“Above all things I believe in love”

This post is for The Film Experience’s Hit Me With Your Best Shot Series. I knew that Moulin Rouge was going to be tough to choose a shot from because I’ve loved the entire film since before I even saw it. I was in high school when the film was coming out and I had already memorized the soundtrack, covered my walls in magazine cut outs from it (I miss Premiere!) and bought an official promotional tank top from from eBay. Plus the movie is so gorgeous that any shot is stunning.

However I realized what really stuck out for me when I first saw the film, Nicole Kidman. Going into it I was already a big fan of Baz Luhrmann’s Strictly Ballroom and Romeo and Juliet and Ewan McGregor (in anything, I was so gaga over him). Between her performance in Eyes Wide Shut and this film I realized how talented she was. When I was growing up I only thought of her as Mrs. Tom Cruise or someone who was impeccably dressed at awards shows. Of course since then I’ve been a huge fan of her work but at the time this was a bit of a shock to me.

The scene that comes to mind is when she is practicing to seduce Ewan McGregor’s Christian because she thinks that he is the Duke. She gets to be really silly in this scene. Her expressions kill me.

(click any of the screencaps for the full size photo)

"smoldering temptress" - my favorite

"wilting flower"

"bright and bubbly"

Of course I had to screencap more, just for fun.

Gratuitous Ewan McGregor

Gratuitous Romance

Kylie Minogue as The Green Fairy

Jim Broadbent is great as the over the top Harold Zidler

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