The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

This film is not to be mistaken for the extravagant Baz Luhrrmann / Nicole Kidman / Ewan McGregor masterpiece musical, this film from Oscar nominated director John Huston (The Asphalt Jungle, The African Queen, Prizzi's Honor) is the original version it was based on. Basically in the year 1890 in Paris, France, young artist Henri de Toulouse- Lautrec (Oscar nominated José Ferrer) is a frequent visit at the Moulin Rouge nightclub, there he enjoys a drink of cognac and draws sketches of the dancers and singers, including Jane Avril (Zsa Zsa Gabor). Henri is the son of a French count, his legs were badly deformed by a childhood fall, he stands at four-foot six- inches tall, and he has an unhappy time in his personal life. Whilst going home one night he asked for a help by a young woman on the streets, the spirited Marie Charlet (Golden Globe winning, and Oscar and BAFTA nominated Colette Marchand), after some time he falls in love with her and they become involved in an uproarious relationship. As time goes by however it becomes increasingly difficult for Henri to balance his personal feelings, his artistic abilities and his family name and position, but he does go on to become a great master of Impressionism. Also starring Ferrer as Count Alphonse de Toulouse-Lautrec - his father, Suzanne Flon as Myriamme Hayem, Katherine Kath as La Goulue, Claude Nollier as Countess Adèle de Toulouse-Lautrec, Muriel Smith as Aicha and Georges Lannes as Police Sergeant Patou. Ferrer gives a great performance as the dwarf artist (not sympathy seeking) who has many weaknesses that are brought out, and Gabor with her time on screen makes a beautiful dancer, there are some good elaborate dance and performance sequences, but most of the film I found too chatty, obviously it is based on a true story, seeing the dark side of the glitzy world was good, and there is good use of colour and costume, but I think you should stick to the 2001 remake, but this is an interesting biographical drama film. It won the Oscar for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration and Best Costume Design, and it was nominated for Best Picture and Best Film Editing, it was nominated the BAFTA for Best British Film and Best Film from any Source. Worth watching!

The artist Henri De Toulouse-Lautrec, came from a grand and Noble family. Handicapped with a birth deformity brought about when cousins marry, he nevertheless rose to prominence as a post Impressionist in Paris during the 1890s. Created for the silver screen, by director John Huston, this incredible movie " Moulin Rouge " stars the very versatile actor, Jose Ferrer. Although it encapsulates the artist's brief life of 36 years, it nevertheless highlights the auspicious moments of his career and his lonely search for acceptance in and out of love. The film depicts the early painful years at his family's estate and his beloved Montmartre where other famed artisans, writers and philosophers of the day, came to share their thoughts. Recognition for his artistic ability, like so many, was slow in developing. While associating with the lowest street segments of Paris, he was always cognizant of the fact he would never be considered anything but a grotesque figure of a man. Ferrer played Lautrec as a tortured soul with an immense talent for painting as well as a sober alcoholic which would eventually destroy him. As a result, we see him at his usual nightly seat at the Moulin nightclub where the "French Can-Can" was created and would go on to become as world renown as the visiting artist. The movie also contains other notable stars such as Zsa Zsa Gabor, Peter Cushing and Theodore Bikel. The result being a Classic film which is so superbly made it will live on as long as the paintings of Henri De Toulouse-Lautrec. It that, the artist never knew how well he had succeeded. *****

I have seen many biopics, but very few if any have the sympathy and heart for the main character as much as this John Huston-directed film about famous French painter Henri Toulouse-Lautrec. A childhood accident left his legs to stop growing at the same rate as the rest of his body, which in his mind and many around him left him an ugly monstrous creature too short to be minded. Born into aristocracy, the accident left him feeling below his father's expectations so he found his niche in painting and soon moved to Paris to further explore this output.Despite being a fictional account of this great painter's life, Huston is able to derive a certain amount of realism thanks to the marvelous art and costume direction. Set in the late 1800's of Paris, the opening scene is a wild and rambunctious evening at the famous dancing café Moulin Rouge, a favorite hangout of Lautrec and other artists. The film focuses mostly on his trauma from his deformity, which in turn affects any relationship he has with women as well as his feelings for himself. Being very cynical, he views the world simply as a drawing which he can never be a part of. Jose Ferrer perfectly captures his tortured soul in each scene and it is a great performance. The supporting cast is good including Zsa Zsa Gabor as a woman with whom perhaps he has the best kind of relationship; purely platonic. The film does tend to head into some melodramatic material in the final quarter, but that is a small quibble for an otherwise magnificent production that is gorgeous to look at as well as truly loving of this incredible painter who didn't let his shortcomings affect the one thing he could give to this world.

I can't believe a director as talented as John Huston, following up "African Queen" and other successes, would pick such an inexperienced, untested, untrained actress(?) as Zsa Zsa Gabor for this major role. Zsa Zsa through out her career, was just an interesting character, popular more for her accent then her acting ability.Others have stated that Huston was unkind, if not abusive to her on the set, so why didn't he just replace her?Zsa Zsa has no other film credit of any note before or since. She could have gone on "What's My Line" before 1952 with a not blindfolded panel and no one would dare guess what her line was, because the word couldn't be mentioned on the air. What a stupid way to say I think she was a prostitute before she was an actress or in other words, Huston hired a prostitute, to play a prostitute.I do give her credit, she made more out of a sexy voice, etc., than almost anyone in Hollywood.Jose Ferrer received an Oscar nomination for literally stumbling thru his role as Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Not unlike George Clooney's nomination for his uneven performance this past year (2007) for "Michael Clayton".I loved "Moulin Rouge when I was 12 and it first came out in 1952. I can't stand it now. I agree with most of the other comments, especially that the costume and set decorations (both received Oscars) still give you the feeling of a bawdy Paris nightclub at the turn of the century. The dance sequences are excellent on every levelThe filming and technical accomplishments (camera angles) and the hazed look to the nightclub, show Huston at his best, and in some respects, this is a break thru for the film industry for 1952. I would guess that Huston rushed this film to completion and release on Dec 23, 1952 so that it would qualify for Oscar nominations that year. There can be almost no other excuse for the horrible lip sync problems especially with Zsa Zsa. You might think they were trying to sync her up saying her lines in Hungarian, with the English equivalents. Its sad that several other Hollywood films have fallen victim to this rush to release and terrible dubbing.Like so many movies that must draw you into the film, this one does not translate well to the small screen.Still haunting to listen too after all these years is the title song performed by Felicia Sanders with the Percy Faith orchestra, which is not in the movie.I hope I can post this without assigning a value, because at some times in my life and at some points of this uneven film its a "10" while at others its a "2"The above are just my opinions, that I know no one will agree with, however that's the only reason I write on IMDb, to be disagreeable.You have to realize I am a split personality, one crazy, the other just rude and insensitive. Why else would I see both Michael Clayton (theatre) and later Moulin Rouge (TV) on the same day and feel the need to comment on both.It is 1/26/09 and I am aware of Zsa Zsa loses at the hands of Bernard Madoff, which I find truly tragic and unfair to her. Since my opinions above maybe also viewed as unfair, unkind and untrue, I withdrawn them, but I'm not going to erase them. If I erase them no one will know "I'm Still Crazy After All These Years"