Amadeus
Antonio Salieri believes that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's music is divine and miraculous. He wishes he was himself as good a musician as Mozart so that he can praise the Lord through composing. He began his career as a devout man who believes his success and talent as a composer are God's rewards for his piety. He's also content as the respected, financially well-off, court composer of Austrian Emperor Joseph II. But he's shocked to learn that Mozart is such a vulgar creature, and can't understand why God favored Mozart to be his instrument. Salieri's envy has made him an enemy of God whose greatness was evident in Mozart. He is ready to take revenge against God and Mozart for his own musical mediocrity.
Despite a respectable budget of $18.0M, Amadeus became a financial success, earning $90.0M worldwide—a 400% return.
8 Oscars. 43 wins & 15 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Amadeus (1984) showcases meticulously timed story structure, characteristic of Miloš Forman's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 13-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 2 hours and 40 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 4.9, the film takes an unconventional approach to traditional narrative frameworks.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Antonio Salieri
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Constanze Mozart
Emperor Joseph II
Count Orsini-Rosenberg
Baron van Swieten
Emanuel Schikaneder
Leopold Mozart
Main Cast & Characters
Antonio Salieri
Played by F. Murray Abraham
Court composer consumed by jealousy of Mozart's genius, narrates the story from an asylum.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Played by Tom Hulce
Brilliant but immature composer whose genius torments Salieri.
Constanze Mozart
Played by Elizabeth Berridge
Mozart's devoted wife who struggles with poverty and her husband's irresponsibility.
Emperor Joseph II
Played by Jeffrey Jones
Well-meaning but musically unsophisticated Austrian Emperor who employs both composers.
Count Orsini-Rosenberg
Played by Charles Kay
Theater director and bureaucrat who often sides with Salieri against Mozart.
Baron van Swieten
Played by Jonathan Moore
Royal librarian and patron who supports Mozart but is stingy with financial help.
Emanuel Schikaneder
Played by Simon Callow
Theatrical impresario who commissions The Magic Flute from Mozart.
Leopold Mozart
Played by Roy Dotrice
Mozart's stern father whose disapproval haunts Wolfgang throughout his life.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 2 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Old Salieri is discovered after a suicide attempt, screaming "Mozart! Forgive me!" Establishes the confessional frame narrative and Salieri's tormented state in 1823 Vienna.. Significantly, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 16 minutes when Salieri first encounters Mozart at the Archbishop's palace. Expecting to meet a musical demigod, he finds instead a crude, giggling, foul-mouthed child chasing a woman. His worldview is shattered - how can this buffoon possess divine genius?.. At 10% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 36 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 22% of the runtime. This demonstrates the protagonist's commitment to Salieri makes his active choice: "From now on, we are enemies, You and I. Because You choose for Your instrument a boastful, lustful, smutty, infantile boy... I am Your servant no more." He declares war on God through Mozart., moving from reaction to action.
The Collapse moment at 108 minutes (68% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Constanze, pregnant and exhausted, leaves Mozart and takes their son to Baden spa. Mozart is utterly alone, sick, broke, and haunted by visions of his father. He collapses during the premiere of "The Magic Flute." Whiff of death: Mozart is dying., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Synthesis at 118 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 73% of the runtime. Mozart's pauper's burial in the rain. Salieri's confession concludes: he destroyed Mozart's life but not his music. God's ultimate revenge - Salieri lives long enough to see Mozart's genius recognized while his own work is forgotten. "Mediocrities everywhere, I absolve you."., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Amadeus's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 13 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs systematic plot point analysis that identifies crucial turning points. By mapping Amadeus against these established plot points, we can identify how Miloš Forman utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Amadeus within the biography genre.
Miloš Forman's Structural Approach
Among the 6 Miloš Forman films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.3, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Amadeus takes a more unconventional approach compared to the director's typical style. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Miloš Forman filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional biography films include Lords of Dogtown, Ip Man 2 and A Complete Unknown. For more Miloš Forman analyses, see The People vs. Larry Flynt, Goya's Ghosts and Man on the Moon.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Old Salieri is discovered after a suicide attempt, screaming "Mozart! Forgive me!" Establishes the confessional frame narrative and Salieri's tormented state in 1823 Vienna.
Theme
Father Vogler asks Salieri, "Did you ever meet Mozart?" Theme stated: the nature of genius, mediocrity, and divine injustice. Why would God give transcendent talent to a vulgar fool instead of a devout believer?
Worldbuilding
Salieri recounts his past: his youthful bargain with God, becoming court composer to Emperor Joseph II, his fame and respect in 1781 Vienna. Establishes Salieri as successful, devout, and living his dream - until he hears of Mozart.
Disruption
Salieri first encounters Mozart at the Archbishop's palace. Expecting to meet a musical demigod, he finds instead a crude, giggling, foul-mouthed child chasing a woman. His worldview is shattered - how can this buffoon possess divine genius?
Resistance
Salieri examines Mozart's manuscripts and realizes the terrible truth: Mozart's music is perfect, transcendent, the voice of God. Salieri debates with himself and God - why give such gifts to an obscene child? Mozart arrives in Vienna, performs for the Emperor, and begins to threaten Salieri's position.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Salieri makes his active choice: "From now on, we are enemies, You and I. Because You choose for Your instrument a boastful, lustful, smutty, infantile boy... I am Your servant no more." He declares war on God through Mozart.
Mirror World
Constanze Mozart (Wolfgang's wife) becomes the key relationship. She represents innocent love and devotion to genius without understanding it. Her subplot carries the theme: loving vs. destroying what we cannot possess.
Premise
The promise of the premise: Salieri's campaign of subtle sabotage. He blocks Mozart's students, manipulates the Emperor, undermines performances of "The Marriage of Figaro," and begins his elaborate revenge while maintaining a friendly facade. Mozart struggles financially.
Opposition
Everything closes in: Mozart's father dies, deepening Wolfgang's guilt and instability. His drinking worsens, money vanishes, Constanze grows desperate. Salieri intensifies his campaign, commissioning a Requiem anonymously disguised as Mozart's dead father, driving Mozart toward psychological collapse.
Collapse
Constanze, pregnant and exhausted, leaves Mozart and takes their son to Baden spa. Mozart is utterly alone, sick, broke, and haunted by visions of his father. He collapses during the premiere of "The Magic Flute." Whiff of death: Mozart is dying.
Crisis
Mozart's dark night: bedridden, fevered, desperate to finish the Requiem for money. Salieri comes to "help," and they work through the night in a twisted collaboration - the mediocrity taking dictation from the dying genius, possessing Mozart's final work.
Act III
ResolutionSynthesis
Mozart's pauper's burial in the rain. Salieri's confession concludes: he destroyed Mozart's life but not his music. God's ultimate revenge - Salieri lives long enough to see Mozart's genius recognized while his own work is forgotten. "Mediocrities everywhere, I absolve you."
Transformation
Father Vogler wheels the mad Salieri down the asylum corridor as he blesses the inmates: "Mediocrities everywhere, I absolve you." The closing image mirrors the opening - Salieri transformed from celebrated composer to self-proclaimed "patron saint of mediocrity," eternally tormented.