Toxic or Not: MOULIN ROUGE

Is Moulin Rouge toxic… or not?

Licensed therapist Jonathan Decker and filmmaker Alan Seawright react to Moulin Rouge and question whether Christian and Satine’s relationship is toxic or not. In this series, they investigate if movie relationships claimed to be toxic really are and what “toxic” actually means. Jonathan explains how Christian and Satine’s perspectives on life vastly differ and how they work through that. Alan tries to talk, but Jonathan tells him to shut up while Ewan McGregor is singing.

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Cinema Therapy is:
Written by: Megan Seawright, Jonathan Decker, Alan Seawright, and Corinne Demyanovich
Produced by: Jonathan Decker, Megan Seawright, Alan Seawright, and Corinne Demyanovich
Edited by: Nathan Judd
Director of Photography: Bradley Olsen
English Transcription by: Anna Preis

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Music ID: 34GKRMWXUMAJJMBP

[danielstark]

It's over Anakin! He has the high notes!

[sameaston]

Alan:*any criticism to the movie*

Jono: Shut it!

[trinaq]

The film is undeniably over the top and campy, but it knows it. Much like "Titanic", the story is filtered through Christian's memories, and what he recalled as a naive young man. The Duke is cartoonishly villainish and one note, Satine perfect and alluring, and Paris chaotic and crazy, because those are HIS recollections, and not exactly how they really occurred.

[solokalnesaltam]

24:20
"I'm fairly certain people with late stage tuberculosis can't..."
"Youknowwhatshutup"
Impeccable comeback 😂

[Fawndolyn]

I'm just surprised that Christian spent all that time obsessing over her, yet failed to ever notice that these people are her family, her friends, her livelihood, the source of realizing her dreams, or the fact that she's been regularly coughing up blood.

[CallMeKes]

Just brushed over the Duke saying "I don't like people touching my things." Now THAT'S toxic.

[PernicketyPern]

I just love seeing two guys, very secure in their sexuality, fawn over the dreamy male lead. It is gold ✨️

[Jonathan_Collins]

Christian’s wail of grief when Satine dies in his arms is one of the most gut-wrenching things I’ve ever seen put on film. It sounds like his soul has been ripped from his body. Breaks me every time I watch this incredible movie.

[basharic]

At 51, I'm about as jaded as Satine as an old man can be. Christian is a silly naive boy. But what I wouldn't give to feel like that silly naive boy again. Come What May breaks me every time, because I miss that kid. I miss that surety.

I remember as a young person being so taken with the idea of the grizzled and experienced adult, but holy hell did I have no idea what it costs to get there.

I would argue Satine is a "thin" character because she is a "thin" person. She built up her armor to the point she no longer knew what it was protecting. Her (re)awakening with Christian was her first steps to becoming a fully realized person. The triumph of the climax is she got to shed her armor and express exactly the person she was before she died.

Part of the tragedy is she dies before she can truly become fully realized as a person. Like anyone who dies too soon, she had more to do. But she did get to show Christian and the world exactly who she was in that one shining moment.

[danthomassolo]

17:17 "Jim Broadbent, I miss you, man!"

Dude, Jim Broadbent is still alive...don't scare me like that!

[damedeviant]

25:27 “My ovaries just exploded and I don’t even have ovaries to explode.” 🤣🤣🤣

[broEye]

I remember someone posited an interesting perspective: this is all set up as him writing a memoir or play about his experience, so really all of this is from his perspective, the perspective of a guy who throughout was blinded by a teenager-level idealized view of reality. The reality started to slip in a bit later on, but even then there's a very stubborn refusal to see things in a dark way. On one hand, this explains why Satine is so underdeveloped: his "love" is that of a smitten teen, one who only knew her for a brief time, so of course most of what he has to write about her is highly idealized and lacking outside of the most basic level. If anything, her lack of character is in itself a demonstration of his own immaturity and shallowness, and may even raise questions as to how reliable of a narrator he is.

[calyl]

You know what shut up! - Jono that is the realest theater kid reaction ever! Same line I say to my husband every musical we watch! Love you internet dads!

[gizzycav]

Me, seeing the thumbnail: Oh boy! How are they gonna destroy one of my favorite movies?

Jono: You know what? Shut up!

Me: Yas!!! 👏

Another awesome video, guys!

[darkecofreak]

Break Their Heart To Save Them is one of my least favorite tropes, because when done right, it absolutely shatters you like it shatters the two people acting it out. You’re sobbing your eyes out wanting them to find a way to make it work, but you know they won’t.

When it’s done poorly, it just feels like a cheap way to break up a couple you invested yourself in.

[.]

I love this movie, but occasionally I wanted to punch Christian (he’s not toxic but his level of naïveté grates on my nerves). Honestly would have loved a breakdown of the Roxanne scene in the movie because it really lays out the conflict that Christian and his rose tinted glasses are trying to avoid. A lot of the movie is about jealousy so it’s also interesting to see Nini and the Narcoleptic Argentinian and their jealousy as well as Nini’s jealousy of Satine throughout the film.
I wish the movie had fleshed out Satine and Zidler a bit more. They have a weird dynamic going on that is both somewhat paternal and somewhat colored by the conflicts of interest between what is good for the Moulin Rouge and what is good for Satine. He is effectively selling her, but he does seem to care about her a lot too.

[roxythefoxmonster]

Alan: “This is honestly my biggest criticism of this movie-“

Jonathan: “I need you to shut up for about ten seconds.”

(Honestly… that’s me during movies I love when I have people that are TALKING to me during the movie. I’m just like: “You need to shut up. This is a GOOD scene.”) ❤

[sweetyukibo]

There is absolutely no denying that the imagery from the top of the elephant will forever be iconic in cinema. I mean, her dress, his tuxedo, their hair, the background, the set…. *chef’s kiss*. That is what I take away most from this movie, the images that will be engraved in my memory for the rest of my life

[derekseaton]

Right as Jono introduced Alan, I got an ad.

“I’m Jonathan Decker, Licensed Therapist who loves movies and joining me as always, the intrepid-“

“LIMU EMU!”

Thanks Liberty Mutual

[paulamusik]

Jonathan just being completely in love with the romanticism of this movie and enjoying every second of watching these performances is the cutest thing ever haha!