The beginning of Amadeus is entirely devoted to Antonio Salieri's obsession with Mozart, his one-sided rivalry with the vastly more talented musician. So despite the fact that the movie is named for Mozart, you don't actually see him until a ways into the film. There's this massive build up of anticipation to see the musical prodigy, and when people think of someone so talented they tend to picture a serious, dignified figure. But then the audience (and Salieri with them, as this is his first glimpse of the musician as well) meets Mozart, and well...he's a drunken mess obsessed with scatological humor chasing after a pretty girl. Salieri is so shocked to see the famed composer whose genius was praised far and wide that he's actually offended by him, that this fool is the man God has blessed with such talent. Salieri views music with devotional reverence and is a technically proficient composer and performer, but he knows that no matter how hard he works, he will never be as good as Mozart is on his worst day, and that eats him up inside.
Audrey Fox is an ex-film student, which means that she prefers to spend her days in the dark, watching movies and pondering the director's use of diegetic sound. She currently works as an entertainment writer, joyfully rambling about all things film and television related. Add her on Twitter at @audonamission and check out her film blog at 1001moviesandbeyond.com.
