A classic

To watch this movie was pretty much like taking part in a marathon. Indeed, I watched the 5 hours version and I'm pretty sure I have never seen such a long movie before but it didn't bother me. Indeed, you don't get everyday the opportunity to watch such a epic movie on a mainstream channel. Unfortunately, they didn't broadcast the original Italian version but an English dubbed version and it did somewhat ruin the movie for me, above all, with Gérard Depardieu who obviously didn't dub his voice in English. Anyway, let's get back to the movie itself. Basically, it was a great epic about Italy but I don't think it was historically accurate whatsoever. Indeed, I think it was more a poetic study about the class struggle as it was rather over the top and quite theatrical. Basically, the rich ruling class was divided in two. On one hand, you had Ottavio (the uncle) who was frivolous, decadent and spoiled. On the other hand, you had Giovanni (the father) who exploited the farmer workers, didn't care about their needs and eventually turned to the Fascists to make sure his interests were protected. The fascists were represented by Attila (Donald Sutherland) who was mean, vicious, psychotic and megalomaniac. Alfredo (Robert de Niro) was first attracted by the lifestyle of his uncle but when his father died, he eventually became a landowner just like any other landowner. Even though he despised the fascists, he never stood against them and it eventually cost him his marriage and his friendship with his best friend, Olmo (Gérard Depardieu). The farmers were portrayed here as simple people but the movie was more positive about them as they did struggle to improve their condition of life, turning to Communism in the process. Robert de Niro, here at the beginning of this career, had a rather thankless job since he had to portray a coward and weak man, instead of the tough guys were are used to see him play. He did a great job though but I was even more impressed by Gérad Depardieu. Indeed, he completely disappeared behind his character and gave an awesome performance, full of fire and passion. Honestly, it was just grand to see the greatest American actor and the greatest French actor together in a movie and both of them were at top of their game. So, I really enjoyed this movie but it remains an acquired taste (Roger Ebert, for example, thought it was really disappointing). Anyway, I thought it was a fascinating picture and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Italian cinema.

8/10