Review of The Conformist (1970) by Calibmcbolts — 29 May 2016

Like some other reviewers, I was not impressed by the writing and the way the narrative was presented. It felt very disconnected, and sometimes confusing, with rough jumps between scenes, often making characterisation deficient. Perhaps it was a conscious decision aimed to convey Marcello's neurotic state and his need to belong, yet I felt that the camera-work alone did the job pretty well, especially the lighting (e.g. in the scene when we first see Guilia, in a striped dress, with moving light source patterned by the blinds, it reflects Marcello's mixed feelings about her), and the unorthodox angles. Also, I still wander if the narrative is objective, or maybe some of the scenes are Marcello's wishful thinking - while watching, I had a theory that the blue light indicated these, but it didn't quite hold up till the end.

And, next to the ambiguous episodes, there are some annoyingly blatant parts. The metaphor of blind fascists was just too in-your-face. I wont give examples, look them up, there are quite some.

The bit I liked about the plot was the suppressed homosexuality theme, under-stressed but sustained throughout the film with several moments of restrained homoeroticism, and the ending. I also liked the general air of the 30s, and the music - the credits song is currently stuck in my head.

I'll quote a fellow reviewer here, who said something I fully agree with: ''A fine movie, but dry and difficult to relate to. I can't imagine many people calling this a favorite. I have a great deal of respect for its craftsmanship, above all, most notably because the filming is beyond gorgeous. ''

Overall, while definitely a 9.5/10 for cinematography, The Conformist suffers from the need of a better and more coherent script. Which makes the movie sometimes very boring, confusing and frustrating. Maybe on a second viewing it might be better.