Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Sight & Sound Challenge: Journey to Italy (1954)

Film: Journey to Italy (19/250)
Critics Poll: 41st
Directors Poll: 67th
First Time/Rewatch: First Time

This was a new one to me. I love both Ingrid Bergman and George Sanders, so it was pretty much a given that I was going to like it. What could have been a pretty humdrum story about a husband and wife drifting apart is elevated by the beautiful Italian setting. This feels like a travel documentary in a lot of ways, showing the stoic beauty of a postwar country steeped in history, art, and tragedy. It highlights the quiet destruction of their relationship, and the potential for new life amidst the rubble. Very subtle, very moving, and very fine filmmaking...

I suddenly want to book a trip to Italy! Maybe Craig and I can go together and we can fight and then threaten divorce and then reunite, but hey, we'll be in Italy!

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