The Great Beauty | Paulo Sorrento
The film starts in cool chaos, a club scene on a crowded roof top, clothing optional, the camera weaving from modelesque faces that stare directly into your eyes to older men using their eyes to soak in their modelesque body. At one point a huge macarana type dance starts and the high of the party slows its breath as camera and screen pace slow down until it is Jep’s face staring directly into your eyes. He is content, smoking his cigarette.
His slow walks through the city when the sun is cast high were my favorite scenes. It is in these shots that I can most reflect on his reflections, the power of his influence and the vapidity and sweetness that age 65 has revealed to him. I got distracted at minute 64 of the film and admittedly haven’t returned. Between the slow walks were interactions that left me feeling a little listless. Perhaps watching so much grandeur exhausted me and my desire to see Jep’s dissatisfaction with the exuberance of Rome wasn’t enough to bring me back. I wonder if those who know Rome intimately hold an appreciation for this film, how many people out there see themselves in Jep?
[Book of Delights pg. 47 | No. 14 Joy is Such a Human Madness]