Morte a Venezia
Directed by:
Luchino ViscontiCinematography:
Pasqualino De SantisCast:
Dirk Bogarde, Romolo Valli, Mark Burns, Nora Ricci, Marisa Berenson, Carole André, Björn Andrésen, Silvana Mangano, Franco Fabrizi, Marco Tulli, Nicoletta Elmi (more)Plots(1)
Luchino Visconti directs this acclaimed version of Thomas Mann's novel. Gustav van Aschenbach (Dirk Bogarde) is an aging German composer who is visiting Venice. Having given up on his existence, he is stirred from his torpor by a young boy named Tadzio (Bjorn Andresen) who seems to represent his ideal of physical beauty and purity. The character of von Aschenbach was modelled on Gustav Mahler, whose music is heard throughout the film. (Warner Home Video)
(more)Reviews (3)
Seen on a wide screen in the classy premises of Slovácké divadlo and I have to say that it was my greatest experience at SFS so far!! A visual and auditory feast with Visconti's incredible magic with images and the divine music of Gustav Mahler. Even the story, however simple, can captivate with its poignancy on the theme of forbidden love and the decay of society and the human spirit. However, it is how and where you see the work that is essential to the overall impression. This really belongs in the cinema.
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Musical beauty abused for narrative emptiness and a dragging camera capturing Venice, Bogarde, and Andrésen. Visconti does exactly what I condemn in acclaimed directing giants. He films for himself and only sends the viewer his smug smile. I hate the impersonal form at the expense of the story, and therefore, I would be a hypocrite if I judged it better.
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In the context of the German Visconti trilogy, this is an interesting piece. The Damned was a mannerist film of low artistic quality, but this one had quite a bit of energy mainly thanks to Mann's book. The climax amounts to the very conciliatory forgiveness of a nation defined by an all-powerful elite.
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