FILM-FORWARD.COMReviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
Directed by: Marco Tullio Giordana. Produced by: Angelo Barbagallo. Written by: Sandro Petraglia & Stefano Rulli. Director of Photography: Roberto Forza. Edited by: Roberto Missiroli. Released by: Miramax. Language: Italian with English subtitles. Country of Origin: Italy. Part 1: 182 min; Part 2: 176 min. Rated: R. With: Luigi Lo Cascio, Alessio Boni, Adriana Asti, Sonia Bergamasco, Fabrizio Gifuni, Maya Sansa & Jasmine Trinca.
Through the course of four decades, social and political issues are subtly
interwoven in this absorbing saga of an Italian family, centering on two
brothers. Beginning in the mid-'60s, optimistic Nicola (Luigi Lo Cascio), a
recent college graduate, interns at a mental hospital where electroshock
therapy is the norm. (A doctor boasts that dealing with
a patient will "be easier than walking a dog.") Before embarking on a
summer of fun, Good Samaritans Nicola and his brother Matteo (Alessio Boni)
free from the ward a withdrawn young woman undergoing shock treatment.
The outcome of this ill-fated rescue mission will lead the brothers to go
their separate ways. Nicola pursues a career as a psychiatrist, while the
emotionally rigid Matteo joins the army and becomes a cop. They
inadvertently reunite as both flock to Florence to save its art and
buildings during the flood of 1966. There, Nicola will meet fellow volunteer
and future wife Giulia, played by Marianne Faithful look-alike Sonia
Bergamasco. Both she and Matteo, extreme political opposites, resolutely
believe they are always right. While he defends the law, she submerges
further into a Red Brigade-type terrorist group during the turbulent '70s,
organizing meetings behind her husband Nicola's back.
The Best of Youth was originally made for Italian television. Only
the film's narrative, which otherwise would have been condensed, and the
occasional two-shot where one character turns away from the other (a
telenovela staple), betray its origins. The photography at times is quite
cinematic, especially a suspenseful sequence of tracking shots following
Giulia on a secret rendezvous. The Italian scenery is made to great use -
the Roman Forum, Sicily and Turin - and the melancholic soundtrack includes
pop songs ranging from The Doors to Dinah Washington. At a monumental six
hours, the running time is a luxury, allowing the viewer to define the
characters. It also fully justifies all of the novelistic twists, turns, and
coincidences. The Best of Youth more than earns its running time.
Without the in-depth history of the Carati family, the ending wouldn't have
nearly as much emotional impact.
The second half is the most rewarding; all the strings of the volatile story
lines are tied, one of which includes a shocking event. And it is certainly
possible to see only the second half and still be able to follow the film.
Of course, some of the relationships will lack resonance, especially
Nicola's bond with Giorgia. The strong cast includes Adriana Asti, who as
the mother has a devastating breakdown scene, and Maya Sansa as Mirella, perhaps the film's most sympathetic character, a
photographer pursuing Matteo.
Sansa lights up the screen. Matteo's harsh rejection of Mirella is just one of the
epic's many heartrending moments. Kent Turner
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