La Dolce Vita (1960, Fellini)
First off I will say that Fellini films suffer in translation due to the sheer amount of talking that happens in them. His films look so beautiful, but you miss out on it because you spend the whole time staring at the subtitles at the bottom. If you don't speak Italian, Fellini films other than La Strada may take a second or third viewing before you can fully absorb them.
La Dolce Vita is about a journalist, Marcelo, who strives to find meaning surrounded by frivolousness. You're taken through a series of events in the Marcelo's life where he's surrounded by celebrities and wealthy people whose boisterous behavior is portrayed as shallow and absurd. Marcelo is portrayed as an intellectual who wants to rise above the superficial nonsense, but he's constantly driven back into it because it's easy and profitable. Even with the depressing message of the film, it's got so much flair it's consistently entertaining.
There's a lot of films from France and Italy in the 60's that analyze and judge modern lifestyles. The thing that sets Fellini apart from the rest is that he could do it while still being entertaining and fun to watch.
Rating: ****1/2 / 5
2/100
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