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6

GaborA.Jan 3, 2007

A visual masterpiece, but also completely unabsorbing. The scenery and characters are a joy to look at, but its impossible to get into their heads because nothing they do makes sense in the least bit. This seems to be true about most A visual masterpiece, but also completely unabsorbing. The scenery and characters are a joy to look at, but its impossible to get into their heads because nothing they do makes sense in the least bit. This seems to be true about most Bertolucci films. Luckily Coppola snatched Vittorio Storaro away from him for a few years and gave us a true masterpiece both visually and in terms of storytelling called Apocalypse Now.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful

9

lasttimeisawNov 7, 2013

Bertolucci is another wunderkind in the industry, at the age of 30, his fourth feature film, THE CONFORMIST has been proved to be a timeless classic, which I feel privileged to watch it now for the very first time.

Tilting camera angle,Bertolucci is another wunderkind in the industry, at the age of 30, his fourth feature film, THE CONFORMIST has been proved to be a timeless classic, which I feel privileged to watch it now for the very first time.

Tilting camera angle, impeccable shots paralleling the moving train and zooming in from the external side of the window, sensual hues, cubistic buildings, punctilious light and shade deployment (Professor Quadri, the hunchbacked man being introduced by his silhouette), fluid ballroom dancing sequences, the bleak and cold-hearted manslaughter in a wintry woodland, all emerge as consecutive surprises and gustos along its non-linear narrative.

Marcello (Trintignant), a newly-recruited fascist member in Rome, is assigned for an assassination of his old professor Quadri (Tarascio), who dwells in Paris now with her young wife Anna (Sanda), the film hops back and forth episodically in recounting the newly-wed Marcello’s matrimony life with Giulia (Sandrelli), a petit bourgeois trophy wife; their honeymoon to Paris with a clandestine aim to carry out the task until Marcello compellingly falls for Anna; meanwhile Bertolucci allocates episodes to sort out Marcello’s personal lives, his attachment with his amicable blind friend Italo (Quaglio), his drug-addicted mother (Milly) and lunatic father (Addobbati); but underneath his placid and gentile veneer, lies an unfading quandary, stems from his encounter with a pedophile (Clémenti) in his childhood and his latent homosexuality which pulses him to a perpetual and professed seeking of normalcy.

Trintignant is exceedingly under-appreciated in his sophisticated and self-constrained portrayal of a man put in contradiction with almost anything around him, perfectly tallies with the political message of the film, a stooge, put-upon in order to rectify his own weakness, indiscriminately clutches any straw to obey conformability, while in the end, a sense of loss and disparagement is his own bitter fruit. Sanda and Sandrelli are stunning in their own distinctive beauties, the former is resolute, swinging both ways and emanating the like-a-moth-to-a-flame fatalism; the latter imbues a more traditional feminine allure with little clue about what’s in her husband’s mind.

Also it is noteworthy to give credit to Georges Delerue, who produced a spellbound score underlining the varying tenors of Marcello’s state of mind. THE CONFORMIST is a pièce de résistancer with its idiosyncratic aesthetic charisma to crown Bertolucci as the most important auteur in Italian cinema after his illustrious progenitors!… Expand

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6

Serrao_BrochadoAug 9, 2012

Good acting performance and cast. The movie sets and the production are also striking. And that's it... Only visual stuff. In my opinion, the movie is overrated, perhaps, because of the stigma post-fascism and post-Nazi, still felt in theGood acting performance and cast. The movie sets and the production are also striking. And that's it... Only visual stuff. In my opinion, the movie is overrated, perhaps, because of the stigma post-fascism and post-Nazi, still felt in the 70's. By this I mean that a film like this, which casts a harsh critique of fascism, would be easily remarkable at a time when in Europe there were still "scars" of World War II. The message is, nonetheless, very interesting and important to impart. But I do not think this movie deserves the same score of Lawrence of Arabia and The Godfather ... Overrated my friends...… Expand

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7

Jotto999Sep 4, 2012

The rating this movie deserves would depend on what year it is. Back when this came out, it would have been relevant to Europe's still fresh scars from WW2. I'm in generation Y, and although this film makes a good historical and culturalThe rating this movie deserves would depend on what year it is. Back when this came out, it would have been relevant to Europe's still fresh scars from WW2. I'm in generation Y, and although this film makes a good historical and cultural demonstration, it is tailored for my parents, not me. It's something I have to "try to get", not something I can just watch and know immediately the points the movie is trying to convey. In other words, it's a movie I have to learn how to watch while I'm watching it, which was nice mental stimulation, but ultimately less entertaining and something my memory won't encode fondly, despite it's strengths. I hope this who know their 20th century European history and culture won't think I am being ungrateful, and I understand this movie should have higher appeal to those who do.

I must say though, I very much enjoyed the buildings in this movie.… Expand

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10

PaulE.Jun 24, 2007

Bertolucci's best and one world's best during the 20th Century.

1 of 3 users found this helpful

0

shaunmedJan 10, 2011

Quite honestly one of the most boring and pointless films you will ever see. You will hate ever minute of it's pointless meandering plot. This is a movie that critics and film academics have to enjoy to be allowed to attend each other's wine parties.

3 of 14 users found this helpful311

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10

AaronS.Nov 28, 2005

Bertolucci's masterpiece. One of the most stunning films ever made period.

0 of 1 users found this helpful

10

DavidZ.Nov 21, 2005

A breathtaking, brilliant film.

0 of 2 users found this helpful

10

leirisDec 7, 2006

One of cinema's all time masterpieces.

0 of 2 users found this helpful

8

SpangleFeb 19, 2016

The Conformist can be quite slow, but it more than makes up for this with some serious production value. From the shot construction, framing, and lighting, the cinematography is pure perfection. The score is fantastic and really captures theThe Conformist can be quite slow, but it more than makes up for this with some serious production value. From the shot construction, framing, and lighting, the cinematography is pure perfection. The score is fantastic and really captures the feeling of the film very well. The production design and costume design are also both exemplary and capture the essence of the era. For the rest of the film, it does not rise to the level of these production values. However, due to its setting in Rome during and after the time of Mussolini's reign, it truly makes for a captivating background. The story as a whole as it unfolds is riveting and, though it can be tough to follow at times, really keeps you engrossed throughout. There are quite a few moving parts and it requires some historical knowledge of the era, but all that said, The Conformist is a phenomenal work from Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci. One of the most beautifully shot films around, The Conformist is a true piece of cinematic art.… Expand

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0

BroyaxMar 25, 2022

Un non-sens de film et un tel vide à chaque plan, un vide mâtiné d’une prétention aussi vaine que le reste, ou p;lus exactement les restes de ce film-déchet qu’on dirait tout droit sorti d’une poubelle, une poubelle renversée comme si elleUn non-sens de film et un tel vide à chaque plan, un vide mâtiné d’une prétention aussi vaine que le reste, ou p;lus exactement les restes de ce film-déchet qu’on dirait tout droit sorti d’une poubelle, une poubelle renversée comme si elle venait de dégobiller ce sous-produit de film à peigne-culs, là dans le caniveau…

Et ce, malgré Trintignant et Sandrelli qui errent comme des pauvres hères livrés à eux-mêmes dans ce film de pisse-froids pour public Télérama et étudiants de gauche (pléonasme) qui pètent plus haut que leur cul tout en restant les trois quarts du temps complètement abrutis par le cannabis.

Dans ces bien tristes conditions (rigoureusement insupportables pour tout dire), difficile de tenir, y compris en accéléré, sachant que cet étron d’une lenteur affligeante s’étale sur presque deux plombes qui en paraissent huit. Ou dix. En bref et en clair, un gros film de merde bien à chier !… Expand

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8

ahmedaiman1999Apr 4, 2021

Bertolucci uses film as a true artistic medium, with his manipulation of lighting and shadows, camera movement and arresting mise-en-scène as well as a non-linear narrative structure to create a grandiose psychologically enigmatic characterBertolucci uses film as a true artistic medium, with his manipulation of lighting and shadows, camera movement and arresting mise-en-scène as well as a non-linear narrative structure to create a grandiose psychologically enigmatic character study that's intoxicating and alluring in equal measure.… Expand

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10

AchillesP.Dec 9, 2005

THE CONFORMIST is Bernardo Bertolucci's masterpiece and one of the most beautifyully-accomplished films ever made .... in my top five .... evocative and disturbing. The scenes stay with you long after the experience.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

10

DavidH.Jan 19, 2007

I saw this when it was being shown as a one-off at my local cinema (was unavailable elsewhere) and it was one of the greatest experiences at the cinema of my life. Sardonic humour, absorbing characters, beautifully filmed, with perhaps the I saw this when it was being shown as a one-off at my local cinema (was unavailable elsewhere) and it was one of the greatest experiences at the cinema of my life. Sardonic humour, absorbing characters, beautifully filmed, with perhaps the most harrowing murder sequence I've ever seen. I couldn't praise this film anymore.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful

9

GBMar 24, 2008

Evokes Arendt's 'The Banality of Evil.' Loved the scenes where you get into the character's head without the need for dialogue or voice-over (eg, the scene where he watches a piece of luggage threatening to fall on his Evokes Arendt's 'The Banality of Evil.' Loved the scenes where you get into the character's head without the need for dialogue or voice-over (eg, the scene where he watches a piece of luggage threatening to fall on his wife's head and does nothing about it). The scene where he abandons the Dominique Sanda character to her fate is unforgettable. Much has been said about the cinematography and the use of light: a little unsubtle for me: too obviously symbolist. A masterpiece nonetheless.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful

9

EpicLadySpongeApr 22, 2016

The Conformist is another example of how we take films and make them great. I can't wait to spread the word about this to other people so they can see it.

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3

CalibMcBoltsMay 30, 2016

Like some other reviewers, I was not impressed by the writing and the way the narrative was presented. It felt very disconnected, and sometimes confusing, with rough jumps between scenes, often making characterisation deficient. Perhaps itLike some other reviewers, I was not impressed by the writing and the way the narrative was presented. It felt very disconnected, and sometimes confusing, with rough jumps between scenes, often making characterisation deficient. Perhaps it was a conscious decision aimed to convey Marcello's neurotic state and his need to belong, yet I felt that the camera-work alone did the job pretty well, especially the lighting (e.g. in the scene when we first see Guilia, in a striped dress, with moving light source patterned by the blinds, it reflects Marcello's mixed feelings about her), and the unorthodox angles. Also, I still wander if the narrative is objective, or maybe some of the scenes are Marcello's wishful thinking - while watching, I had a theory that the blue light indicated these, but it didn't quite hold up till the end.

And, next to the ambiguous episodes, there are some annoyingly blatant parts. The metaphor of blind fascists was just too in-your-face. I wont give examples, look them up, there are quite some.

The bit I liked about the plot was the suppressed homosexuality theme, under-stressed but sustained throughout the film with several moments of restrained homoeroticism, and the ending. I also liked the general air of the 30s, and the music - the credits song is currently stuck in my head.

I'll quote a fellow reviewer here, who said something i fully agree with: ''A fine movie, but dry and difficult to relate to. I can't imagine many people calling this a favorite. I have a great deal of respect for its craftsmanship, above all, most notably because the filming is beyond gorgeous. ''

Overall, while definitely a 9.5/10 for cinematography, The Conformist suffers from the need of a better and more coherent script. Which makes the movie sometimes very boring, confusing and frustrating. Maybe on a second viewing it might be better.… Expand

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6

DomgwyDec 20, 2017

Until I watched The Conformist my only experience of Italian filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci was 2003‘s The Dreamers starring Eva Green and Michael Pitt. Needless to say I found The Dreamers an easier watch, not least because the majority ofUntil I watched The Conformist my only experience of Italian filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci was 2003‘s The Dreamers starring Eva Green and Michael Pitt. Needless to say I found The Dreamers an easier watch, not least because the majority of that film is in English. The same cannot be said for The Conformist Bertolucci’s 1970 political drama. Spoken in Italian and French the film focuses on Marcello (Jean-Louis Trintignant) a young man starting a career in the Mussolini government. The film centers around Marcello’s mission to assassinate his former University Professor Quardri (Enzo Tarascio) who has fled to France. While this mission provides the essential plot, the film is essentially a character study of Marcello, the Conformist of the title. Through a number of flashbacks, Marcello’s childhood, marriage and his relationship with his parents are explored in detail.

The flashbacks form the first half of the film and while they inform the events that follow the non-liner time frame along with the language barrier can be confusing at times. By exploring certain traumatic incidents in his childhood as well as the strained relationships with his morphine-addicted mother and his mentally ill father, we understand why Mercello is the way he is and why above all he strives to conform to the world around him, socially, politically and sexually.

Mercello’s mission is further complicated by the presence of his new wife Giulia (Stefania Sandrelli) who believes that they are traveling to Paris for their honeymoon. The character of Giulia is deliberately irritating and when the Professors young wife (Dominique Sanda) is introduced she provides a huge contrast. The film then goes through a period of a becoming a love-quadrangle of sorts between Mercello, Quardri and their wives while the two men try to figure each other out. This in itself could have provided the basis for an entire film and in the wider context of the running time it feels a little rush.

All the same everything that has gone before makes the climatic scene in the French mountains all the more powerful and we are now so deeply invested into Mercello’s character that he doesn’t need to speak.

In a final dénouement the film flashes forward to the end of Mussolini’s dictatorship and we witness Mercello struggling to come to terms with his past. To reveal more than this would be a spoiler but lets just say the incident with the professor is not the only skeleton in Mercello’s closet.

Your enjoyment of the film to some extent depends on your attitude towards subtitles. To me the only issue with subtitles is that it detracts from the performances, as your focusing on the text rather than the actor speaking. With repeat viewings this becomes less of an issue though and given its depth and complexity The Conformist definitely needs revisiting.… Expand

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