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I saw Sorrentino's 'Partenope' tonight and I think I've finally figured out why I like his movies so much. They are visually stunning, sure, but most importantly they show people who try so hard to tell themselves stories about their own lives. They act like they're not human beings, they say all this pretentious things that some could consider meaningful quotes even though they are cliché and don't make much sense. The characters pretend their lives have plot and they act out scenes from a scenerio that definitely exist. Well, it doesn't, none of this makes any sense and there is no script or bigger picture. But when we realise this there is nothing left and to that I can relate. So yea, I don't think it was a particulary good film but it made me feel less alone I guess.
Apr 3, 2025
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saw this last night and I was mystified.
visually such a stunning film. The story line was so beautiful too.
It had me reflecting on my own relationship with my parents, family, how I view myself, my romantic and platonic relationships. it had me thinking deeply about my own mortality and the visceral feeling of growing older.
would see it again multiple times. also can’t get over how beautiful the cinematography was.
Feb 20, 2025
I can't recommend something without explaining why it's good in my world.
Well, it seems I've found my favorite Tarkovsky film that completely captivated me—soul, eyes, heart, and ears. It's probably one of the most beautiful and aesthetic films I've ever seen.
I've often heard from stuffy film historians that the director's last two films are a self-parody of himself, suggesting that the form has become so pronounced that it now seems more like an imitation of Tarkovsky rather than Tarkovsky's own work.
Well. We dismiss that opinion and establish our own viewpoint. It's hard to abstract from the author and view the work in isolation from the facts, but despite the autobiographical nature of the beloved "Mirror" (which I didn't enjoy at all)—"Nostalghia" so far seems to me the most intimate, personal, sublimated, and reflective (and prophetic).
The theme of emigration, of the male creator, a Russian in Italy, far from home and consumed internally by guilt for abandoning his family—this is literally cinema about himself. Moreover, the film focuses more on the director's favorite idea—the sacrifice of the artist for humanity.
The visuals are as impeccable as possible. Tarkovsky no longer holds back and makes films that are visually closer to his beloved Fellini and Bergman, rather than his early works.
I admit, this is the first time I've seen Oleg Yankovsky, and now I understand the whole cult around his persona. He's truly monumental. An absolute powerhouse, every frame stolen completely, even if he is standing with his back to the audience and just breathing heavily.
The finale with the candle was the most unusual cinematic experience for me in recent years. A true spiritual revelation occurred on screen. The suspense is breath-holding, yet plot-wise, everything happening is safe.
Ten minutes of continuous meditative take, in which Yankovsky's character tries to light a candle and carry it through a small route—truly charged action, which you experience together with the hero almost to a religious catharsis in the finale. Absolute grandeur.
The final shot of a small house grown inside a destroyed temple is one of the strongest visual images I have ever seen. I sat in the cinema in complete stasis, afraid to move, and when it started to snow, I nearly lost my breath. It's been a long time since a film has captivated me like this.
P.S. I still need to watch "Ivan's Childhood" and "The Sacrifice."
P.P.S. If you don't know Russian(Italian), you'll need to prepare to read subtitles because there is no English version.
Jun 10, 2024
I’m used to watching slow movies but yesterday I watched ‘Out-Takes from the Life of a Happy Man‘ (2012) by Jonas Mekas, Who Is very well known in the film community for his groundbreaking editing and pioneering post modernist experimental film. beyond all of that I feel like a nice slow experimental movie once in a while is the greatest thing to do. The impact feels like literature and now I’ve really come to the idea that film is the literature of our century, so watching a slow movie even if it’s a short movie it can have a great impact, that kind of hit that you only feel with an art piece that resonated with you. Movies like this are poetic, spontaneous, they make you question why are you even taking the time to sit there and witness them, but the truth is that the real power of art in our generation resides in the willing and vulnerability of the viewer to feel welcomed inside a piece, once you accept it is you who have to give a meaning to this kind of film, then the messages and symbols inside of it turn to you completely.
Mar 7, 2024
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My friend sent me a pic of deers that visited her today and were kissing in her backyard. So powerful an on the Valentines Day 🥺
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