (Nicole Kidman) and Best Picture. The film was not nominated for Best Director (Baz Luhrmann); commenting on this during the Oscar ceremony, host Whoopi Goldberg remarked, "I guess Moulin Rouge! just directed itself." It took home two Oscars when the winners were announced for Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction; subsequently many proponents of the film claimed that it had been unjustly snubbed at the Academy Awards.
"Come What May" (the only original song in the film) was disqualified from nomination for an Oscar because it was originally written (but unused) for Luhrmann's previous film William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet and not written expressly for Moulin Rouge![7]
Songs sung in the film:
The following is a partial list of songs featured in the film along with the artist that popularized them.
Elephant Love Medley:
Two soundtrack albums were released, with the second coming after the first one's massive success. The first volume featured the smash hit single "Lady Marmalade", performed by Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mýa and Pink. The first soundtrack, Moulin Rouge! Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film, was released in May 2001, with the second Moulin Rouge! Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film, Vol. 2 following in 2002.
For a while in 2002/2003, there was vast speculation on the possibility of a stage musical based on Moulin Rouge!, possibly in Las Vegas, but there have been no public talks in the years since.[8] Some sources claimed in 2006 that the director, Baz Luhrmann, had approached the leads of the film (Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor) to star in the potential stage version.[9]
| Awards | ||
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| Preceded by Almost Famous |
Golden Globe: Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy 2002 |
Succeeded by Chicago |
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Moulin Rouge! is a 2001 film set in turn of the century Paris in the Bohemian yet derelict district of Montmartre. Centered on the Bohemian ideals of truth, beauty, freedom, and love, Moulin Rouge! follows the story of two lovers, Christian and Satine, who above all, believe in preserving their secret love in the midst of an environment hostile to such an affair.
Contents |
In the order sung in the movie:
Nature Boy
Sparkling Diamonds
(instrumental)
One Day I'll Fly Away
Elephant Love Medley
Come What May
El Tango De Roxanne
| Moulin Rouge! | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Baz Luhrmann |
| Produced by | Baz Luhrmann Fred Baron |
| Written by | Baz Luhrmann Craig Pearce |
| Starring | Ewan McGregor Nicole Kidman Jim Broadbent John Leguizamo Richard Roxburgh |
| Music by | Craig Armstrong |
| Cinematography | Donald McAlpine |
| Editing by | Jill Bilcock |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | May 16, 2001 |
| Running time | 127 min. |
| Country | |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $52.5 million |
| Gross revenue | $177,000,000 |
| Official website | |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Moulin Rouge! is a 2001 Academy Award-winning musical movie directed by Baz Luhrmann. It stars Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor. The movie is set in Paris, France in the 1890s. It tells the story of a young British writer called Christian, who falls in love with an actress called Satine, the leading lady of the famous nightclub, the Moulin Rouge.
Moulin Rouge! was mostly shot at Fox Studios in Sydney, Australia. It was nominated for eight Oscars. It won two; for art direction and costume design. In 2006 it was ranked #25 on the American Film Institute's list of best musicals.
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The "Moulin Rouge" is a famous nightclub with a cabaret (or dance show). The name "Moulin Rouge" means "Red Windmill". In the late 1800s there was a real windmill where the nightclub stands near Montmartre in Paris. Now there is a large model of a windmill on the roof of the building. Since the 1889 this nightclub has been famous for its dancing, in particular for the "can-can", a very lively dance in which the dancers, wearing long frilly skirts, kick their legs very high and show their underwear. (In the 1890s, women wore long dresses, to their ankles.) Even though this entertainment was not thought of as very polite, it was very popular and the "can-can" became a symbol of Paris. The "Moulin Rouge" is still very popular
The word Bohemian was first used in Paris to mean a Gypsy because many people thought that Gypsies came from Bohemia. The word was then used for poor artists and writers, who often travelled to Paris from other towns and tried to earn money by their painting or writing. Paris was a famous town for both painters and writers to gather, to learn from each other and to enjoy the life of the city. Many of them lived at Montmartre, not far from the "Moulin Rouge". One of the most famous painters to live in Montmartre was Henri Toulouse-Lautrec. He loved to paint the can-can dancers and prostitutes. He did many posters to advertise the nightclubs. The posters are now famous works of art.
La bohème means "the Bohemian". It is the name of a famous opera written by Giacomo Puccini. It is about a young man who lives in a group of poor artists and writers, and who meets and falls in love with a beautiful girl. The opera is very well known and Baz Luhrmann deliberately used parts of the story in his movie. The plot of the movie is very much like another opera called La traviata written by Giuseppe Verdi. It is also thought that Luhrmann may have got the idea to make Moulin Rouge! after watching Dil Se. This movie was made in 1998 and directed by Mani Ratnam. It is a love story set in India.
There have been four previous movies called "Moulin Rouge". The earliest was a silent movie made in 1928. The latest was made in 1956 and was about the life of the painter, Toulouse-Lautrec. Baz Luhrmann used Toulouse-Lautrec as an important character in his movie.
Baz Luhrmann had directed another movie in which a love story is set against a background of dance, costumes and colourful scenes. This is Strictly Ballroom made in 1992. In Moulin Rouge!, he chose the colourful life of Paris in a time often called "the Naughty Nineties" as a background. But Lurhmann's plan was not to make a movie about history. He wanted to make a movie that the people of today would enjoy, just as much as the people of Paris had enjoyed the can-can in the 1890s. So Luhrmann did not use the music, dance-styles and lighting of the 1890s. He used popular modern music that young people already knew, and he used modern lighting, special effects and cosume ideas to create a movie that young people would think was very entertaining.
Kate Winslet, Charlize Theron, Renee Zellweger, and Catherine Zeta-Jones were all thought of for the part of Satine. Courtney Love was almost cast in the role, but lost out to Kidman at the last minute because Luhrmann felt that Love would not fit into the movie well. Heath Ledger, Hugh Jackman, and Russell Crowe were all considered for the part of Christian. [1]
Production on the movie began in November 1999 and was finished in May 2000, with a budget of just over $50 million. Nicole Kidman reportedly wasn't interested in doing the musical until she heard Baz Luhrmann would be directing it. [2] Filming generally went smoothly, with the only major problem being when Nicole Kidman injured her knee while filming one of the more complicated dance sequences. The production also overran in its shooting schedule and had to be out of the Fox Studios in Sydney to make way for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (in which Ewan McGregor also starred). This meant some parts had to be filmed in Madrid, Spain. [3]
The movie is set in the year 1900. Christian (played by Ewan McGregor) is a British writer who came to the village of Montmartre in Paris in 1899, when the Bohemian movement was at its most popular. He sits in a flat looking down on the closed-down theatre called the Moulin Rouge while writing on a typewriter. The story he is writing is about the woman he loved, Satine (played by Nicole Kidman).
In 1899, Christian arrives in Paris, and makes friends with a group of Bohemians who visit the Moulin Rouge regularly. They are trying to produce a musical called "Spectacular Spectacular", which the owner of the Moulin Rouge, Harold Zidler (played by Jim Broadbent), plans to show at the cabaret. The Bohemians' leader, Toulouse-Lautrec (played by John Leguizamo), is pleased with Christian's talent at writing and insists that he write their musical, "Spectacular Spectacular". Once they find out that Christian is an amazing writer, they come up with an complicated plan of presenting Christian to Satine, who is a beautiful courtesan, in the hopes that she will be impressed with him and persuade Zidler to hire Christian as the writer of the musical.
Satine understands what her work involves, although she hopes of leaving the Moulin Rouge to become a "real" actress. Through a series of misunderstandings, she mistakes Christian for the rich and powerful Duke who will invest in the musical, "Spectacular Spectacular". She is enchanted by his poetry. She declares that she has fallen in love with him, but is shocked to realize he's actually a poor Bohemian poet.
After a bit, the real Duke (played by Richard Roburgh) finds Christian and Satine together. They manage to trick him into believing that they were working on the musical, "Spectacular Spectacular". The main cast arrive and improvise the plot of the show on the spot: a beautiful Indian courtesan has her kingdom invaded by an "evil maharaja". She sets out to seduce him to save her kingdom, but accidentally seduces and then falls in love with a penniless sitar player. The two must hide their love and avoid the maharaja, though it is implied that one of them may die at the end of the story. (It is soon realized that the theme of their play foreshadows what happens in the movie's plot.) The Duke agrees to support the show. But, he quickly shows that he is a violently jealous man who will shut down the Moulin Rouge if he does not get Satine to himself. Nevertheless, he accepts that Satine will be busy with rehearsals and in close contact with Christian, the writer of the musical.
Christian and Satine fall in love, while Zidler struggles to keep the Duke interested in the musical "Spectacular Spectacular" even though Satine has not yet slept with him. Harold Zidler also discovers that Satine is dying of a disease called tuberculosis, but does not tell anyone because of his motto, "The show must go on". Meanwhile, Christian continues to work on the play, in which the courtesan and the penniless sitar player end up together. The Duke, however, does not appreciate the ending and tells the cast that the courtesan must end up with the maharaja. To convince the Duke to change his mind, Satine finally agrees to spend the night with him. Christian is overcome with jealousy while Satine has dinner with the Duke, who offers her everything she has dreamt of. However, when Satine spots Christian on the street below, she refuses the Duke's offer, and he tries to rape her. After she escapes, Satine and Christian plan to run away.
By now, the Duke has realized Satine's tricks, and tells Zidler that, if the "maharaja" does not get his "courtesan", he will have the "penniless sitar player" killed. Nonetheless, Zidler must inform Satine of her final condition before she agrees to give up on the escape plan. She goes to Christian and lies to him, convincing him that her love was an act in the hopes that this will make him want to leave Paris and therefore save his life.
As the show opens, Satine performs tiredly, knowing that her life is almost up. Christian, refusing to give up on Satine, confronts her backstage. When she tries to force him off again, he takes the place of the show's hero, throwing money at her feet to "pay his whore", and storming off the stage. Satine confesses her love for him in the form of his secret song, and Christian and Satine get back together in full view of the audience and the Duke. The Duke attempts to shoot Christian, but Zidler forces him off. The audience applauds what they think is a good drama, but backstage, Satine is overcome by her illness and dies in Christian's arms. As her final wish, she asks Christian to tell their story.
A year later, still in his flat overlooking the empty red windmill, Christian finally types the last page of his work, ending it with the couplet, "The greatest thing you will ever learn, is just to love, and be loved in return."[4]
The following is a list of some of the songs featured in the movie along with the artist that popularized them.
Elephant Love Medley
Two soundtrack albums were released, with the second coming after the huge success of the first one. The first volume featured the smash hit single "Lady Marmalade", performed by Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mýa and Pink. The first soundtrack, Moulin Rouge! Music From Baz Luhrmann's Film, was released in May 2001, with the second Moulin Rouge! Music From Baz Luhrmann's Film, Vol. 2 following in 2002.
Award wins:
Award nominations:
| The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return | — Toulouse-Lautrec (John Leguizamo)
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