Romania’s most uncompromising genius, Sergiu Celibidache, gets his close-up.
THE YELLOW TIE played at SBIFF (Santa Barbara International Film Festival), and I had the opportunity to see an early look. Here’s my spoiler-free take:
If you’re a fan of composers, conductors, and classical music, THE YELLOW TIE is just for you. Directed and co-written by Serge Ioan Celebidachi about his father, the late Romanian maestro Sergiu Celibidache, who left behind his political dynasty family in Romania to pursue his love of music across Europe and beyond. The film is stunningly gorgeous, but I didn’t find the subject matter all that interesting.
As depicted in THE YELLOW TIE, Celibidache was known for not wanting any of his performances to be recorded. He believed the optimum way to experience the music he was conducting, whether his own or that of other composers, was live, in the very moment he was performing, and the symphonies were playing. His beliefs were informed by his study of Zen Buddhism, in which he held that these performances created a “transcendent experience” for the listener.
Before screening THE YELLOW TIE, I was not familiar with Celibidache, and after I feel the film was an educational experience. American actor Ben Schnetzer portrays Celibidache throughout much of his life, depicted on screen, and he really made me feel like he could have been a real conductor. Legendary actor John Malkovich is Serge later in life and may get top billing here, but make no mistake, Schnetzer is really the star, bringing Celibidache to life. Sean Bean and Miranda Richardson appear in smaller roles as Serge’s father and his wife in her later years, respectively.
My favorite aspect of THE YELLOW tie is the cinematography, handled by Peter Menzies Jr. Even though the film is about music, and there is much of that, it’s the camera work – the way it moves around Celibidache’s performances and how it brings us, the audience, right into these stunning European settings, especially the Sala Palatului in Bucharest. Tied together with a moving score, I often felt like I was right at the Philharmonic present for a Celibidache performance.
I can imagine if Celibidache is someone you’re a fan of or you’re curious about his life, THE YELLOW TIE will be an “experience now” for you. But I shouldn’t have to know anything about the subject matter to enjoy a movie like this to its fullest. Celibidache did have struggles in life, but they weren’t nearly the worst trials to overcome as we often see in other biopics. And while I commend Celibidache for his insistence on not releasing his performance recordings (although some do exist), this put a constant bug in my brain: Would Celibidache be annoyed we are watching other actors portray him while viewing and listening to them act out his performances?
THE YELLOW TIE recently screened at The Santa Barbara International Film Festival and is enjoying some special screenings in Romania. You can find an updated schedule of future screenings on the film’s Facebook page.
