THE TOP FOUR ITALIAN DIRECTORS OF THE 1960’S CREATE A TECHNICOLOR PASTICHE ENTITLED “BOCACCIO 70” WITH SOME OF THE MOST INTRIGUING FILM STARS OF EUROPEAN CINEMA…sounds like a “meringue a quatre” to be seen and discussed by a bunch of well intentioned cinematikeros with a sharp eye and good sense of humor…
Last week’s Boccacio ’70 has been drifting in and out of my thoughts this week and I just want to share a brief comment. I wonder if the shared sense of impatience/boredom with the film was simply (and understandably) a reaction to the simplistic/one dimensionality of the “point” of each of the pieces? What we may have taken as the writer/director’s lack of imagination/”sleeping at the wheel”, etc. may have been a result of a too conscientious attempt to simulate Boccacio’s one-dimensional, parable-like stories. When we “sophisticated” aesthetes are looking for complexity/nuanced character/plot development…we are naturally impatient with a story/character who “doesn’t go anywhere” eg., the newlyweds interminable search for privacy, the monotonous fundamentalist and the cartoonish Madonna/whore, the mis-used wife’s endless non-seduction/seductions, the boorish workmen and the out-of-reach Venus. What if the creators weren’t going for depth/layers/ambiguity…but, rather, were attempting truths cloaked as clichés? Just wondering…??? I would be interested to hear other’s reactions/responses…as I felt that despite its flaws the film deserved a bit more attention…
Many thanks to all for welcoming me to the wonderful Cinematikki!!
Carolyn Coudert (an appreciative visitor)
This is exactly what happens to/with me…on monday nights, after the film i have an instant reaction about how i feel and then the next morning and/or the following days my mental screen keeps on running and processing images, scenes, dialogue, music and ideas that make the film richer than i thought at the beginning…
Thank you Carolyn for your comment and educated perspective…
J.J.