La Dolce Vita (film)
**La Dolce Vita Overview**
"La Dolce Vita" is a renowned 1960 film directed by Federico Fellini, chronicling the life of Marcello Rubini, a celebrity reporter in Rome. The film is notable for introducing the term "paparazzi," derived from one of Marcello's colleagues named Paparazzo. Its structure is episodic, comprising seven major sequences that unfold over a week, illustrating Marcello's interactions with various women and his struggles with his superficial lifestyle. The film poignantly juxtaposes Marcello's aspirations to become a novelist against the backdrop of the hedonistic and often empty world of celebrity culture.
While it has received critical acclaim, winning the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, "La Dolce Vita" also faced controversy for its social commentary and perceived blasphemy, particularly in its treatment of religious themes. Despite the mixed reactions, it is celebrated for its artistic innovation and memorable sequences, contributing significantly to global cinema. The film's exploration of the elusive pursuit of happiness and the moral degradation of society resonates with audiences, making it a landmark work.
La Dolce Vita (film)
- Release Date: 1960
- Director(s): Federico Fellini
- Writer(s): Federico Fellini ; Ennio Flaiano; Tullio Pinelli; Brunello Rondi
- Principal Actors and Roles: Anita Ekberg (Sylvia); Marcello Mastroianni (Marcello Rubini); Anouk Aimee (Maddalena); Lex Barker (Robert); Yvonne Furneaux (Emma); Nadia Gray (Nadia); Nico (Nico)
La Dolce Vita isa famed 1960 film that captures moments in the life of celebrity reporter Marcello Rubini. The film is credited with the invention of the term paparazzi as one of Marcello’s fellow reporters is named Paparazzo. It has been widely admired but also criticized for its scathing social commentary. Beyond the controversy, the film is significant for its cinematic inventiveness and bittersweet portrayal of Marcello’s life.
Plot
La Dolce Vita marks a transitional point in director Federico Fellini’s career in that he was turning away from traditional narratives. As critics have noted, the film is episodic in structure. There are seven major sequences all of which occur during a week in Marcello’s life. In the prologue he watches from a news helicopter as a second helicopter is transporting a statue of Jesus over Rome. When his helicopter flies over an apartment building with a bevy of women sunbathing on top, he tries to elicit their phone numbers by using hand gestures but is unsuccessful.
The first sequence introduces the viewer to two important women in Marcello’s life, although there are many others. Marcello has a tryst with Maddalena, a wealthy socialite, then tends to his fiancé, Emma, after she has a drug overdose. In the second sequence Marcello chaperones Sylvia, an international film star. Marcello quickly becomes infatuated with her. She returns the flirtation but the episode ends badly for him because of her jealous boyfriend, although characteristically he chooses not to dwell on it.
In the third and fourth sequences Marcello visits his intellectual friend Steiner, first at a church where he is playing the organ and then later at his home. Steiner is a role model for Marcello, who aspires to give up his superficial lifestyle and become a novelist. When Emma sees Steiner’s home and children she remarks that she would like to have a home like that with Marcello. Ironically, Steiner, who is clearly a man of means, expresses his desire for a lifestyle that is less stable and therefore more exciting like Marcello’s.
After the fourth sequence there is an intermezzo in which Marcello works on his novel at a restaurant where he has an encounter with Paola, a teenaged waitress. Struck by her cherubic appearance, Marcello calls her an "angel."
The fifth sequence introduces the viewer to Marcello’s father. It is revealed that the two men are not well acquainted with each other. Marcello seems interested in spending time with him but is prevented from doing so when his father becomes ill.
In the following sequence Marcello resumes his flirtation with Maddalena. She resembles him in that she carries on intense flirtations in the moment but then loses interest and turns to another partner as he does.
Marcello and Emma share a tempestuous relationship. She is clearly devoted to him but he finds her attention and neediness to be stifling. In the next sequence they fight, seemingly abandon one another and then reconcile. Their idyllic reconciliation is interrupted when Marcello learns that Steiner has committed suicide. He has also killed his two children and his wife is devastated. Marcello comforts her while fending off the paparazzi.
The seventh sequence and the epilogue occur following a time lapse. The amount of time that has passed is unclear but Marcello’s hair is now graying. Marcello’s friend Riccardo has a house by the sea and while Riccardo is away Marcello and some of his friends break in and hold a wild, drunken party. Riccardo returns home and, shocked by the revelry, tells Marcello and the others to leave. They go to the beach where they see a dead whale that has been trapped by a fisherman. In the film’s memorable concluding moments Marcello reencounters Paola, the angelic waitress. She says something to him but he cannot hear her because of the distance separating them and the crashing of the waves. He leaves the beach holding hands with one of the women from the party as Paola turns to the camera and smiles enigmatically.
Significance
La Dolce Vita won the coveted Palme D’Or, or Golden Palm, award when it was screened at the Cannes Film Festival in 1960. Few films have garnered more critical praise. In their lists of all-time greatest films, Entertainment Weekly and Empire magazine rank it as sixth and eleventh respectively. Noted film critic Roger Ebert said that it was Fellini’s finest film and included it in his list of his top ten favorite films of all time.
Fellini expresses concern in the film for the moral degradation that he saw emerging, reflected in the vacuity of Marcello’s profession and his hedonistic lifestyle. Defenders of the Catholic Church found blasphemy in the film’s numerous references not only to the church but its icons, including the famous opening in which Marcello trails the statue but then shifts his attention to the sunbathing women.
Marcello’s aspiration to become a serious author lends poignancy to the emptiness of his life and Fellini, who had already mastered traditional narratives by this point in his career, constructs the narrative in such a way that it reflects his condition. Rather than being linear, the film is made up of a series of moments, all of them extraordinarily memorable. They speak to the transitory nature of Marcello’s life and the ultimate futility of his search for happiness. The decadent Roman nightlife through which he wades is a distraction for him but he is also a willing participant in it and, indeed, a reason why it exists. He belongs there even if his immersion in that world prevents him from self-fulfillment.
While the film is obviously the vision of its creator, Fellini’s collaborators, including Nino Rota, who provided the musical score, and the international cast made an indelible contribution. The film that resulted is a landmark of world cinema.
Awards and nominations
Won
- Academy Award (1960) Best Costume Design (Black-and-White): Piero Gherardi
- Cannes Film Festival (1960) Palme d'Or: Federico Fellini
Nominated
- Academy Award (1960) Best Director: Federico Fellini
- Academy Award (1960) Best Screenplay (Original): Federico Fellini, Ennio Flaiano, Tullio Pinelli, Brunello Rondi
- Academy Award (1960) Best Art Direction-Set Direction (Black-and-White): Piero Gherardi
Bibliography
Bondanella, Peter. Federico Fellini: Essays in Criticism. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1978.
———. The Cinema of Federico Fellini. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1992.
Costantini, Costanzo, ed. Fellini on Fellini. London: Faber, 1994.
Fava, Claudio, and Aldo Vigano. The Films of Federico Fellini. New York: Citadel, 1985.
Fellini, Federico. Fellini on Fellini. London: Eyre Methuen, 1976.
Kezich, Tullio. Federico Fellini: His Life and Work. New York: Faber, 2006.
———. Federico Fellini: The Films. New York: Rizzoli, 2010.
Weigand, Chris, and Paul Duncan. Federico Fellini. Cologne: Taschen, 2013.