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Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

Being one of a minority who does not like Death in Venice, it was not a complete surprise that I should similarly not particularly enjoy this. What does surprise me is that considering the length (I watched the full 4hr non TV version) so little of consequence happens. So many pretty and colourful uniforms, dresses and rooms put to so little use. Ken Russell would have had a field day and I assume Visconti kept things purposefully restrained but with less than half a dozen memorable moments the length does inevitably become something of a strain. Interesting cast it has to be said but, for me, it is Romy Shneider that truly shine, truly seems to have some idea of what she is doing and actually seems to be enjoying herself, even if she played the part as a favour to the director. Dull and uneventful - how is it possible to say that about a film on the life of such a person?

"I would like to remain an enigma; to myself and to others", is one of the most memorable (and cryptic) remarks of Ludwig II, the last king of Bavaria. Whether intentional or not, director Visconti seems to have honored the wish of the tragic monarch. Rather than analyzing the person Ludwig, Visconti focuses almost entirely on Ludwig being a neurotic being, alienated from the real world, living in his own fantasy-land of music and mythology, a classic closet-gay, whose entire existence is overruled by his suppressed sexuality.Arguably there has been much more to the historic Ludwig, which was a very complex human. However, this doesn't make "Ludwig" a bad movie.The movie is carried by Helmut Berger who proved with "Ludwig" that is wasn't only a mere pretty face and the toy of homosexual filmmakers, but that he could actually act formidably (and it's rather sad that his carrier declined rather steep after "Ludwig", coming to a point where he only haunted the tabloids with drunken antics, today a mere wreck and definition of a shadow). Equally strong are actors Trevor Howard as the manipulative Richard Wagner and Romy Schneider, who played Sissy, empress of Austria, for the fourth time and finally got to play the character as a real human-being, far off the schmaltzy persona of the Ernst Marischka trilogy.Further points go to the exquisite cinematography and having filmed on the authentic locations ("Ludwig" was among the last films that was permitted to be filmed in Ludwig's castles, which remain among the most visited tourist-attractions in Bavaria, perhaps with the exception of the "Oktoberfest"). Though Visconti obviously has an eye for the aesthetic beauties of the locations, he manages to build up an almost claustrophobic atmosphere which underlines that Ludwig, despite the splendor and grandeur, essentially built himself a golden cage.On the downside are the other supporting actors, which were apparently all chosen on their physical merits, not acting ability. Yes, we all knew that Lucino Visconti was prone to handsome males, but seeing this parade of handsome youths, one almost gets the idea that Visconti cast this crew in his hotel room.In short: "Ludwig" is often overlong, a tad too colorful and occasionally even boring, but it captures the essence of the time. If you're into overlong, colorful epics that can fill an evening, "Ludwig" is highly recommendable.A word of warning and a recommendation: After watching "Ludwig", I'd avoid the 1993 movie "Ludwig 1881", which again stars Helmut Berger in the title role. While generally not a bad film, it pains to see the almost 50-year old Berger reprising his role as (supposedly) youthful king. On the other hand, if one wishes to delve further into the story of King Ludwig, I can only recommend Hans-Juergen Syberbergs 1972 film "Th. Hierneis oder: wie man ehem. Hofkoch wird". It has likewise been filmed on location and despite being a one-man-show of Walter Sedelmayr as Ludwigs former kitchen-aid-cum-master-cook, it does offer many insights into the psyche of the "Fairy-Tale-King" Ludwig.I'd give it a dashing 8/10

For many many years I wanted to see this movie, a film you never get to see on TV or at a Visconti retrospective at the NFT or one of the Curzon cinemas here in London. Perhaps it is so because this film has been so much underrated by critics and public that it drags far behind the director's most famous and praised works (The Leopard, Rocco, La Terra Trema, etc). I read in a biography of the director that "Ludwig" was a mammoth project that took four production companies from different countries to put up the budget, it obsessed and consumed Visconti to the the extent of almost killing him when he suffered a stroke as a result of long working hours and too much mental strain, went well over schedule and budget and finally was taken away from the author's hands by the producers and butchered and re-edited in order to make it shorter, simpler and more viably commercial. The result was a mess almost half of the length of the original and with a lot of key scenes missing, presenting an inconsistent story full of plot holes and with characters appearing now and then from nowhere. It took several years after Visconti's death for his usual collaborators (d'Amico, Nanuzzi) to gather the missing sequences and re-edit the film into a cut as close to Visconti's idea as it could be. The result is a a DVD edition of 228 minutes. This movie, visually speaking, is with "Death in Venice" probably Visconti's most beautiful,lavish and rich in colours and small details. As to the story, I agree with other viewers on the fact that it is a bit too overlong and it drags at places and some sequences could have been shorter without the plot missing anything. But then it seems like Visconti deliberately wanted to give it that sedate pacing in order to suit the dreamlike mental state of the protagonist during his reclusion in his castles and his lapses into his own fantasy world. In order to understand better Ludwig's personality I read one of his many biographies after watching the movie for the first time, and then I watched it again, and I could appreciate better Visconti's approach to the character. I think this is a movie worth of its director, and even with its flaws and extreme length it deserves better criticism and appreciation than it unfairly got since it first came out in 1972.Helmut Berger is quite good here and has a remarkable resemblance to the real Ludwig, Romy Schneider is as beautiful as ever and the real Bavarian locations are breathtaking. The night sequence with Ludwig and Elizabeth riding in the snowy forest in the moonlight is one of the most beautiful and romantic I have ever seen in film. The cinematography alone makes "Ludwig" worth watching if you like beautiful things. Hopefully this movie has gained some appreciation and seems to be getting better reviews nowadays that it did in the past. Many call it Visconti's lost masterpiece. Although I don't think it is one of his greatest works thematically speaking, it surely stands among the most beautiful and lyrical and it is one of my favourite choices for a long winter evening.

Ludwig truly is Visconti's magnificent epic masterpiece. The life of Ludwig II of Bavaria is truly worthy of a great film epic and Helmut Berger is amazingly good in the lead role. The exquisitely beautiful Romy Schneider is incredible as Ludwig's cousin Empress Elisabeth of Austria. The costumes and settings are truly magnificent. Visconti has actually gained access to some of the original locations which make his film truly wonderful. Castle Nymphenberg is truly beautiful. The luscious coronation preparation scene is truly evocative of the period with the magnificent uniforms and court dresses. Izabella Telezynska is amazing in the role of Queen Marie of Bavaria, Ludwig's Mother as is Gert Frobe as Ludwig's confessor. The very talented Helmut Griem is fantastic as Count Durckheim as is Trevor Howard as Wagner. The odious Professor Dr.Gudden is well played by Heinz Moog. John Moulder-Brown is also very good as Ludwig's younger brother, Prince Otto. This truly is a masterpiece of cinema.