ABOUT THE FILM
Main Idea/Topic:
The main idea of the film is that mankind is always in search of the best way or trying to be happy, and in this selfish search may leave things a side; things they have constructed and fight in favor of for many years, but after all men finds this way. In the film this search is related with love; that is, the filmmaker uses love as equal to happiness, so that if you find love you will be happy, also it says that no matter how well we are, we will always think or remember our past as better, and up to a point we would prefer lo live in and with the past.
Main Characters:
Carlo Ristuccia
Giulia Ristuccia
Valentina Ristuccia
Paolo Ristuccia
Alessia
Alfredo
Stefano Manni
PERSONAL RESPONSES
Initial Responses
The nature of men is try to be happy, taking for granted that happy is what we believe it is. In this search, we do not care for those things that others have done for us carelessly, becoming really egocentric persons. I think that sometimes we should be more acknowledged of what the consequences of our actions may be.
Later Responses
No matter what it costs one to become that what one wants to be; if we believe that our dream is truthful, we should pursue it no matter what, until the last breath we have got; never let our dreams like the book of Carlo, which after so many years never finished writing it just missing one last chapter.
Who is the writer on the film? /
Has the screenplay been adapted from another work?
Gabriele Muccino
Heidrun Schleef
The film screenplay is has not been adapted from another work.
Background on the director:
Born in Rome in 1967, Muccino began his cinematic career as an assistant to directors Pupi Avati (The Story of Boys and Girls) and Marco Risi (Steam: The Turkish Bath). In the early 1990s, he attended the directing program at Rome's Centro Sperimentale di Cinematographia and created some documentaries and shorts for RAI, Italy's national television network. Success came quickly after that. His first feature, That's It, was nominated for Best Director at the Turin Film Festival in 1998. Then came But Forever in My Mind in 1999, nominated for various awards throughout Europe, including the Grand Prix at the Paris Film Festival. A teen comedy of sorts, it starred Muccino's much-younger brother Silvio (born in 1982), whom Muccino has also cast in all his subsequent films. Muccino's third feature, The Last Kiss (2001), is the movie that brought him to international notice. Not only was it a smash critical and box office success in Italy, winning five Donatello awards including Best Director, but it broke Muccino in the United States. The Last Kiss won the audience prize at Sundance in 2002 and was distributed later that year by ThinkFilm. Muccino also reached a two-picture deal with Miramax on the strength of The Last Kiss . The story concerned a group of young men who panic at the prospect of settling down. Despite the male focus, the excellent female performances by Giovanna Mezzogiorno (Facing Windows) and longtime Italian star Stefania Sandrelli (Pietro Germi's Divorce Italian Style, Bernardo Bertolucci's The Conformist) were what stood out in the film. Muccino's follow-up to The Last Kiss proved not to be a letdown. Remember Me, My Love (2003) was nominated for ten Donatello Awards, and won Best Producer, Best Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actress (for Monica Bellucci) from the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists. The film again concerns Muccino's favorite theme, ambivalence about relationships and marriage.
(http://www.aboutfilm.com/features/muccino/muccino.htm)
When was the film made? / What is/was the social and political climate like at the time in that country and the world?
In recent years we have seen a significant revival of big mass movements in Italy. Moreover in the midst of the rapid development of the movement against capitalist globalization, we have seen the extraordinary days in Genoa in July 2001. Then came the rise of the anti-war movement, which started at the time of the Afghanistan war and was confirmed at the European Social Forum in Florence (November 2002) and the international day against the war in February 15, 2003. Some hundreds of thousands of youth have come to the forefront of the scene and this indicates the resurgence of a new capacity to act and a repoliticization. All this in a political and social context still marked by the defeats of the 1990s and by the persistence of neoliberal policies which have been given a new impulsion, with marked reactionary traits, by the Berlusconi government which came to power following the elections of May 2001. In this context of revival of social struggles and sharper critiques of neoliberal policies (as well as the international financial bodies which inspire them), the traditional workers’ movement, that is the organized movement of wage earners, has begun to express itself. Even in the 1990s large mobilizations took place in Italy. However those involved were above all public sector trades unionists. In the public sector, guarantees of employment were better than in the private and thus the relationship of forces was better and favoured a response. (http://www.internationalviewpoint.org/article.php3?id_article=132)
What does the title mean in relation with the film as a whole?
Try to establish a connection –sometimes clear, sometimes metaphorical.
I believe the title is a metaphorical allegory to the fact that people should never forget or let aside their possibilities and dreams, not realizing them. In other words, is like if your most intimate expectations for live; forgotten, left behind some time ago, just knock on your door to show you how lame you have become.
Describe how the opening credits are presented? / How do they relate to meaning?
First the credits appear in the center of the screen in white letters and a black background, then it comes a scene where the movie introduces us to the set and the main characters of the film thru a voice over, and then the title of the film is presented, afterwards; the remaining credits are shown to the corners of the screen, while a really slow zoom from a zenithal angle is done over the face of Carlo (the father). All along there is music theme, which is a little bit jumpy and suspicious, anteceding that something is going to blow up. The letter font which is some sort of Duphin and the small they are make a connection with the romanticism involved in the film and the things that are hidden.
What three or four sequences are most important in the film? / Why?
The starting sequence in which the set and the characters are presented is really important, because it shows us that they leave in a city that is really tight, which can become really stressing; and then, the introduction of the characters’ live gives us a background to understand what is going to happen from their point of view.
The next scene in which the second voice over of the film appears is really important; the voice over goes along with the activities that every character is doing: “That afternoon, Valentina felt really envious toward her friend, and it wasn’t the first time. Giulia meditated on the fact that she had done everything a woman of her age could, except for that which she desired. Carlo closed his eight contract and didn’t feel a thing. At 6:46, Paolo was certain of one thing: if he was alive or not, if he existed or not, made no difference to all those people.” This sequence is really important because marks the first turning point of the movie from the psychology of the characters.
Carlo after receiving a call from Alessia his lover in which they decide to meet in an hour, that is 9:00am; he receives the call in front of Giulia his wife and Paolo his younger son, and gets into a fight with his wife which tries to stop him from going he excuses with his son and rushes into the street while Giulia is after him yelling, and a car runs over Carlo. This sequence is important because in another turning point on the film, showing that Carlo’s dream which were one hour away from him, are just chopped away by a car accident that Giulia made happened with her insistent bothering.
What were your expectations from your knowledge of that country’s cinema or director’s work? / Where they confirmed or disappointed? Explain.
I certainly expected the film to be and insightful one that worried about the nature of man and things and that triggered a lot of questions along its development. This movie confirmed my expectations as it showed the way in which every single member of a family is affected by the same event, and how do they react before it. And this is done is a really nice way which is using the resource of voice over to get us in the minds of the characters, revealing their thoughts.
In your opinion, what was the aim/purpose of this film? Be specific.
I believe the purpose of the film is to show that mankind is never happy with what they have got, so they are always in search of having more than they have to be happy at last, obviously this includes the quest for our lost desires.
Give at least five examples from the film (besides the language) which signal it’s being labeled a film from______________________ (country).
Absence of sexual and generational boundaries
Insightful analysis of the characters psychology
Appearance of the family
Appearance of the importance of mass culture
Criticism to political corruption and society’s rotten ways
How does the film try to make its case? (e.g. by emotional appeal, alienation, manipulation of point of view, documentary authority, symbolism, etc.) Give examples. / Is it persuasive?
The film makes its case through symbolism in a very subtle way, as Alissa (Monica Bellucci); Carlo’s ex girlfriend bumps back into his life remembering him the anarchist he was, remembering his lost ideals and his lost love. Even more, the fact that he never finished his book which was in a sense, autobiographical, makes this point stronger.
Main Idea/Topic:
The main idea of the film is that mankind is always in search of the best way or trying to be happy, and in this selfish search may leave things a side; things they have constructed and fight in favor of for many years, but after all men finds this way. In the film this search is related with love; that is, the filmmaker uses love as equal to happiness, so that if you find love you will be happy, also it says that no matter how well we are, we will always think or remember our past as better, and up to a point we would prefer lo live in and with the past.
Main Characters:
Carlo Ristuccia
Giulia Ristuccia
Valentina Ristuccia
Paolo Ristuccia
Alessia
Alfredo
Stefano Manni
PERSONAL RESPONSES
Initial Responses
The nature of men is try to be happy, taking for granted that happy is what we believe it is. In this search, we do not care for those things that others have done for us carelessly, becoming really egocentric persons. I think that sometimes we should be more acknowledged of what the consequences of our actions may be.
Later Responses
No matter what it costs one to become that what one wants to be; if we believe that our dream is truthful, we should pursue it no matter what, until the last breath we have got; never let our dreams like the book of Carlo, which after so many years never finished writing it just missing one last chapter.
Who is the writer on the film? /
Has the screenplay been adapted from another work?
Gabriele Muccino
Heidrun Schleef
The film screenplay is has not been adapted from another work.
Background on the director:
Born in Rome in 1967, Muccino began his cinematic career as an assistant to directors Pupi Avati (The Story of Boys and Girls) and Marco Risi (Steam: The Turkish Bath). In the early 1990s, he attended the directing program at Rome's Centro Sperimentale di Cinematographia and created some documentaries and shorts for RAI, Italy's national television network. Success came quickly after that. His first feature, That's It, was nominated for Best Director at the Turin Film Festival in 1998. Then came But Forever in My Mind in 1999, nominated for various awards throughout Europe, including the Grand Prix at the Paris Film Festival. A teen comedy of sorts, it starred Muccino's much-younger brother Silvio (born in 1982), whom Muccino has also cast in all his subsequent films. Muccino's third feature, The Last Kiss (2001), is the movie that brought him to international notice. Not only was it a smash critical and box office success in Italy, winning five Donatello awards including Best Director, but it broke Muccino in the United States. The Last Kiss won the audience prize at Sundance in 2002 and was distributed later that year by ThinkFilm. Muccino also reached a two-picture deal with Miramax on the strength of The Last Kiss . The story concerned a group of young men who panic at the prospect of settling down. Despite the male focus, the excellent female performances by Giovanna Mezzogiorno (Facing Windows) and longtime Italian star Stefania Sandrelli (Pietro Germi's Divorce Italian Style, Bernardo Bertolucci's The Conformist) were what stood out in the film. Muccino's follow-up to The Last Kiss proved not to be a letdown. Remember Me, My Love (2003) was nominated for ten Donatello Awards, and won Best Producer, Best Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actress (for Monica Bellucci) from the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists. The film again concerns Muccino's favorite theme, ambivalence about relationships and marriage.
(http://www.aboutfilm.com/features/muccino/muccino.htm)
When was the film made? / What is/was the social and political climate like at the time in that country and the world?
In recent years we have seen a significant revival of big mass movements in Italy. Moreover in the midst of the rapid development of the movement against capitalist globalization, we have seen the extraordinary days in Genoa in July 2001. Then came the rise of the anti-war movement, which started at the time of the Afghanistan war and was confirmed at the European Social Forum in Florence (November 2002) and the international day against the war in February 15, 2003. Some hundreds of thousands of youth have come to the forefront of the scene and this indicates the resurgence of a new capacity to act and a repoliticization. All this in a political and social context still marked by the defeats of the 1990s and by the persistence of neoliberal policies which have been given a new impulsion, with marked reactionary traits, by the Berlusconi government which came to power following the elections of May 2001. In this context of revival of social struggles and sharper critiques of neoliberal policies (as well as the international financial bodies which inspire them), the traditional workers’ movement, that is the organized movement of wage earners, has begun to express itself. Even in the 1990s large mobilizations took place in Italy. However those involved were above all public sector trades unionists. In the public sector, guarantees of employment were better than in the private and thus the relationship of forces was better and favoured a response. (http://www.internationalviewpoint.org/article.php3?id_article=132)
What does the title mean in relation with the film as a whole?
Try to establish a connection –sometimes clear, sometimes metaphorical.
I believe the title is a metaphorical allegory to the fact that people should never forget or let aside their possibilities and dreams, not realizing them. In other words, is like if your most intimate expectations for live; forgotten, left behind some time ago, just knock on your door to show you how lame you have become.
Describe how the opening credits are presented? / How do they relate to meaning?
First the credits appear in the center of the screen in white letters and a black background, then it comes a scene where the movie introduces us to the set and the main characters of the film thru a voice over, and then the title of the film is presented, afterwards; the remaining credits are shown to the corners of the screen, while a really slow zoom from a zenithal angle is done over the face of Carlo (the father). All along there is music theme, which is a little bit jumpy and suspicious, anteceding that something is going to blow up. The letter font which is some sort of Duphin and the small they are make a connection with the romanticism involved in the film and the things that are hidden.
What three or four sequences are most important in the film? / Why?
The starting sequence in which the set and the characters are presented is really important, because it shows us that they leave in a city that is really tight, which can become really stressing; and then, the introduction of the characters’ live gives us a background to understand what is going to happen from their point of view.
The next scene in which the second voice over of the film appears is really important; the voice over goes along with the activities that every character is doing: “That afternoon, Valentina felt really envious toward her friend, and it wasn’t the first time. Giulia meditated on the fact that she had done everything a woman of her age could, except for that which she desired. Carlo closed his eight contract and didn’t feel a thing. At 6:46, Paolo was certain of one thing: if he was alive or not, if he existed or not, made no difference to all those people.” This sequence is really important because marks the first turning point of the movie from the psychology of the characters.
Carlo after receiving a call from Alessia his lover in which they decide to meet in an hour, that is 9:00am; he receives the call in front of Giulia his wife and Paolo his younger son, and gets into a fight with his wife which tries to stop him from going he excuses with his son and rushes into the street while Giulia is after him yelling, and a car runs over Carlo. This sequence is important because in another turning point on the film, showing that Carlo’s dream which were one hour away from him, are just chopped away by a car accident that Giulia made happened with her insistent bothering.
What were your expectations from your knowledge of that country’s cinema or director’s work? / Where they confirmed or disappointed? Explain.
I certainly expected the film to be and insightful one that worried about the nature of man and things and that triggered a lot of questions along its development. This movie confirmed my expectations as it showed the way in which every single member of a family is affected by the same event, and how do they react before it. And this is done is a really nice way which is using the resource of voice over to get us in the minds of the characters, revealing their thoughts.
In your opinion, what was the aim/purpose of this film? Be specific.
I believe the purpose of the film is to show that mankind is never happy with what they have got, so they are always in search of having more than they have to be happy at last, obviously this includes the quest for our lost desires.
Give at least five examples from the film (besides the language) which signal it’s being labeled a film from______________________ (country).
Absence of sexual and generational boundaries
Insightful analysis of the characters psychology
Appearance of the family
Appearance of the importance of mass culture
Criticism to political corruption and society’s rotten ways
How does the film try to make its case? (e.g. by emotional appeal, alienation, manipulation of point of view, documentary authority, symbolism, etc.) Give examples. / Is it persuasive?
The film makes its case through symbolism in a very subtle way, as Alissa (Monica Bellucci); Carlo’s ex girlfriend bumps back into his life remembering him the anarchist he was, remembering his lost ideals and his lost love. Even more, the fact that he never finished his book which was in a sense, autobiographical, makes this point stronger.
2 comments:
Awesome review. Really liked the idea and thought behind the film. Thanx a lot for writing such a lovely post and sharing it with us. Cheers.Emmie
It was encouraging for me to hear that you liked my review on this movie, "Ricordati di me," I recomend you to see it, and if you are fond of Italian Cinema, I do strongly recommend you to watch: "Malena" and "Cinema Paradiso."
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