The film opens in a luxurious Montreal auction house, where classic violins are being auctioned by the curator (Feore) for millions of dollars. The feature of the evening is purported to be the Red Violin, considered a perfect violin in every way. We then travel back to 17th century Italy, where a skilled violin maker (Cecchi) makes a perfect violin for his soon-to-be-born son. Unfortunately his wife (Grazioli) dies, and in his sorrow he completes his masterpiece and sells it among his other violins. Eventually, a monastery in picturesque Austria acquires it. After 100 years a young prodigy (Koncz) displays virtuoso talent on it and goes to Vienna to refine his talent, but the youngster has a bad heart and dies during an audition. The violin then takes a trip with the gypsies to England into the hands of the immensely talented Fredrick Pope (Flemyng), who is inspired to play by his beautiful writing mistress (Scacchi). But after she catches him acquiring inspiration from another beauty, she leaves him, and the violin leaves him as well, travelling to China.
A young girl is given the violin as a present from her mother, and she grows up in Maoist Communist China, where the Cultural Revolution makes anything western imperialist and inferior to the spartan Communist way. The woman (Chang) is a high official in the party, condemning western music and ideas by day, but hiding and cherishing her prized red violin by night. Unfortunately she is about to be caught, but manages to have her violin hidden safely by her former music teacher. When he dies, his large and valuable collection is discovered by Chinese authorities, and is brought to Montreal for auction. An American expert (Jackson) is brought in to authenticate the items up for bid, and he discovers an old beat up violin which might be the famous red violin. With the help of the auction house's technician (McKellar), they conduct tests and research the past to discover if it truly is the famous Red Violin.
Beautifully filmed, with breathtaking scenery and views of Italy, Austrian mountains and English coastal cliffs, the The Red Violin is a heartfelt celebration of the music and the joy and passion it can inspire. But the movie never quite takes off. The film is slow moving and sometimes lacks energy. Neverless, there are excellent parts. The Chinese section is the best, featuring cultural purge scenes reminiscent of the outstanding Farewell My Concubine, where previously esteemed artists are persecuted and publicly humiliated for artistic connections to Western imperialist ideas. But Chang, in a moving performance, beautifully portrays a person who must publicly hide her real feelings towards Western music and her violin to maintain her position in the commune hierarchy. The music is sensational, and much of the film shows the various owners playing the violin with joy and considerable feeling. If you wish to hear classical music beautifully played, this movie is for you. The theme of the movie is that, while the violin may be a work of art and very valuable, its most important value is in giving it to someone who will play and enjoy it, discovering the beautiful music it can make.
