La Dolce Vita Blog

I'm struggling to find the words for this one. It's a long movie and there should be so much to talk about but I'm trying to recall everything and it all blends together in a series of encounters, parties, and situations.

The opening scene was a good intro to the film, with Jesus flying over the city via helicopter and the women and men flirting with each other from rooftop to the chopper. 'Oh, we're taking Jesus to the Vatican for the Pope, but can I have your phone number while I'm here?' I didn't fully dive into any religious aspects of the film as I watched however.

I enjoyed watching the character progression of Marcello, trying to understand him, what he was all about, and where he would be headed next. He always seemed to be right in the middle of everything, knowing everyone or getting to know them right off the bat. But at the same time, he often looked like he was laying low in scenes, waiting for his moment to pounce on the nearest starlet that he could work his magic on. I felt like we never truly know his motivation for the life he's leading and I just don't get the vibe ever that he's happy doing it either.

It was especially bizarre watching his relationship with his wife. It was shocking to see how often he was out and about, partying, and hanging out with other women while she sits at home. And even when they were together, like at the Madonna sighting, how even there, he had to distance himself from her by climbing up the scaffolding. You've got to wonder what kept him with her if he had zero interest in her. I don't think it was meant to be humorous, but when he got out of the his car when they were fighting to walk around and kick her out, I found is so amusing to walk around such a small car in that moment. Most times in movies when that happens, the car is what I'd call a 'normal' size so it takes a bit more time to get around it making the gesture powerful, but his car was so tiny that it made the ordeal seem funny to me, even to swinging open her small car door.

The decadent times being shown through Marcello's days and nights was evident. The parties, the lewdness, morals thrown out the window it seemed, all pointed to a particular lifestyle that generated the initial distaste for movie when it was made. It showed the darker side of life, in which the people in the darker side thought they were actually seeing the brighter side of life. It all depended on where your morals lie. To some, it might be the dream life, whereas to others it was totally against all of their beliefs to live like that.

One scene threw me for a loop. The scene where Marcello is placed in a room and the woman who we first saw him pursue is in another room talking to him through some sort of speaker system. I actually got a bit pissed when it seemed like just when she was professing her love for him, some other clown walks up and starts kissing her and she stops her chat with Marcello to embrace said clown. Perhaps that was there to show how that sort of lifestyle plays out. It's not about commitment, attachment etc, it's just about the moment. Like, screw it, let's just go ghost-hunting in the old villa until sunrise. You just do it because you can.

And we end with a sea monster. It's looking at them all as they look at it. Monsters looking at a monster. And across the way we see a charming looking girl. So we have a distinct wall that divides the monsters from the 'normal' people. They can't even begin to communicate since they are eons apart. Marcello smiles and waves goodbye to the life that he just doesn't know and will likely never live.