Whenever anyone asks me about my favorite films, Moulin Rouge is always at the top of my list. My film friends usually pause at that, then consider it, and then nod. They get it. My Christian friends are usually floored. My favorite film is a musical about a prostitute and a brothel? Yep. It really takes it to the next level when I tell them that I love the messages of faith, hope, and God’s redeeming love in the film. Wait…what? Yes. Every time I watch Moulin Rouge, I am hit with it all over again.
For those who don’t know, Moulin Rouge is the final chapter of Baz Luhrman’s Red Curtain Trilogy. The first film, Strictly Ballroom, is also a favorite of mine. You may have also heard of the other film, Romeo and Juliet with Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio.
Moulin Rouge is the story of a penniless writer who visits the Montmartre Quarter of Paris at the turn of the century. He’s just in time to get caught up in the Bohemian revolution that espouses beauty, truth, freedom and love. The young man’s problem is that he’s never been in love.
Christian (played by the wonderful and amazing Ewan McGregor) becomes embroiled in a madcap scheme surrounding a play, the Moulin Rouge brothel/dance hall, and a very wealthy Duke. When he meets the most famous prostitute in the Quarter, Satine (Nicole Kidman) Christian is immediately smitten and soon, the two of them fall in love.
If you haven’t watched Moulin Rouge, I cannot more strongly recommend this film. To me, it achieves the highest standards in film across the board in everything from the costumes to the set dressing and of course – the story! I should also mention here that both McGregor and Kidman took voice lessons, practiced relentlessly, and performed beautifully on the soundtrack as well.
But let’s get back to that part that always surprises people. Biblical messages in a movie about a brothel, a writer, and a prostitute? They run through this film from beginning to end, but for the sake of brevity, here are just a few observations.
What’s in a Name?
The biggest, most obvious one to me is that the main character is named Christian. Stepping back and looking at the big picture, a young man named Christian comes into the trenches of one of the most depraved area of society and shows a young woman who has been enslaved in sin and debauchery her true value by loving her. His love ultimately ends up being what changes everyone and everything in Montmartre. No one who witnessed the love he showed Satine was left unchanged. That’s a very broad brush to paint everything and it does gloss over a variety of sins and theological issues that I am sure that people will have with it. But as I said, it is the big picture view. The love of Christian, despite past sins and ugly lifestyles, has the potential to change everything and make someone ‘reborn’ with a new attitude/life.
True Colors Shining Through
Over the course of the film we can also see the subtle color shifts in the movie. Christian’s colors are blue. He is almost always seen in blue in the film while Satine begins her story in the color red. As the movie goes on, she shifts to pink as she softens and eventually, in a climactic scene, she is wearing Christian’s brilliant blue from head to toe. By the end of the film and final scenes, she’s in white at the same time she and those around her acknowledge that she is not the same person who started this journey. She’s been made new by love.
The Whispers of the Enemy
Satine is someone who has always dreamed of being a ‘real actress’ but she’s never been able to leave the life of trafficking and slavery that she had been in since being a child. This is covered extensively in the film from the early moments where Christian is trying to tell her what love is and she believes it’s only a physical act between a man and woman. She repeatedly tells Christian that she doesn’t believe in love, it doesn’t exist and even if it does, she doesn’t want it.
Later, she sings One Day I’ll Fly Away, a haunting song that touches on all of these themes while crying out about being a creature of the night who isn’t welcome in the light. But ultimately there’s hope that one day she’ll be able to live in the light again. Every time I hear it, I feel in my core that this is the human condition longing for more. I believe most, if not all of us, have felt that deep, aching longing in our souls for something more.
At one point in the film Satine is packing. She’s ready to escape all of the ugliness she’s lived in. But she is pulled back one more time by her pimp, Zidler. He tells her that the Duke will kill Christian if she doesn’t stay and sleep with him. Satine has been gaslighted her whole life. Fed lies and manipulated to make money for other people, she visibly strengthens her spine, breathes deep, and sets herself for the battle that she knows is coming. She screams at Zidler.
No matter how many times I watch this movie, this scene hits me like a sucker punch every single time. It never fails to bring tears. Because out of everything in the movie, this is the line that exemplifies what Satan tries to do every single day. Whatever he can do to sweep our feet out from under us, make us doubt ourselves, or forget that we are loved, he will do. He doesn’t ever let up or stop that. And for the first time, Satine knows and understands that she has value. It’s not what she does for someone or what she looks like or any other thing within her control. She is loved by Christian simply because of who she is. The acceptance he gives her. The safe space to be real and broken and still be loved.
As the Curtain Falls
Now as we approach the final act and prepare for the curtain calls please let me remind you that I am fully aware that there are theological issues in all of these examples. It would be very easy to get bogged down arguing those points. But I look at it this way. Jesus told stories to make people understand better. A simple farmer can understand God’s love through the parable of the seeds/sower. Someone who has spent their lives hating Samaritans might see the world differently by hearing Christ’s story of the Good Samaritan. These beautiful parables have the ability to simply shift someone’s perspective or open their heart for more. So perhaps while watching a story play out on a screen (big or small) it might just be possible that some seed we don’t fully understand might have been planted.
Have you seen Moulin Rouge? If so, I would love to hear your thoughts on it! You can find me on Facebook, Instagram, or comment here.
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