TOPSY-TURVY
1999

August 18, 2001
DVD

The trials and tribulations behind Gilbert and Sullivan’s creation of The Mikado.

-->Written and Directed…..Mike Leigh [High Hopes; Life Is Sweet; Naked; Secrets And Lies]
-->William Schwenk Gilbert…..Jim Broadbent [Time Bandits; Superman IV: The Quest For Peace; Life Is Sweet; Enchanted April; The Crying Game; Bullets Over Broadway; Moulin Rouge]
-->Arthur Sullivan…..Allan Corduner [Talk Radio; Fat Man And Little Boy; Norma Jean And Marilyn; Indian Summer]

Delightful tale of Gilbert and Sullivan’s partnership and the ups and downs of a life in the theater in the 1880s. Fantastic representation of backstage life. Not unlike present day. We see rehearsals, supportive lovers, ego battles, production company politics, prima donnas, substance abuse, costuming, and choreography. A bit long at 2:40ish but the music is so fantastic that one only has to wait for the next musical interlude. Both G & S are a bit pompous as their success is already widespread when we meet them. Gilbert is married and speaks in an educated and dry manner, though he has the best lines. Sullivan enjoys the company of many women, including prostitutes, but is no less classy. At the beginning we see an opera of some kind where a man in full armor sings about each piece as he takes it off. Surely, the two have reached the bottom of their creative well. This changes when Gilbert goes to a Japanese exhibit and sees the dance and song and some custom of Japanese life. He decides to write THE MIKADO. Sullivan feels he has a great ‘real’ opera in him if only he could get away from Gilbert’s creatively-lacking librettos. Sullivan to Gilbert: ‘In 1885 it was a magic coin, before that a magic lozenge.’ Gilbert: ‘In this instance, it’s a magic potion.’ I enjoyed it a lot. The details are important and correct. The balcony fills to capacity before more than a handful of the wealthy have seated themselves in the orchestra section. A song that had been removed the night before the opening is returned to the score after a nervous, but successfully organized protest by the chorus. Both male and female actors complain about their Japanese wardrobes. Laughter. Tears. Curtain.

10 Ebert
8.75 Maltin
*** Halliwells