| The Legend of 1900 | |
|---|---|
 Italian theatrical film poster | |
| Directed by | Giuseppe Tornatore |
| Screenplay by | Giuseppe Tornatore |
| Based on | Novecento byAlessandro Baricco |
| Produced by | Francesco Tornatore |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Lajos Koltai |
| Edited by | Massimo Quaglia |
| Music by | Ennio Morricone |
Production companies | Sciarlò Medusa Film |
| Distributed by | Medusa Film (Italy) Fine Line Features (International)[1] |
Release date |
|
Running time | 165 minutes(Original cut) 125 minutes[2] |
| Country | Italy |
| Languages | English French Italian |
| Budget | $9 million |
| Box office | $4 million (Italy)[3] $20.6 million (2019 re-release) |
The Legend of 1900 (Italian:La leggenda del pianista sull'oceano, "The Legend of the Pianist on the Ocean") is a 1998 Italian English-languagedrama film directed byGiuseppe Tornatore, and starringTim Roth,Pruitt Taylor Vince andMélanie Thierry. It was Tornatore's first English-language film.[4] The film is inspired byNovecento, amonologue byAlessandro Baricco. The film was nominated for a variety of awards worldwide, winning several forits soundtrack.
Musician Max Tooney goes to sell his prizedConntrumpet to a music shop, where he plays the instrument one last time. The shopkeeper recognises the song he plays as one on arecord matrix he found and asks who the piece is by. Max tells him the story of a baby boy who was found abandoned in the first class dining room of thefour stacker ocean liner SSVirginian onJanuary 1st1900. Danny Boodman, acoal-man from theboiler room, names the boy Danny Boodman T. D. Lemon 1900, after himself, the fruit crate the boy was found in, and the year, and raises him as his own.
Years later, Danny dies in a workplace accident and 1900 hides when the police come to place him in anorphanage; he is next seen playing thepiano, despite never having been taught. 1900 shows a gift for music as he grows up and joins the ship's orchestra, which Max joined in 1927 and became friends with him. 1900 never leaves the vessel, claiming the outside world is too "big" for his imagination, and he learns about the outside world and new music trends from the ship's passengers. His reputation as a pianist becomes so renowned that famedNew Orleans jazz musicianJelly Roll Morton boards the ship to challenge him to apiano duel. After hearing Morton's first tune, 1900 plays "Silent Night", a piece so simple and well known that Morton feels mocked and retaliates with "The Crave", so impressive it brings tears to 1900's eyes. 1900 then plays the same tune from memory, along his original piece "Enduring Movement", with such virtuosity and speed that the metal piano strings become hot enough to light a cigarette, which he hands to Morton as a gesture of victory.
Hearing of 1900's prowess, a record producer comes aboard the Virginian to cut ademo record of one of his original compositions. 1900 creates a piece inspired by "The Girl", a young female passenger with whom he becomes enamored, and the only person he considers leaving the ship for. After making the recording, 1900 decides he does not want anyone to hear his music unless he performs it live, and attempts to give the master disc to The Girl. However, he is unable to give it to her before she departs, and is unable to leave the ship to join her, and so discards the record, which Max later finds and stores inside a piano.
Max leaves the orchestra in 1933. More then a decade later, the Virginian has been discontinued, the hull deserted and sunk offshore and scheduled to bescuttled. Hearing this, and that 1900's whereabouts are unaccounted for, Max persuades the demolition company in charge of the destruction to let him search the hull for him. After initially being unable to find him, Max locates the record with 1900's composition for sale; believing it would lure out 1900 from hiding, he attempts to steal it. He is however discovered, but when Max explains, the seller lends him the record andphonograph to play it. Max returns to the hull and plays the record throughout, eventually discovering 1900, who is immovable about sinking with the ship, being daunted by the immenseness of the world and unable to bring himself to leave the only home he has ever known. The two friends part ways and 1900 spends his final moments playing an imaginary piano as the hull explodes.
Having finished the story, Max begins to leave the store when the shopkeeper gives him back the trumpet, saying that "a good story is worth more than an old trumpet".
The Legend of 1900 received mixed critical reviews. OnRotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 56% based on 41 reviews.[5] OnMetacritic, the film has a 58/100 rating based on 28 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[6]
The film grossed $4 million in Italy[3] and $259,127 in the United States. On 15 November 2019 the film was given a wide release in China and made 130 million yuan (the equivalent of about $18.4 million) in its first two weeks.[7]
| Year | Governing body | Award | Nominee and category[8] | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Camerimage | Golden Frog | Lajos Koltai for Best Cinematography | Lost toElizabeth[9] |
| David di Donatello | David | Lajos Koltai for Best Cinematography | Won | |
| Maurizio Millenotti for Best Costume Design | Won | |||
| Giuseppe Tornatore for Best Director | Won | |||
| Ennio Morricone for Best Music | Won | |||
| Francesco Frigeri for Best Production Design | Won | |||
| Best Film | Lost toFuori Dal Mondo[10] | |||
| Best Screenplay | Lost toFuori Dal Mondo | |||
| Scholars Jury David | Giuseppe Tornatore | Won | ||
| European Film Awards | European Film Award | Lajos Koltai for Best Cinematographer(also forSunshine) | Won | |
| Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists | Nastro d'Argento | Maurizio Millenotti for Best Costume Design | Won | |
| Giuseppe Tornatore for Best Director | Won | |||
| BestProducer | Won | |||
| Francesco Frigeri for Best Production Design | Won | |||
| Giuseppe Tornatore for Best Screenplay | Won | |||
| Nastro d'Argento Speciale | Ennio Morricone for the musical research for composing the movie's original score | Won | ||
| 2000 | Golden Globes | Golden Globe Award | Ennio Morricone for Best Original Score - Motion Picture | Won |
| Guild of German Art House Cinemas | Guild Film Award - Silver | Giuseppe Tornatore for Foreign Film | Won | |
| Satellite Awards | Golden Satellite Award | Francesco Frigeri and Bruno Cesari for Best Art Direction, Production Design | Lost toSleepy Hollow[11] | |
| Ennio Morricone for Best Original Score | Lost toSleepy Hollow |
