Marketa Lazarova Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: Marketa Lazarova
Year: 1967
Director: Frantisek Vlacil
Country: Czechoslovakia
Language(s): Czech, German

An American company known as The Criterion Collection has been dedicated to restoring and distributing impressive classic and contemporary films from all over the world. Many of their releases are rarities that may have not seen the light of day as a region 1 home video release if it had not been for Criterion. One of those "rarities" is a little known Czechoslovakian film called Marketa Lazarova, which is hailed by critics as the greatest piece of Czech Cinema even made.

The plot of the film involves Mikolás and his brother Adam, who rob travelers for their tyrannical father Kozlík. During one of their "jobs" they end up with a young German hostage whose father escapes to return news of the kidnapping and robbery to the King. Kozlik prepares for the wrath of the King, and sends Mikolás to pressure his neighbor Lazar to join him in war. Persuasion fails, and in vengeance Mikolás abducts Lazar's daughter Marketa.

It's almost impossible to prepare yourself for Vlacil's Czech epic, even if you go into the film knowing every little detail you will find yourself quite surprised. Vlacil doesn't conform to any linear narrative, the plot jumps back and forth through time and space. It's unfortunately very easy to get lost in the film, which is why even the most educated of film scholars need more than one viewing to fully understand the story being told. However, don't let that detract you from watching this great picture, it's quite an emotional and powerful piece.

Watching Marketa Lazarova for the first time is like experiencing the events of 9/11 unfold before your eyes. In both you are overwhelmed with images and sounds that evoke great emotion from you. Even though you aren't exactly sure what's going on, you do know that the events are incredibly important. Vlacil's film is impressively constructed, resurrecting the look and atmosphere of the Middle Ages. While most directors fall in love with the time period they recreate and exploit a false reality, Vlacil tries his best to show an accurate representation of the tumultuous time period that was the change from Paganism to Christianity.

In conclusion, Marketa Lazarova is one of the deepest films you will ever see. It is loaded with complex themes about the nature of humanity, love, religion and patriarchy. Unfortunately I have not seen the film enough times to go into too much detail about these themes, however from what I have viewed I can confirm that this is quite a breathtaking picture. Praise it! 4.5/5

Is It a Wonderful Life? The Myth of George Bailey and the American Dream

 Is It a Wonderful Life? The Myth of George Bailey and the American Dream
Year: 2013
Writers: Michael Carlisle & Ehren C Clarke
Editor: Ehren C Clarke

 The film “Sullivan’s Travels” makes a compelling yet hollow case on the state of moral affairs in 1942 America. The assertion, after the lead character, a Hollywood director, goes through a series of misadventures for the sake of the “art film,” is put to a harsh reality check by prisoners, not an ideal test group, that America doesn’t want realism, substance and meaning, they want to laugh. The “art film” is thus derided and the comedy and the lighter side of life applauded as the formulaic cinema to cure the aching ills of an ailing America. Here the message is clear, but groundless. Four years later, Frank Capra’s 1946 “It’s A Wonderful Life,” conveys a message that is like in meaning yet cryptically hidden in a story meant to warm and please the heart of America hearkening back through nostalgia and looking ahead through the “American dream.” We, the audience, the same one given to the brighter side of things as seen in “Sullivan’s Travels,” are easily passed off as convinced of George Bailey’s idealism and all that he stands for that is patriotic in the “small guy” making the happy life for his family and that there really can be a happy ending as, “the angel gets its wings.” But the reality we see greet Bailey is nothing like he intended. It is more the case that frankly, all of his dreams are shut out, squashed, by this “American dream.” Is the “American dream” then some playing second fiddle to the actual hoped for manifest destiny of those countless many who dreamed a dream? According to George Bailey, apparently so. Just who is this dubious character who has done such a magnanimous job in stealing the hearts of viewers, typically each Christmas when the sentiments flow most readily, and the heart strings are pulled with more naiveté.

Considering that “It's a Wonderful Life” did not hold water in Post War British Cinema, understandably, the British were recovering from the same brutal war, but one in which they lost many more citizens and had cities still left in rubble- the British public was in the mood for a darker kind of film. This is the time when Ealing comedies like “Kind Hearts and Coronets” and “Ladykillers” were at their peak. Considering anti-heroes were all the rage, here is a time when a character like George Bailey, with naive American sensibilities, would not have fit in at all. In fact American characters in the UK were either portrayed as fools or villains; the following are two very popular examples. “Night and the City's” Harry Fabian is the only American in Jules Dassin's classic film noir. He has big dreams, the same "American dream” and he wishes to cash it all in, during post WWII UK. Unfortunately, his youthful optimism gets him nowhere. Often he steals from his wife's purse just to pay off the money he owes. Eventually Fabians finds living the "American dream" means screwing everyone over & then dying in the gutter like a rat. In the UK, would have Capra's film ended so blissfully? Certainly not. The British were angry and needed a cinema that expressed their outrage. Their George Bailey would have shot himself and then died in the river!

Another anti-hero is found in Carol Reed's “The Third Man.” Joseph Cotton plays Holly Marins, an American who has come to search for his best friend. He writes pulp westerns and acts like the many heroes he writes about. However time and time again he is proven to be a fool by a UK detective. He eventually finds his friend, Harry Lime (Orson Welles), but learns that life is not all fine and dandy. Lime uses his ideal of the “American dream” to make money by poisoning children. In the end, friend is forced to kill friend. A community is shattered. Post WWII British cinema was not a community, it was anarchy. It was destruction, gritty and grimy reality. “It's a Wonderful Life” had no place with that audience because it relied too heavily on following rules that the UK knew were completely shattered by the war.

The rules for the American public rested on the realization of a dream, or so Capra intended, and purportedly, George Bailey should exemplify this. The character of George Bailey played by James Stewart was the ideological measure upon which the entire film rests. For post WWII institutionalized American core principles and weighty moral issues the film intended to propagate, the character of George Bailey must likewise possess such traits and manifest them as a source for their perpetuation in the film, galvanizing those around him to that which is this high standard set. Unfortunately, Capra creates a character in Bailey that is hollow and not like the one found in Gary Cooper’s character of Alvin C. York in 1941 and “Sergeant York” whose attributes were sustainable enough to support the morality and ideology of the entire film, as he would do again in his role in 1952 and “High Noon.” Here are fully realized, fully dimensional characters of gravitas. This is not the case for George Bailey. The character is elementally obtuse amounting to very little other than a banner for the ideals that Capra pins to Bailey’s lapels. The character may represent ideals, wearing them like the latest fashion, but is of itself of an almost arbitrary figure that might be substituted for or whom one might see substituting for another, such as the entomologist played by Eija Okada in Hiroshi Teshigahara’s 1964 Woman in the Dunes, an ideal match of an ineffectual subject. In short, Stewart’s portrayal of Bailey was enough to “wear” the signature characteristics of the post-WWII idealism of the day: duty, honesty, long-suffering, dependability, but emanating these qualities from within, in a role that demonstrated the kind of singularity to be the post WWII American role model required; he was simply inadequate and might have been any “shade” in “Hell,” “Purgatory” or “Paradise,” any in this, Dante’s “Divine Comedy” just as he, as empty as was the dream that was to be his sole motivation throughout the entire film, never to be realized, was a character too insignificant to be believed.

To Be Continued...

Note: Every week we will add a new section to this article, exposing even more of Capra's beloved film.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Year: 2008
Director: David Fincher
Country: US
Language: English

In the 21st Century, it becomes almost customary to blame Hollywood for its lack of originality and innovation. In some ways this critique holds some water; we can only tolerate so many White-Guilt and "Superhero is Jesus" metaphor movies. In some ways this critique is a vague generalization. Films like Life of Pi, Argo and 127 Hours prove that there is some saving grace in Hollywood cinema. A unique modern Hollywood film that comes to mind is David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

In the film on the day that Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans, elderly Daisy Williams (nee Fuller) is on her deathbed in a New Orleans hospital. At her side is her adult daughter, Caroline. Daisy asks Caroline to read to her aloud the diary of Daisy's lifelong friend, Benjamin Button. Benjamin is a unique man who ages backwards; as he gets older his body gets younger and he will die an embryo. Benjamin's diary recounts his entire extraordinary life,

Perhaps I jumped the gun when I said The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was a unique Hollywood film; it certainly is a unique short story by the great F.Scott Fitzgerald, but as a movie much of it is reminiscent of Forrest Gump. Eric Roth wrote the screenplay for both picture, so I suppose it isn't exactly plagiarism. At almost three hours long Fincher's film is an epic but it could have been cut by an hour; much of Benjamin Button seems tedious and becomes so boring that it's sleep inducing. Another critique I have is that Fincher wastes far too much time on the romance aspect of Benjamin Button and not enough on the supernatural aspect that everybody paid to see. The main character has a disease which causes him to age backwards and the Screenwriter isn't going to capitalize on it and let his imagination run wild? A film about the tragedy of aging backwards is MUCH more intriguing than two forty year olds having a fling. If I wanted that I would have seen Sex and the City 2. Even when we see Benjamin's age progression we can't quite comprehend exactly what the character is going through, because we see it from an outside perspective. Much of the aging is physical, which makes for great comedy, but a great film would show Button's mental struggles. Forrest Gump was great because we saw life as he did; we understood how his condition affected him, how he came to terms with his condition and how he persevered despite great odds.

Technically speaking, the film is very well made. The heartbreaking score brings some depth to the film, while the cinematography and lighting are top notch, as they are in everything David Fincher creates. The makeup and CGI are used incredibly well, aside from some obvious moments in the movie (Old baby Benjamin Button) it's really hard to tell the technology apart from reality. Cate Blanchette is wonderful in her role, playing Benjamin's complex girlfriend with ease and great charisma. Brad Pitt's acting fades in and out throughout the film; it's never bad, but at times it ceases to be good.

In conclusion, while The Curious Case of Benjamin Button impresses me on a technical level; it lacks any real imagination or depth. It leaves me with many questions, and not in a good way. Was there any point to this movie? Certainly it was a huge mistake to ignore their unique creative character disability in favor of romance. For a movie about time, seeing Fincher's film is time wasted. Piss on it! 2/5

Pulp Fiction Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: Pulp Fiction
Year: 1994
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Country: US
Language: English 

 " What ain't no country I've ever heard of. They speak English in What?"

The well known American Director Quentin Tarantino is a rather polarizing character. He is either loved or hated by individual critics and film-goers. Great debates spark from his pictures, which contain homage over homage of Classic Westerns and film noir. Frankly, I think he has become a fraction of what he once was. In making films like Inglorious Basterds and Django Unchained for a big production company, he has sold his artistic soul. Still Tarantino was great at some point, his best work was of course Pulp Fiction.

In this movie  Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackdon) and Vincent Vega (John Travolta)  are two hitmen who are out to retrieve a suitcase stolen from their employer, mob boss Marsellus Wallace. (Ving Rhames)  Wallace has also asked Vincent to take his wife Mia (Uma Thurman) out a few days later when Wallace himself will be out of town. Butch  Coolidge (Bruce Willis) is an aging boxer who is paid by Wallace to lose his next fight. The lives of these seemingly unrelated people are woven together comprising of a series of funny, bizarre and uncalled-for incidents.

In many people's eyes, even the ones who have lost faith in Tarantino, Pulp Fiction is Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece. It's a bad-ass film with a non linear plot that takes us through the gritty underworld of Hitmen and Gangsters. Tarantino takes stories that have been told over and over, such as the boxer who is paid to take a dive, and re-invents them with his own unique style. In this film, blending classic Hollywood Cinema with the modern era of Cinema works quite well.

The dialogue in Pulp Fiction is crisp and believable, it's enjoyable to listen to somewhat complicated characters talk about things completely unrelated to the plot, such as ordering food in France. Tarantino loads the movie with great humor, mostly built by incredible tension and anxiety, such as the scene where Mia overdoses. The Director gives us incredible shots with his camera, there are at least a dozen moments of great cinematography in Pulp Fiction. The score is unforgettable; right from the start we hear a tune that becomes etched in our minds. However, the film is not perfect; like most Tarantino films Pulp Fiction is very entertaining, but has no thought provoking themes or messages. What is the point of this film? What is Tarantino trying to teach us? It's use of violence is careless. Tarantino has never been the type of director to use violence in an intelligent way, but rather to glorify how cool it is.

In conclusion, though Quentin Taratino's Pulp Fiction is hailed as a masterpiece by many people, I would have to disagree. It's a bit too superficial and full of shock violence, the gun store rape scene for example, to be considered that. While it is incredibly entertaining and very technically well made, it lacks the depth that a typical "masterpiece" needs. This film did inspire many American movies to be made, and I thank it for that, but it's contribution to World Cinema as a whole is not so big. 3.5/5

Snow Flurry Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: Snow Flurry
Year: 1959
Director: Keisuke Kinoshita
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

Every once in a while I stumble across a film that is intriguing in plot but very obscure, so obscure in fact that there are almost no reviews on the internet for the film and it doesn't seem to be on any "greatest" films list, despite being a truly "great" film. German filmmaker Dorris Dorrie's Nobody Loves Me certainly falls under this category; describe the film to any cinephile and about 90% will not have heard of it. Another film that lands in the category is Kinoshita's incredible Snow Flurry. 

In this film a woman gives birth to a child, after surviving the double suicide pact she made with her lover. We watch this child and his mother grow older, but seemingly unable to escape the tragedies of his mother's past.

Kinoshita's great picture is an enormous puzzle; its non linear plot can prove to be a little bit confusing, but once you find out where you are in the story, it can be quite simple. Snow Flurry is quite a tearjerker; a great tragedy about a shamed family that struggles to get through their daily lives because of a seedy past. The boy's own name is a guilty reminder of the incident, which will haunt him for the rest of his life despite having nothing to do with it.

Snow Flurry examines cruelty of all kinds; the cruel nature of love, the cruel nature of Japanese tradition and the cruel nature of suicide. It transforms a simple idea into a complex narrative, filled with complicated characters who wish to be free from shame and humiliation. Each of dialogue is necessary to create the tense and gloomy atmosphere of the film, each shot is more heartbreaking than the last. While I found the situation a bit difficult to comprehend, because I am far removed from that culture, I still found it quite powerful.

In conclusion, Kinoshita's masterpiece is not for the weak of heart. It is one of the most sad yet sincere films I have ever seen. Perhaps at times it can seem a little too melodramatic, but you will be so entranced by the story unfolding before your eyes that you may not notice. It is a film that should be watched many times, if you can sustain your tears until the end. Praise it! 4.5/5

Profound Desires of the Gods Review-By Michael Carlisle

Title: Profound Desires of the Gods
Year: 1968
Director: Shohei Imamura
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese 

From Akira Kurosawa to Yasujiro Ozu, Japanese Cinema has had a staggering amount of influential Directors and films. Pictures like Rashomon and Tokyo Story have become highly regarded as masterpieces by critics and cinephiles alike. The country's cinema has helped in influencing almost every prolific North American Director, including Quentin Tarantino and Martin Scorsese. Shohei Imamura is also a much beloved Japanese director; perhaps his greatest work is Profound Desires of the Gods.

In this film, Tokyo engineer Kariya arrives on a primitive tropical island to drill a well to provide water for the sugar mill. He is assisted on the island by Kametaro, from the inbred Futori family. Nekichi Futori is chained in a pit that he has to dig, in order to appease the gods for breaking island customs. Nekichi is in love with his sister Uma, who is a shaman priestess at the sacred shrine, that contains the only good water close to the mill. She is also the mistress of Ryu, the manager of the mill. The patriarch of the Futori family tries to get the engineer to marry his retarded daughter Toriko.

Profound Desire of the Gods is one of Japan's most overlooked epics. Running at a somewhat long 173 minutes, it is an incredibly ambitious film that is filled with strange images that create a mythical atmosphere. Imamura spares no detail in portraying the odd Futori family and their desire to regain social status that they seemingly lost long ago. Unlike Kurosawa's epics, Imamura's film is far detached from Western Influence. To understand the motives of the characters in this film and their reactions to some social situations, one might want to read about Japanese Culture. 

Unfortunately this film wasn't a hit at the box office and it was filled with production problems from day one. It's quite lavish, but went wildly over budget and was considered a great failure at the time of its release. Imamura's production company Nikkatsu would refuse to make such an epic for a long time. Though that being said, Profound Desire of the Gods is a thoroughly engaging film which has themes that run quite deep. Imamura uses the film to explore Japan's relationship with the outside world, tradition vs modernism, the nature of man and religious hypocrisy. The film's cinematography is quite breathtaking, often showing us great landscapes. The score can be quite haunting and powerful.

In conclusion, Profound Desires of the Gods is a bizarre yet mythical film that has very few flaws, if any. Imamura's leisurely pace allow us to explore his strange world while still being entranced by the plot. While some epics feel like they are too long, this feels just right.  It's a very complex picture that demands multiple viewings, but the more one views it, the better it will get. Praise it! 5/5

Goke, Body Snatcher From Hell Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: Goke, Body Snatcher From Hell
Year: 1968
Director: Hajime Sato
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese

B-Horror films will always have a special place in the North American's heart. Pictures like Sam Raimi's Evil Dead and George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead both thrill and excite while leaving a profound impact on our imaginations. Japanese horror films do this even greater with more fantasy and surrealism, Nubuhiko Obayashi's House is not easily dismissed. From Criterion's Eclipse line comes an intriguing box set called When Horror Came To Shochiku, within it an interesting gem that will be reviewed today.

The plot of the film consists of a plane crashing in a remote area of Japan. While the survivors are out looking for help they become under attack by blob-like alien creatures that turn their victims into blood thirsty vampire-like beings.

Goke, Body Snatcher From Hell is a unique horror film, though the plot always feels somewhat familiar. It is scary, even terrifying, without relying too much on extreme gore and annoying screams. It is very atmospheric, every technical aspect of the film lends itself to creating an intense feeling of helplessness and anxiety. The blood red skies and eerie music are a good example of this. Sato also hosts a variety of startling images, like pigeons committing suicide via smashing into the plane, to build up tension.

Unfortunately Sato's film is not perfect; while it's abundant in chilling atmosphere, it lacks in script and characters with depth. We care for the heroes, but we don't know much about them and they are a little bit cliched. The acting is a bit hammy and overall the film is poorly paced. Perhaps it's also a bit too long for the subject, because it can be a bit tedious. Still this film is a little bit more than your average B- horror film.

In conclusion, Goke, Body Snatcher From Hell is a very fun film that I would certainly watch again. It has some great qualities that a fantastic horror film should have, but many other aspects hold it back from being something truly amazing. Don't expect anything highly of it, but do expect an enjoyable flick. 3/5

The Double Life of Veronique Review- By Michael Carlisle

 Title: The Double Life of Veronique
Year: 1991
Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski
Country(s): France/Poland
Languages(s): French/Polish

If I were to make a list of my favorite directors then Krzysztof Kieslowski would certainly make the top five. His films are well made and quite a spiritual experience. I became enamored over the Director after I watch his wonderful Three Colors Trilogy (Blue, White and Red)  which was extraordinarily well made and was filled with historical intrigue and exquisite themes. Lately I've re-watched The Double Life of Veronique and I find myself amazed once more.

The film involves two doppelgangers played by Irene Jacob; Weronika who lives in Poland and Véronique who lives in Paris. They don't know each other in the slightest. Weronika gets a place in a music school, works hard, but collapses and dies on her first performance. At this point, Véronique's life seems to take a turn and she seems to be greatly affected by the death of somebody she never knew.

Kiewslowski's film is a strange and poetic journey through the lives of two strangers. Themes of duality, synchronicity, and fate are filmed in utmost sincerity and seriousness, while maintaining an enchanting dream-like atmosphere. It's a film that needs to be re-watched many times because it is not straightforward. which may not please some viewers, but I don't think it suffers from that quality. The Director makes a seemingly complex film that makes us want to understand more about each character.

Visually the film is stunning. The striking cinematography gives us many beautiful shots while drawing us into Veronique's wondrous world. The camera gets us lost in the surreal quality of the film, while exposing a number of motifs present. The score plays a significant role in understanding both characters and can help in revealing the connection between both characters. Interestingly enough Kieslowski gives The Double Life of Veronique enough ambiguity to let the audience come up with their own interpretation of the film, while not frustrating us.

In conclusion, though I have not seen every film Krzyszstof Kieslowski has made, I intend on seeing them all very shortly. He has tremendous talent which is very present in The Double Life of Veronique. Though I don't recommend it as an introduction to his work, see Three Colors first, it certainly is a surprising film that will make you smarter about Cinema. Praise it! 5/5

Symbiopsychotaxiplasm Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: Symbiopsychotaxiplasm
Year: 1968
Director: William Greaves
Country: US
Language: English

The 1960's was a time of great change and great Cinema. With African Americans like Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X, the civil rights movement became a forefront in American culture. The space wars ignited and the first American astronauts were sent to the moon. Intriguing documentaries like Medium Cool and Montery Pop were made to show the wondrous changes that were being made. Society was getting rebellious and as a result, cinema would shift in a unique way. One of the results of this shift is a unique film called Symbiopsychotaxiplasm.

The plot of this picture consists of filmmaker William Greaves shooting a series of screen tests in New York City's Central Park for the two leads of a feature length movie, with the working title of Over the Cliff. Simultaneously, he has a documentary filmmaking crew filming the behind the scenes making of the movie. In addition to seeing these two sets of footage (the film and the film of the film), the viewer also sees footage of a third film crew filming the these two in relation to what is happening overall as they film in the park while real life goes on around them, which in Bill's mind is part of the realism of the movie.

Director William Greaves is making a movie in this movie called Over The Cliff. That film has no plot and not script, just a theme of sexuality and a few samples of scripted dialogue. It is incredibly frustrating for the crew; we can see their anxiety as they critique the director's motives in a brainstorming session. While watching Symbiopsychotaxiplasm one wonders if the crew had any idea about what the documentary about the movie was going to be about (Can any reviewer write about Greaves' film without confusing the reader?) Symbiopsychotaxiplasm is a unique film that might give you a headache if you think about it too much.

Greaves' film is intelligent and thought-provoking, perfectly capturing the essence of the 60's while still running on madness. It's very well edited and thoroughly engaging, each conversation is as exciting as the last. Symbiosychotaxiplasm is a search for truth and meaning, a wild ride of uncertainty and possibly disaster that will take you through multiple realities. Can we define this film as a documentary? Maybe everything is scripted and nothing is real. Maybe everything is real and nothing is scripted.

In conclusion, Symbiopsychotaxiplasm is one of the most unique film experiences you will ever have. There is no picture in the world that even comes close to similarity. A grand manipulation of reality, this film forces us to think outside the box and confront everything we thought we knew about movies. Praise it! 5/5

Amarcord Review- By Michael Carlisle

Title: Amarcord 
Year: 1973
Director: Federico Fellini
Country: Italy
Language: Italian  

Italian Cinema has a vast history of great directors. Directors like Roberto Rosselini (Rome: Open City) and Vittorio De Sica (Bicycle Thieves) brought the Cinema of Italy to the mainstream with their popular Neo-Realist style of film-making. Afterwards geniuses like Pier Palo Pasolini (Arabian Nights) and Federico Fellini (8 1/2) emerged onto the scene and blew audiences away. Fellini is perhaps the most beloved of Italian Film-makers, often winning Academy Awards for his impressive work. American Directors like Martin Scorsese have been greatly influenced by him. One work that usually stands out as his "best" is Amarcord.

The film is essentially a year in the life of a small Italian coastal town in the nineteen-thirties. The town in the film is based on Rimini, where Mr. Fellini grew up. Yet there is now something magical, larger-than-life about the town, its citizens and many of the things that happen to them.

Amarcord is a collection of memories from a life's journey. It is carnivalesque and surrealistic yet at the same time grounded in some reality. This is said to be Fellini's most accessible film, his superstar-like budget could afford pretty much anything he wanted to have included. Fellini's film is sincere and sentimental, handled with great care. The director seems to be at his most optimistic when dealing with crowds rather than individuals as there is a big difference in mood between this and La Strada/ 8 1/2

Initially, a few hours after I watched the film I didn't like it, but after a lot of reflection I realize that it is quite a treasure. The structure of the film is marvelous, mainly because there is not real plot. Amarcord doesn't try to be a phony story, but rather a remarkable experience. The characters are incredibly human and complex, as an audience member you feel like you belong to that community. Only one character is unlikeable, but even he has his pitiful moments. A few people critique Fellini for not being too hard on the fascism in this film, indeed each character falls for the evil regime. However that is realistic, in reality very few Italians opposed the Regime; the ones who did were either shot or kept it to themselves. There is one scene that shows the destructive force of Fascism and I think one scene is enough, Amarcord is not supposed to be a grand political message.

In conclusion, Amarcord is a rarity in Cinema. I have tried to think of any modern films that embrace community in such an honest and heartfelt way and I couldn't. Fellini is what Frank Capra (It's a Wonderful Life) couldn't be. Capra's films were cheesy (Capra-corn) and too pro-American to be considered great art. Fellini is truly a master of Cinema. Praise it! 5/5