Amadeus (film)

Amadeus
Theatrical release poster by Peter Sís
Directed byMiloš Forman
Screenplay byPeter Shaffer
Based onAmadeus
by Peter Shaffer
Produced bySaul Zaentz
Starring
  • F. Murray Abraham
  • Tom Hulce
  • Elizabeth Berridge
  • Simon Callow
  • Roy Dotrice
  • Christine Ebersole
  • Jeffrey Jones
  • Charles Kay
CinematographyMiroslav Ondříček
Edited by
  • Nena Danevic
  • Michael Chandler
Production
company
The Saul Zaentz Company
Distributed by
  • Orion Pictures (United States)
  • Thorn EMI Screen Entertainment (International)[1]
Release dates
  • September 6, 1984 (1984-09-06) (Los Angeles)
  • September 19, 1984 (1984-09-19) (United States)
Running time
161 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$18 million[2]
Box office$90 million[3]

Amadeus is a 1984 American period biographical drama film directed by Miloš Forman, starring F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce. Peter Shaffer adapted it from his 1979 stage play Amadeus, originally inspired by Alexander Pushkin's 1830 play Mozart and Salieri. Shaffer described it as a "fantasia on [a real-life] theme", as it imagines a rivalry between two 18th-century Vienna composers, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Hulce) and Antonio Salieri (Abraham). Salieri struggles to reconcile his professional admiration and jealous hatred for Mozart, and resolves to ruin Mozart's career as his vengeance against God.

Amadeus received its world premiere in Los Angeles on September 6, 1984. It was released by Orion Pictures thirteen days later on September 19, 1984, to widespread acclaim as a box office hit, grossing over $90 million. It was nominated for 53 awards and received 40, including eight Academy Awards (including Best Picture and Best Director), four BAFTA Awards, four Golden Globe Awards (including Best Motion Picture – Drama and Best Director), and a Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film. Abraham and Hulce were both nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, with Abraham winning. In 1998, the American Film Institute ranked it 53rd on its 100 Years... 100 Movies list. In 2019, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[4][5][6]

  1. ^ a b "Amadeus". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on September 21, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  2. ^ "Amadeus (1984) – Financial Information". The Numbers. Archived from the original on February 12, 2018. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference ww was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (December 11, 2019). "National Film Registry Adds 'Purple Rain', 'Clerks', 'Gaslight' & More; 'Boys Don't Cry' One Of Record 7 Pics From Female Helmers". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  5. ^ "Women Rule 2019 National Film Registry". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on December 11, 2019. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  6. ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on May 7, 2016. Retrieved September 14, 2020.