Film: La Dolce Vita (223/250)
First Time/Rewatch: Rewatch
Well, this is the last film on the list that I've already seen. The rest will be entirely new to me. It's exciting, and also a little intimidating. No more coasting! It's the home stretch!
What is there to say about La Dolce Vita that hasn't already been said? It's legendary, one of director Federico Fellini's masterpieces. This story of celebrity, opulence, restlessness, and tragedy has something for everyone. It's gorgeous to look at, from the chic characters in their chic clothes and sunglasses at their ostentatious parties to the quiet beauty of the beach, the forest, the way the shadows play across the walls and the characters' faces. Marcello Mastroianni is charismatic as hell as a man looking for...what exactly? Something resembling contentment? Amidst all the iconic images from this film (specifically Anita Ekberg frolicking in the fountain...you know the scene), the one that always sticks with me is young Paola calling to Marcello on the beach. After seeing all the glitz and glamour and heavily-made up faces during most of the film, young fresh-faced Paola looks like an angel. She waves to him, speaks to him, and he doesn't hear. And she looks on. And she is unbelievably beautiful standing there, smiling. Who can say what happens to Marcello, but I imagine he carries on making beautiful messes. And she will stay in his memory, trapped in time, forever young.
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