Allegro (2005)

63% of critics liked it
(16 reviews)
69% of users liked it
(1,651 ratings)

Drawing inspiration from famed Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky's 1979 sci-fi classic Stalker, director/co-screenwriter Christoffer Boe's heady tale of love and memory follows an acclaimed Danish pianist as he sets out to a mysterious area known only as "The Zone" in hopes of reclaiming his… More Drawing inspiration from famed Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky's 1979 sci-fi classic Stalker, director/co-screenwriter Christoffer Boe's heady tale of love and memory follows an acclaimed Danish pianist as he sets out to a mysterious area known only as "The Zone" in hopes of reclaiming his memories and reconnecting with his past. Zetterstrom (Ulrich Thomsen) is a pianist who has sacrificed human emotion in order to achieve perfection. Though many years have passed since Zetterstrom left his native Copenhagen to live in New York, he is now drawn back to his birthplace in order to take part in a gala concert. Upon arriving in Copenhagen, Zetterstrom is contacted by a messenger from an off-limits area of the city known only as "The Zone" and offered an opportunity to remember his long forgotten love for the beautiful Andrea (Helena Christensen). Yet while "The Zone" can indeed resurrect the memories of the past, Zetterstrom will soon discover that there are limits to what one can accomplish by visiting this mysterious and magical landscape. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 30 min.
Directed By: Christoffer Boe
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Science Fiction & Fantasy

In Theaters: Jan 21, 2006 Wide
On DVD: Oct 9, 2007
Studio: International Films

Critic Reviews

Bill Stamets, Chicago Sun-Times
[Director] Boe's technique has more flash than passion.
Stephen Holden, New York Times
In Allegro, the past is a shadowy night town whose geography is continually rearranging itself.
Leslie Felperin, Variety
Like its gifted, but emotionally frigid, pianist hero, Allegro is filled with technical virtuosity but short on real feeling.
Nathan Lee, Village Voice
Writer-director Christoffer Boe takes himself very, very seriously. Me, not so much.
Amber Wilkinson, Eye for Film
Part romance, part animation, part sci-fi thriller - Boe uses any and every tool he can get his hands on to tell this tale of emotional isolation and resolution.
Anton Bitel, Film4
Boe continues to remap Copenhagen with this arthouse sci-fi trip into the outer regions of love, identity and oblivion.
Raven Snook, Time Out New York
Although the film, much like its protagonist and his piano playing, lacks a certain passion, its stylistic structure and execution are coolly flawless.
Maitland McDonagh, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Spare, elegant and tailor-made for intense discussions over dark coffee, Boe's film is a slily bold and delightfully inventive variation on an age-old theme.
Helen OHara, Empire Magazine
Sadly confused, but some beautiful touches give this a magical feel.
Robert Hanks, Independent
A slight, pretentious Danish sci-fi romance, notable mainly for the former supermodel Helena Christensen's acting debut.
Xan Brooks, Guardian [UK]
Had Tarkovsky ever felt the urge to shoot a perfume commercial, it would probably look a lot like Allegro, this super-stylish, pungently pretentious sci-fi romance from Danish director Christoffer Boe.
Geoff Andrew, Time Out
Inventive, entertaining and pleasingly bold.
Tom Dawson, BBC
It's a technically accomplished film, but one that lacks the sort of memorably poignant performances that Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet brought to Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind.
Sean Axmaker, GreenCine
[Director Christoffer] Boe offers us a vision of love as a beautiful thing that leaves destruction and pain in its wake.
Boyd van Hoeij, european-films.net
Though less ambiguous in its message than Reconstruction, Boe succeeds again in telling a captivating story about the emotions that connect us all.
Michael Ferraro, Film Threat
Ignoring any traditional storytelling boundaries, Allegro is an existential masterpiece from Denmark about the flaws of perfection and the consequences of allowing your memories to slip away into the unknown.

Read all 16 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Pierluigi P

Although I'm not entirely pleased with the dogma-like direction the core of the story is intelligent, and as most sad things, very beautiful.
Walter M

[font=Century Gothic]In "Allegro," it has been ten years since Andrea(Helena Christensen), the love of the live of Zetterstrom(Ulrich Thomsen), a concert pianist, walked out of his life. In the interim, a small section of his native Copenhagen has been sealed off behind an… More
[font=Century Gothic]In "Allegro," it has been ten years since Andrea(Helena Christensen), the love of the live of Zetterstrom(Ulrich Thomsen), a concert pianist, walked out of his life. In the interim, a small section of his native Copenhagen has been sealed off behind an impenetrable force field in an area called the Zone which many fear is in rubble.(Well, it could be worse. It could be a giant ESPNZone restaurant.) While in New York, he is invited back to perform just across the way from there...[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"Allegro" is a pretentious and dull piece of drivel that feels like a bad episode of "The Twilight Zone" by way of Tarkovsky. It would have at least been interesting(if not terribly original, maybe) if the movie had gone with more of a "Sapphire and Steel" approach with a flexible time zone in order to depict the important events in Zetterstrom's life, instead of just deriding his accomplishments and forgetting any pleasure his performances may have given. Sure, he is eccentric and does not like to perform(I don't like anybody looking over my shoulder, either), but there are other ways he could earn a living, such as recordings.[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]So, why do people keep making movies about characters they obviously have no sympathy for?[/font]