I'm not as much of a Visconti enthusiast as I'am with some other Italian filmmakers like Fellini or Antonioni -- but with that avant-garde of Italian auteurs, I find Visconti the most fascinating.
Visconti was an open homosexual, and even cast Helmet Berger, his partner at the time, as the lead as a Nazi pedophile in The Damned. He was a filmmaker that was unafraid of exploring the taboo, and The Damned contains the most disturbing scene I've ever seen involving pedophilia. I didn't enjoy the film, it's not Visconti's best, but it left an indelible impression on me.
Death in Venice also contains a character that is attracted to the likes of a child, though it seems Gustav is more infatuated with the innocence that the young, arian boy represents. The film is much more on-the-nose than the novel, and I think it was a mistake that Gustav eventually makes contact with the boy. If you can look passed the exterior, it's a very humane film about decay and inexorability.
I find it interesting that Roger Ebert gave sorely negative reviews of those two films. They remind me of the reviews he gave for A Clockwork Orange , Blue Velvet , and Fight Club. He reviewed these films based off of the way they made him feel. When the joke is on him.
Le notti bianche is probably my favorite Visconti film. It may have to do with my man-crush on Mastroianni, but it's an atmospheric fever dream that's as bittersweet as any film I've seen. I gathered from this film that it's somtimes more important to relish the pursuit of a fantastical life than basque in the reality of one. This film served as bridge between Visconti's neo realistic filmography and the films he would make from the '60s on.
Like I said, he's not my favorite Italian filmmaker; however, he's a director that makes my guts churn whilst looking at some beautiful photography.
Visconti was an open homosexual, and even cast Helmet Berger, his partner at the time, as the lead as a Nazi pedophile in The Damned. He was a filmmaker that was unafraid of exploring the taboo, and The Damned contains the most disturbing scene I've ever seen involving pedophilia. I didn't enjoy the film, it's not Visconti's best, but it left an indelible impression on me.
Death in Venice also contains a character that is attracted to the likes of a child, though it seems Gustav is more infatuated with the innocence that the young, arian boy represents. The film is much more on-the-nose than the novel, and I think it was a mistake that Gustav eventually makes contact with the boy. If you can look passed the exterior, it's a very humane film about decay and inexorability.
I find it interesting that Roger Ebert gave sorely negative reviews of those two films. They remind me of the reviews he gave for A Clockwork Orange , Blue Velvet , and Fight Club. He reviewed these films based off of the way they made him feel. When the joke is on him.
Le notti bianche is probably my favorite Visconti film. It may have to do with my man-crush on Mastroianni, but it's an atmospheric fever dream that's as bittersweet as any film I've seen. I gathered from this film that it's somtimes more important to relish the pursuit of a fantastical life than basque in the reality of one. This film served as bridge between Visconti's neo realistic filmography and the films he would make from the '60s on.
Like I said, he's not my favorite Italian filmmaker; however, he's a director that makes my guts churn whilst looking at some beautiful photography.
