L'Eclisse (1962)
Directed by Michelangelo Antonioni

Drama / Romance

Film Review

Abstract picture representing L'Eclisse (1962)
With its emphasis on inward reflection and stark, ambiguious photography, L'Eclisse is not a particularly accessible film.  Like many of Antonioni's films, it makes great demands of the spectator.  Despite that, the film offers many pleasures. Monica Vitti is spell-binding as the wraith-like Vittoria, a tragic heroine figure looking for an unattainable fulfilment in a barren universe.  The film is perfectly constructed around her performance, to the extent that the spectator shares every minute of her angst, frustration and uncertainty.  Her French co-star Alain Delon is nearly as alluring, embodying a chilling blend of god-like beauty and sordid human  materialism.

Despite its lack of conventional drama, this is a stirring and almost tragic film.  Human existence has been all but subjugated to modern technology, leaving little of genuine value and meaning.  The film's final sequence, when Vittoria realises her fate, is both haunting and intensely disturbing, painting a shockingly believable picture of a future world which has no soul, individuality or purpose.

© James Travers 2001
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next Michelangelo Antonioni film:
Blowup (1966)

Film Synopsis

In Rome, Vittoria has grown tired of her tepid love affair with Ricardo, a strait-laced ambassadorial aide, and suddenly decides to end the affair after three years of living together.  She is collecting her mother from the stock exchange when her gaze is suddenly drawn to a dishy young stockbroker named Peiro.  They get to know one another and immediately discover a strong mutual attraction.  For the first time in her life, Vittoria feels that she has found true love.  But what promises to be the great affair of her life proves to be just another terrible disappointment.  Peiro's love of money and cynicism jar with Vittoria's longing for fulfilment of a more spiritual and abstract nature.  Realising that Peiro is not for her, the unfortunate young woman finds herself cast adrift in a tawdry and superficial world where she feels unable to connect with anyone...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.


Film Credits

  • Director: Michelangelo Antonioni
  • Script: Elio Bartolini, Ottiero Ottieri, Michelangelo Antonioni (dialogue), Tonino Guerra (dialogue)
  • Cinematographer: Gianni Di Venanzo
  • Music: Giovanni Fusco
  • Cast: Alain Delon (Piero), Monica Vitti (Vittoria), Francisco Rabal (Riccardo), Louis Seigner (Ercoli), Lilla Brignone (Vittoria's Mother), Rossana Rory (Anita), Mirella Ricciardi (Marta), Cyrus Elias (Intoxicated Man)
  • Country: Italy / France
  • Language: Italian / English
  • Support: Black and White
  • Runtime: 125 min

The best of Japanese cinema
sb-img-21
The cinema of Japan is noteworthy for its purity, subtlety and visual impact. The films of Ozu, Mizoguchi and Kurosawa are sublime masterpieces of film poetry.
The very best of German cinema
sb-img-25
German cinema was at its most inspired in the 1920s, strongly influenced by the expressionist movement, but it enjoyed a renaissance in the 1970s.
The greatest French Films of all time
sb-img-4
With so many great films to choose from, it's nigh on impossible to compile a short-list of the best 15 French films of all time - but here's our feeble attempt to do just that.
The Carry On films, from the heyday of British film comedy
sb-img-17
Looking for a deeper insight into the most popular series of British film comedies? Visit our page and we'll give you one.
The best films of Ingmar Bergman
sb-img-16
The meaning of life, the trauma of existence and the nature of faith - welcome to the stark and enlightening world of the world's greatest filmmaker.
 

Other things to look at


Copyright © filmsdefrance.com 1998-2024
All rights reserved



All content on this page is protected by copyright