I had been wanting to see this film since I was high school and just never got around to it or couldn’t find it online when I searched. With so much love paid to this film from all of my favorite filmmakers I wanted to make sure I honored it. I finally got the Criterion DVD and watched it on my parents home theater. Fellini is a tricky filmmaker for me because you can see all of the skill and talent in his productions, but I always feel removed from the film. He is someone I have difficulty understanding. I appreciate moments of his films, but ultimately they never work as a cohesive unit for me (I have only seen 81⁄2, NIGHT OF CABIRIA, LA STADA, and AMARCORD and I feel the same way about all of them). The same thing happened here. I LOVED the design, style, and cinematography of the film. It looks gorgeous. The themes expressed by the film and Marcello’s journey resonates with me so much, especially the time in my life that I am in. I want to love it more than I did, but I just can’t wrap my head around it. I think if I wait 10 years and then watch this, I will feel differently about it, but I guess only time will tell. One thing is certain — Paparazzo are really annoying (not the character, the people in the profession).
