Have you ever seen Beethoven Lives Upstairs? It’s a 1992 movie about a boy who befriends Ludwig van Beethoven. I don’t know of anyone who has watched it outside of elementary school music class. So after elementary school, I never expected to see it again. Then I subbed for an elementary school music teacher. And watched the first 30 minutes of Beethoven Lives Upstairs four times in the same morning.

“Does anyone know who Beethoven was?” I asked, by means of introducing the film.

“It’s the name of a dog.”

This, despite the fact that the VHS cover featured a depressed man instead of a slobbering St. Bernard. And the fact that they were in music class. And the fact that on the wall before them hung a poster of dead composers, featuring Ludwig van Beethoven.

I explained that Beethoven was a composer. Then I explained that a composer writes music. Then I explained that yes, if you are deaf you can still see. Then I pressed the play button.

“That’s the composer?”

“Yes.”

“But he’s naked.”

“He’s wearing pants. He’s not wearing a shirt but he’s wearing pants.”

“Oh.”

There are, in fact, two scenes in which Beethoven appears topless. The second elicited just as much laughter as the first.

“Eeew! He’s not wearing a shirt! HAHAHAHA!”

Other laugh-out-loud moments in the film include the lines, “My name is Schindler” and “He’s a renowned pianist.”

Beethoven Lives Upstairs: 51 minutes of PURE FUN!

P.S. Out of curiosity, I compared the IMDb rankings for Beethoven (the one about the dog) and Beethoven Lives Upstairs. Beethoven Lives Upstairs ranks higher (6.3 of 10 stars) by a full point.