I heard much about this film, and was looking forward to finally watching it on DVD. First, to give it all justice it deserves, the cinematography is brilliant - the film is full of mesmerising shots, and even though I often feel uneasy when I am made too conscious of cinematography, in this film it worked perfectly, and added much to the story. I also found the acting to be of a very high standard - especially the two female leads, and Jean-Louis Trintignant.
However, like some other reviewers, I was not impressed by the writing and the way the narrative was presented. It felt very disconnected, and sometimes confusing, with rough jumps between scenes, often making characterisation deficient. Perhaps it was a conscious decision aimed to convey Marcello's neurotic state and his need to belong, yet I felt that the camera-work alone did the job pretty well, especially the lighting (e.g. in the scene when we first see Guilia, in a striped dress, with moving light source patterned by the blinds, it reflects Marcello's mixed feelings about her), and the unorthodox angles. Also, I still wander if the narrative is objective, or maybe some of the scenes are Marcello's wishful thinking - while watching, I had a theory that the blue light indicated these, but it didn't quite hold up till the end.
And, next to the ambiguous episodes, there are some annoyingly blatant parts. The metaphor of blind fascists was just too in-your-face; Marcello's constant speeches about his desire to be normal sounded fake, and generally his character development as defined by the script wasn't handled well; the shadows on the wall during the Plato talk - once again, too predictable (still beautiful, though!); and finally, the murder of Prof. Quadri alluded to Caesar's in such an obvious way that I honestly thought he'd say 'You too, Marcello!'. In itself, it is not a bad thing, but I think it ruined the flow and the tension of the scene, creating a very abstracted picture of treason and cowardice - a much simpler idea could have been more effective. However, I have to say that this scene was then redeemed by Dominique Sanda screaming in front of the car window, and the following chase shot with a hand-held camera.
The bit I liked about the plot was the suppressed homosexuality theme, under-stressed but sustained throughout the film with several moments of restrained homoeroticism, and the ending. I also liked the general air of the 30s, and the music - the credits song is currently stuck in my head.
Overall, while definitely a landmark of cinematography, The Conformist suffers from the need of a better script - 6/10.
However, like some other reviewers, I was not impressed by the writing and the way the narrative was presented. It felt very disconnected, and sometimes confusing, with rough jumps between scenes, often making characterisation deficient. Perhaps it was a conscious decision aimed to convey Marcello's neurotic state and his need to belong, yet I felt that the camera-work alone did the job pretty well, especially the lighting (e.g. in the scene when we first see Guilia, in a striped dress, with moving light source patterned by the blinds, it reflects Marcello's mixed feelings about her), and the unorthodox angles. Also, I still wander if the narrative is objective, or maybe some of the scenes are Marcello's wishful thinking - while watching, I had a theory that the blue light indicated these, but it didn't quite hold up till the end.
And, next to the ambiguous episodes, there are some annoyingly blatant parts. The metaphor of blind fascists was just too in-your-face; Marcello's constant speeches about his desire to be normal sounded fake, and generally his character development as defined by the script wasn't handled well; the shadows on the wall during the Plato talk - once again, too predictable (still beautiful, though!); and finally, the murder of Prof. Quadri alluded to Caesar's in such an obvious way that I honestly thought he'd say 'You too, Marcello!'. In itself, it is not a bad thing, but I think it ruined the flow and the tension of the scene, creating a very abstracted picture of treason and cowardice - a much simpler idea could have been more effective. However, I have to say that this scene was then redeemed by Dominique Sanda screaming in front of the car window, and the following chase shot with a hand-held camera.
The bit I liked about the plot was the suppressed homosexuality theme, under-stressed but sustained throughout the film with several moments of restrained homoeroticism, and the ending. I also liked the general air of the 30s, and the music - the credits song is currently stuck in my head.
Overall, while definitely a landmark of cinematography, The Conformist suffers from the need of a better script - 6/10.