profoundgass Reviews

8½ (1963)

A masterpiece of art cinema.

[10/10 · 26 May 2008]

The film starts off with a nightmare and ends with a hazy dream sequence. In between reality usually takes a back seat to the director/hero's memories, dreams and frustrations. That Fellini is basically making a movie about making a movie, that Marcelo is the embodiment of the director, that the movie is basically a cathartic process for Fellini himself, a necessary stop after the phenomenal success of La Dolce Vita, is well documented. I would disagree with those who say that it is a difficult movie and that deep psychological analyses are needed for someone to grasp the meaning of the movie.

The movie is a visual pleasure today and its story is actually quite neatly organized around specific sequences: the dreams, the harem, the catholic school, the mistress etc. Fellini is quite aware that, deep meanings and intellectual status aside, a movie is essentially the dissemination of the director's vision to the viewers. Marcelo understands that the arduous process of making the film needs to finish once he fantasizes crowds of journalists hunting him down, asking for 'smart' and 'intellectual' comments on the most basic questions of human life. Fellini is making a film about himself - but one that can be acknowledged and enjoyed by all his viewers.

The different sequences are like small paintings or postcards representing the director's memories and dreams laid down side by side. The viewer need nothing but look at them and enjoy them for what they offer at hand: the poetry of the fat prostitute sitting on a chair by the sea, Anouk Aimee being transformed in the same movie from a neurotic wannabe-emancipated woman to a patient 'manager' of the harem, the carnival sequence of the last 5 minutes - possibly the most beautiful 5 minutes in cinema history. The movie even offers a happy-ending - in the end, it's THAT accessible! In the end the catharsis Marcelo finds by not making the film symbolizes the catharsis Fellini himself finds by making 8 1/2: He knows he managed to produce a personal, self-analytical piece of work that at the same time is engaging, humorous at times, visually pleasing, touching on various important subjects through lively dialogues and pretty settings. If anything, 8 1/2 is a celebration of the liberation potential of cinema, both for its creators and its viewers. The end credits find Fellini celebrating with his viewers the pleasures of this art.

La Notte (1961)

Inter-personal soul-searching in 1960s Milan

[10/10 · 15 October 2007]

This movie is nothing short of an artistic and visual triumph. Apart from being a fine example of the greatest era of European art cinema, I like to consider it an artistic statement in photography, music and architecture. The modernist, functionalist spirit of booming 1960s Milan is captured marvelously as the stars walk aimlessly around apartment-buildings and state-of-the-art houses under the sounds of cool cocktail-jazz. In fact, I think that there are at least 10-15 scenes that, if 'frozen', could be seen as high-quality artistic photographs in and by themselves. It's the marvelous cinematography and the divine stars that render such movies immortal, even though they tackle such dated issues as the relation of intellectuals with politics and money, the role of art in overcoming modernity's excesses and the vulgar conduct of the bourgeoisie. Of course, the movie is rendered timeless because its main theme - alienation and intra-marital fatigue -is equally timeless. Marcelo and Jeanne go through one night flirting with other people and trying to hurt each other as much as possible because, in fact, there is no other way one can impact on the other's life any more. They fail to do this but this is not necessarily good: They end up back where they started, indifferent and apathetic. That they finally become conscious of this development is their only gain from the night. The dying friend is the catalyst for the couple to start examining its situation, but it is the ravishing Valentina that first shook them and forced them to go out of their way, finding alternative routes and employing other people in their doomed efforts to instill some new life in their relationship. What Valentina teaches them is that accepting your existentialist apathy is a good first step in dealing with your situation. But when she bids farewell to the audience with the words 'You have exhausted me you two' while the light goes gently down, we understand that even a young, inquiring person like her has already been surrendered to the boredom of modern life. For all the confessions that follow, the main issue of the movie is already resolved: It is more of an issue if the couple will face their situation, not if they can remedy it. Their feelings have disappeared, just like Valentina's lust for life and the dying friend, who passed away during the night.