Granted, I came to this movie from a radically different angle from the crowd who first saw and booed it at the Cannes Film Festival in 1960, but in retrospect, it takes some effort to understand their confusion and upset. Yes, L’Avventura isn’t The Bourne Ultimatum, pacing and plotting are leisurely and oblique, but the [...]
Posts Tagged ‘italy’
N (Napoleon and Me)
The Tribeca Film Festival begins this week, but the sad truth is that six years into the fest’s history, I have yet to see a good movie there. Granted, we’ve taken off entire years in favor of Jazzfest, but there’s something about the glut of contradictory press releases, moved or canceled screenings, and red carpet [...]
Rome, Season 2
It’s rare that a TV show ends before it has outstayed its welcome. Rome, which offered equal parts history, soap opera intrigue, gore, and soft porn, has run its course now, and the adventures of Vorenus and Pullo will be missed. The series covered the events of Joseph L. Mankiewicz’ Cleopatra — one half per [...]
Rome
After December’s mad movie binge, we’re catching up with some TV. This HBO show, which carries the names of John Milius and Michael Apted in the credits and is shot in Cinecitta, improves vastly on the production values of I, Claudius, though not necessarily on acting and drama. It begins earlier–season one tells of Julius [...]
