The Garden of the Finzi-Continis Reviews

Since this movie is a classic, I was really eager to check it out, especially since it is included in the '1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die' list. At first glance, it seemed to be about the rise of Fascism in Italy and its impact on the rich Jews living in a small city but De Sica obviously went beyond that but, to be honest, I'm not sure I fully understood what he was getting at. Eventually, what were we supposed to feel about the Finzi Contini? Were we suppose to feel sorry for them because even their incredible wealth couldn't save them from the Fascist madness? Also, what was the deal with Alberto who was sick throughout the whole movie? Same thing with his sister Micòl, what was the deal with her ice queen bitch act? At least, it was intriguing that most of these Jews were attractive with blond hair and blue eyes which made them look like some perfect Nazis which shows that Fascism is not only an ignorant ideology but, apparently, it is also blind. Anyway, even if I didn't care much about the characters, they were still complex and interesting. To conclude, even if it didn't completely blow me away, it was still a good historical drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.