The once promising Polish director Agnieszka Holland ("Olivier, Olivier") stumbles with this muddled story about Anna Holtz (Diane Kruger), a 23-year-old composition student sent to 1824 Vienna to transcribe sheet music for the demanding and cruel Ludwig van Beethoven (Ed Harris). Anna wins the Beethoven’s misogynist trust if not respect for her own compositions while he veers wildly between fits of fury and creating original music that isn’t always popular with the public. The screenwriting team of Christopher Wilkinson and Stephen J. Rivele ("Ali") bear the brunt of the blame for a lackluster script that barely modulates a half step from start to finish.
Rated PG-13. 93 mins. (C-) (Two Stars)
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