The Conformist

Paramount Pictures | Release Date: October 22, 1970

7.8	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 88 Ratings

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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

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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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

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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PaulE.Jun 24, 2007

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

1 of 3 users found this helpful

AaronS.Nov 28, 2005

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

0 of 1 users found this helpful

DavidZ.Nov 21, 2005

A breathtaking, brilliant film.

0 of 2 users found this helpful

leirisDec 7, 2006

One of cinema's all time masterpieces.

0 of 2 users found this helpful

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

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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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

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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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

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

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

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.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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