Nineteen Hundred / 1900

 

 

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"Novecento" was one of the most eagerly awaited movies of the seventies. It was meant to be, as Bertolucci himself intended, the italian "Gone with the wind", an epic story about what happened in the bel paese during the first half of the twentieth century, the political turmoil between WW1 and WW2, the rise and fall of the fascism, the birth and widespread of the communist and socialist movements as a response to the social unjustice. There was a big project, the financial means to realise it (american studios financing communist propaganda - can you believe that?), some of the world best actors at the time. And what maybe matters the most there was Bernardo Bertolucci whose political ideas have never been in glaring contradiction with the "Communist Manifesto". So who else could make this movie better than him? Having put this fabulous international team together the standarts were set very, very high.

As much as I adore Italy and italians, and as much as I love Bertolucci, De Niro, Depardieu, Lancaster and Sutherland, I have to say this movie let me down a little bit. I mean it's a good movie, but it could have been much better. The snag is that one has to know what happened in Italy during that period of time to fully understand what the movie is really about. Bertolucci knew it beforehand, which probably explains his need to have the best french actor, the best american actor, some other excellent american actors besides his italian actors troop (some of them are excellent by the way) to be in this movie. I think I can say that I know pretty well the italian twentieth century history, and yet I think this movie is a little bit of a mess.

The italian paysage, the countryside, the photography and the colors are really breathtaking. The director really knows how to suit the locations and paysage to almost every moment and particular scene of the movie. But to me, what misses the most in this movie is the dialog. You sit and watch scene after scene and you have the feeling that the movie is finally about to take off, but it doesn't, it quite never does. Yes, there are many excellent scenes, some of them being very explicit in a way or another, but this is the classic example of the total being too inferiour to the sum of it's separated parts.

As far as the acting is concerned, Lancaster is undoubtfully the one who gives the best performance here, and he seems really lucky to have played a relatively small part. Some of the scenes he's in are among the best of this movie. Depardieu is excellent too. Donald Sutherland is good, but every time he's onscreen one can't help wondering if he's frustrated because of the bizarre acts he has been told to perform or simply because he knows he has to act someone who, whatever the reasons, seems to be permanently in anger.

But to me the most disappointing is my all time favourite actor, De Niro. He comes in and goes out, smiles, chuckles, moans, groans and never seems to really be in this movie. Anonymous, that's the word that occured to me while watching this film, as far as De Niro's acting is concerned. Luckily enough, this movie didn't harm that much his reputation at the time, and he went on later to give absolutely mesmerizing performances in gems like "The last tycoon", "The deer hunter" and "Raging bull".

I have only watched the original 6 hours long version, both in english and italian, and I have to say I don't have any problems with the accents. I still keep watching this movie 25 years after it's release, just to make sure I haven't missed anything before and to see if I can appreciate it more now. And I still keep thinking that this is a somewhat messy movie who failed to deliver the message and the promises it was supposed to deliver to the italian public, and to a greater extent to the international public. To me this movie is a big project overwhelmed by it's own intents.

If you're new to the italian cinema you'd better try "Il conformista", "The last emperor" and "The last tango in Paris" by the same director, and try also the best of Fellini, Scola, Visconti, De Sica, Antonioni and, yes, how could I forget, the master of the masters, Sergio Leone.

I like movies. Good movies. Takeshi Kitano, Martin Scorsese, Wong Kar Wai, Sam Fuller, Sam Peckinpah, Kubrick, Welles, Soderbergh, Buster Keaton, and yes, Bertolucci. "The Conformist" in particular I find to be stunning. "1900" is the kind of film that makes me lose faith in a great director. It has none of the beauty of "The Conformist". It is terribly acted across the board. Everyone is so far over-the-top that this plays like a comedy more than a historical drama. Even Robert DeNiro, who was just coming off "Taxi Driver", is awful. Donald Sutherland seems to be having fun, but probably because he realized how ridiculous the film was. And has there ever been a more laughable villain than Sutherland in this film? He crushes a cat against a wall, kills a small child by bashing his head against a wall, and impales an old woman on a fence. His character is a bad guy out of thousands of less ambitious films.

Maybe the only one who emerges unscathed from this mess is Sterling Hayden, who doesn't have any scenes in which he embarrasses himself (unlike everyone else in this film) and manages to create a somewhat realistic character.

I don't care if Bertolucci made this film. It's completely inept, devoid of subtlety or intelligence, and terrible in every way. If Bernardo's name wasn't attached to it, people would laugh this film into obscurity. But no, people make excuses for it and for some reason even give it five stars. If possible, I'd give it zero.

This has been called both a masterpiece and a mess. I am more inclined to side with the masterpiece assessment but with a few qualifications. Bertoluccis political sympathies have always fallen left of center and in this film he presents two characters born on the same day in 1900 but on opposite ends of the economic spectrum. Depardieu is the peasant, and De Niro the spoiled heir of a large estate. The film traces their friendship from childhood to old age. It is obvious that their friendship is the class struggle acted out in miniature but the story is not limited or overly burdened with that fact. In fact the story is too engaging and their experiences together too varied and complex to really see the class struggle as being more than just one factor in a friendship that has many sides to it.
There is so much for the eyes to savor in this film from the unbelievably opulent interiors of De Niro's palazzo to the estates surrounding gorgeous and lush farmlands where the very earthy Depardieu works and lives.
The most enjoyable part of the film is the 1920's when we meet a beautiful femme fatale played by Dominique Sanda. Bertolucci may like to play at being a communist but his camera betrays him when he films all the luxuries the rich surround themselves with. The period decor, the costumes, the cars, everything is greedily enjoyed by the camera. As good as De Niro and Depardieu are, Sanda steals the show whenever she is in view. She is one of the most beautiful actresses of the seventies and she gives a giddy performance. So long as she is indulging in all of her favorite vices she is immensely enjoyable to watch but eventually her naturally fragile, impressionable and wayward temperament(and Bertoluccis script) leads her to sympathize with the poor and despise her wealthy status.
Donald Sutherland is equally entertaining as Attila the blackshirt. He gives a very convincing portrait of a lowly subordinate who joins the fascists in a desperate attempt to lift himself up in the world but all he knows how to do is bully and coerce and commit gruesome acts to make him feel momentarily powerful.
A good part of the film transcends any agenda Bertolucci might have had. The characters each have a life that allows for complexity and contradiction. Bertoluccis communism, sincere or no, is just like a quiet guest at the table most of the time.

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1.0 out of 5 stars Tiresome to sit through
An interesting idea for a film but not well executed. Much of the acting was so broad it was annoying or not believable (part of that was due to the dubbing). Read more

Published on Jan 20 2004 by Philip S. Kashdan

5.0 out of 5 stars The Cult-Movie for the Working Class
Simply the Movie of my Life .I guess the DVD extras will be smashing!

Published on Dec 7 2003 by Paulitus

1.0 out of 5 stars Career nadir
This film drove Bertolucci to a nervous breakdown and he had to take a year off after making it, becoming an incessant pill-popper into the bargain. Read more

Published on Nov 13 2003 by R Jess

5.0 out of 5 stars About the different lenght versions of Novecento
Let me clarify the question of the different versions of this masterpiece.
The first cut (never released) was 6:15. The European released version was 5:25. Read more

Published on Oct 6 2003 by Rafael Chinchilla

1.0 out of 5 stars just awful
I have seen hundreds of movies in my life, and this has to be the worst. Because it is apparently trying to make some important point. Read more

Published on July 18 2003 by Christopher Kaufman

2.0 out of 5 stars One of the great disasters in film history
I realize that I could take a hit in terms of helpfulness votes, but I have to write this review. For those who haven't seen this yet, let me say this: the end result of this... Read more

Published on Nov 9 2001 by admiralbuttons

5.0 out of 5 stars Gives the satisfaction of finishing a good novel!
Bernardo Bertolucci is essentially known for THE CONFORMIST and THE SPIDER'S STRATEGEM and is one of the definitive Italian directors along with Federico Fellini and Michelangelo... Read more

Published on May 15 2001 by Joseph L Kremer

5.0 out of 5 stars Gives the satisfaction of finishing a good novel!
Bernardo Bertolucci is essentially known for THE CONFORMIST and THE SPIDER'S STRATEGEM and is one of the definitive Italian directors along with Federico Fellini and Michelangelo... Read more

Published on May 15 2001 by Joseph L Kremer

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning, but give us the full version!
From what I've seen in these reviews and others, you either love or hate this film. I saw it when it first came out in the 1970s and thought I had found the perfect film, except... Read more

Published on Mar 29 2001

5.0 out of 5 stars I wonder...
I wonder what version the reviewers who dogged this movie watched. Did they watch the full version, with subtitles, in the original Italian or the dubbed version? Read more

Published on Jan 6 2001 by John Adron Rose

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