[HEADING=2]Movie Review: Novecento - 1900 (1976)[/HEADING]
By Duplicate Value
By Duplicate Value
[image height=250]http://www.utoronto.ca/stmikes/kelly/images/1900.jpg[/IMG]
Novecento is a five-hour long, Italian epic directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, and was released in 1976. It is set in Italy during the early years of the 20th Century, when the country was torn between fascism and communism, focusing on how these social changes effected the lives of the people of Italy, and the divides between the poor and the rich.
It features a star-studded cast, including a young Robert De Niro, Gerard Depardieu, Donald Sutherland and Burt Lancaster.
Plot
Beware: minor spoilers
Beware: minor spoilers
Novecento follows the lives of two Italian men born on the same day - one, a bastard child of peasant farmers, and the other, the son of a wealthy landowner. We see how their lives play out from birth to old age - the decisions they make, the relationships they forge, and how their policies and social standings shape both their destinies, and the relationship between them.
Despite the differences in their social standings, Alfredo, the mildly rebellious son of a wealthy family of landowners who aspires to become a much kinder man than his father, and Olmo, the son of socialist peasants, become friends early on in their childhood, due to the fact that Olmo?s family work on the land owned by Alfredo?s father.
Young Alfredo (left) and Olmo (right)
However, as they grow older their lives lead them down different paths. Olmo enlists in the Italian army during the first world war, and Alfredo remains behind as an heir to the family estate, learning how to manage the land and it?s workers from his father. By the time Olmo returns from the army, Alfredo?s father has hired someone to take a leading role in the management of his estate, in the form of a cruel socialist named Attila.
As time wears on, Attila?s violent nature becomes more and more apparent, managing the land strictly, and treating the peasant workers as if they were animals. He even goes to the point of killing many of the workers himself, in an effort to instil fear amongst the others. When Alfredo?s father dies, Alfredo is left with the duty of being the new ?padrone? (basically, the boss of the land and it?s inhabitants). However, even in his new power, Alfredo doesn?t show any signs of trying to halt Attila?s barbaric behaviour.
Alfredo (De Niro) and Olmo (Depardieu)
Along the way, both Alfredo and Olmo get married and settle down into their lives, but as time wears on, the relationship between the two childhood friends comes under strain as Alfredo starts to become more and more like his father, and Olmo becomes a leader for the peasants on the estate. It is at this time that the battle between fascism and communism starts to tear the country apart.
When communism prevails, the landowners are left at the mercy of the peasants. It is now that those who oppressed the workers would have to pay for their crimes, Attila in particular.
This, it turns out, is the true test of the bond between Alfredo and Olmo. Will Olmo defend his life-long friend from the wrath of his fellow workers, or will he condemn him to his fate?
Attila (Sutherland)
Review
I found out about this movie as I was idly browsing IMDb one day and instantly wanted to see it. Unfortunately, it?s not an easy movie to get a hold of, so I was ecstatic when I found a site where they sold uncut PAL copies of it (I don?t have a region-free DVD player, and I prefer to watch movies uncut as the director intended). It wasn?t ideal, having English dubs as opposed to the original Italian, but I take what I can get.
The first thing I?ll say about this movie is that it is truly beautiful. Not in an emotional sense (though there?s plenty of that too), but in the setting. The Italian countryside really is jaw-droppingly gorgeous: open grassy plains, large fields of golden wheat blowing in the wind, and country roads that stretch on until they get lost on the horizon. It really is a treat to look at. As well as that, the picture quality was surprisingly good considering the age of the movie.
The acting in the movie, though kind of wooden at times (especially where the child actors are concerned), is good overall, with brilliant performances from De Niro, Depardieu, and especially Donald Sutherland. The characters are played skilfully - making you come to love some of them (Depardieu?s character, for example), and absolutely loath some of the more evil characters (Attila (Sutherland) almost brought me to the brink of angry tears).
This, along with a stunning performance from Dominique Sanda, leaves very little to be desired in the way of acting.
Ada (Dominique Sanda)
The story itself is compelling, and manages to hold your attention for most of the 300 minutes (yes it is actually five hours long). Though I?ll admit that my interest began to wane during the third quarter of the movie. It got quite political around this time, so it was mostly lost on me. This shouldn?t be a problem for the more historically-minded among you, though.
The friendship between the characters is inspiring to say the least, and at times heart-wrenching. Their bond is just so adorable in their childhood that it?s almost painful to watch it deteriorating during the latter half of the movie. I never thought I?d say this about a movie, but I felt??..involved.
When Attila would mistreat the peasants, I wanted to hit him - to make him feel pain. And (I?m not joking), I grinned like an idiot for most of the last hour of the movie, when the peasants got to exact their revenge on the ?bad guys?.
Now, if you?ve heard of this movie before, you may have heard some of the controversy surrounding it. I won?t lie - this movie is extremely graphic. It contains vast amount of violence and gore, and possibly even more sex and nudity. But, instead of seeing these as bad things, I think they were necessary to make the movie as involving as it is - you may dislike a character slightly for murdering someone off-screen, but when you can see the blood splattered all over the walls and seeping from the victims head, that?s when you really grow to hate them.
I have to say, I loved this movie - I enjoyed every aspect of it, and I?m willing to see past it?s flaws. I can?t tell you whether or not you should watch this movie, because ultimately you?ll either love it or hate it, and there?s no telling which it will be. But if you are interested in foreign cinema, and aren?t afraid to watch something controversial and emotional, then I highly recommend this absolute classic.
If you?ve made it this far, thank you for reading. I would appreciate any feedback you have on either the movie or the review itself.
- DuplicateValue
