Italian

A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS (Per un pugno di dollari) 1964

a-fistful-of-dollars-1

“I don’t think it’s nice, you laughin’. You see, my mule don’t like people laughing. He gets the crazy idea you’re laughin’ at him. Now if you apologize, like I know you’re going to, I might convince him that you really didn’t mean it.”

Clint Eastwood plays Yojimbo, a lone samurai…..
Sorry, start again.

Akira Kurosawa directs the first of the spaghetti westerns…
Only joking.

Toshiro Mifune gives a career defining performance as The Man with No Name in Serfio Leone’s…..
Rewind….

Sergio Leone remade Yojimbo as A Fistful of Dollars (Per un Pugno di Dollari) re-located to the American west, consequently getting sued by Kurosawa and losing 15% of the film’s worldwide gross, Kurosawa stated later that he made more money from Dollars than his original Yojimbo.
In actual fact, the source material was the 1942 film noir The Glass Key which was based on the Dashiell Hamnett novel.

The plot is simple, a lone gunman comes to a town and starts to play off the two crime families against each other to his own benefit.

Clint Eastwood creates the iconic anti-hero, The Man With No Name in this seminal western with European sensibilities; all looks and attitude. As we all know now, this was the first of Leone’s Spaghetti Western trilogy. All of them are classic films that had a massive impact and influence on many films that came after.

The long, lingering close-up shots, Ennio Morricone’s seminal soundtrack and the brilliant Gian Maria Volonte as the slightly deranged Ramon Rojo help to make this wonderful western opera.

Just brilliant.

BUY THE BLU RAY DVD HERE

DOWNLOAD THE FILM ON iTUNES HERE

4.5/5

IL DIVO: LA SPETTACOLARE VITA DI GIULIO ANDREOTTI (2008)

-..-IICManager-Upload-IMG--SanFrancisco-il-divo-poster

 

The star: the spectacular life of Giulio Andreotti, Italian politician and seven time premier during the 1970′ and 1980’s.

Italian politics for the uninitiated is complex but that doesn’t mean it can’t be enjoyable and infotaining. Even without a working knowledge of the politics of the time one can still thoroughly enjoy this operatic slice of cinema.

There is a punk aesthetic that this film begins with, hitting the viewer with beautifully shot images of various political assassinations of the time. Consequently similarities arise in tone at times to Goodfellas especially in the way characters are introduced and subsequently disposed.

Il Divo confirms that Paolo Sorrentino is one of this generation’s greatest directors.
All his Italian films are incredible and thus far he has written not a note out of place.
Toni Servillo, his muse, delivers another great performance as Giulio Andreotti, studied, still and sublime. He is De Niro to Sorrentino’s Scorsese and secures his place in the top ten of my favourite actors working today.

The soundtrack is always a big part of Sorrentino’s films (like Scorsese) and the last tune of the film seems to encapsulate Andreotti perfectly. Luca Bigazzi, Sorrentino’s trusted cinematographer is back framing the shots with an artistic aesthetic.

A question.
Why is Fanny Ardant uncredited? I understand the lack of accreditation in La Grande Bellezza as that was literally fleeting but she has a nice scene early on in this film that warrants a credit. Everyone has their reasons for sure but it is a curiosity indeed.

There is a quote from Rosa Falasca Andreotti (Giulio’s mother) at the beginning of the film:

“SE NON POTETE PARLARE BENE DI UNA PERSONA, NON PARALTENE”

“If you cannot speak well of someone, don’t speak about them”

And while it is difficult to keep opinions to oneself when it comes to a major politician who supposedly works for you, the people, this quote is filled with a deep wisdom.

Remember, just because you don’t follow the minutiae doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it.

4/5

BUY THE DVD HERE

DOWNLOAD THE FILM ON iTUNES HERE