Fellini Satyricon (1969)
"Fellini - Satyricon" (original title)

In first century Rome, two student friends, Encolpio and Ascilto, argue about ownership of the boy Gitone, divide their belongings and split up. The boy, allowed to choose who he goes with,... See full summary »

Director:

Federico Fellini

Writers:

Petronius (book), Federico Fellini (adaptation),

Stars:

Martin Potter, Hiram Keller, Max Born

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Martin Potter	...	Encolpio
Hiram Keller	...	Ascilto
Max Born	...	Gitone
Salvo Randone	...	Eumolpo
Mario Romagnoli	...	Trimalcione (as Il Moro)
Magali Noël	...	Fortunata
Capucine	...	Trifena
Alain Cuny	...	Lica
Fanfulla	...	Vernacchio
Danika La Loggia	...	Scintilla
Giuseppe Sanvitale	...	Abinna
Genius	...	Liberto arricchito
Lucia Bosé	...	La matrona
Joseph Wheeler	...	Il suicida
Hylette Adolphe	...	La schiavetta

Storyline

In first century Rome, two student friends, Encolpio and Ascilto, argue about ownership of the boy Gitone, divide their belongings and split up. The boy, allowed to choose who he goes with, chooses Ascilto. Only a sudden earthquake saves Encolpio from suicide. We follow Encolpio through a series of adventures, where he is eventually reunited with Ascilto, and which culminates in them helping a man kidnap a hermaphrodite demi-god from a temple. The god dies, and as punishment Encolpio becomes impotent. We then follow them in search of a cure. The film is loosely based on the book Satyricon by Gaius Petronius Arbiter, the "Arbiter of Elegance" in the court of Nero. The book has only survived in fragments, and the film reflects this by being very fragmentary itself, even stopping in mid-sentence.

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Plot Keywords:

boy | cure | temple | hermaphrodite | demi god | 

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Taglines:

Rome. Before Christ. After Fellini.

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian Latin

Release Date:

11 March 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fellini Satyricon

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Produzioni Europee Associati (PEA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Boris Karloff was offered the part of Trimalcione, but was too ill to accept the role.

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Goofs

In one version, Joseph Wheeler is credited as 'Joseph Weelher'.

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Quotes

Encolpio: Ascilto... what does the poet say? Each moment presented may be your last, so fill it up until you vomit... or something such?

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Connections

Referenced in Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream (2005)

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Soundtracks

"The Drums for the Niegpadouda Dance"
From 'The Anthology of Music of Black Africa' (Everest Records)
Arranged by 'Bernard C. Salomon'

User Reviews

Ahem...

"Satyricon" is among the weirdest and most colorful, larger-than-life movies I've ever seen, along with Erasurehead, Erendira, Santa sangre, Naked lunch... If you don't like these, don't even try "Satyricon".

On one hand, its many flaws are rather upsetting. The out-of-sync lipping (bad post-sync), the fact that the movie neither really tells a story nor evocates sensible moral or philosophical concepts... so one may say it's actually a dull movie. The violence in this movie doesn't seem to make real sense, neither does the homosexuality, neither does the "romanian decadence" portrait.

On the other hand, the scenography, the sets, the costumes and makup are among the most dazzling ones you'll ever see in cinema, and the cinematography... well... maybe the BEST one you'll ever see. I can't think of any another movie able to compete with "Satyricon"'s mindblowing cinematography. Each scene is a terrific picture, with several visual layers, extraordinary lights and focuses, a lot of invention, of visual flair, and the overall technical mastery is stunning.

The result is something mesmerizing for some, totally disgusting for others. I have to say I'm more on the mesmerized side, because I was mainly focused on the visual/meditative aspects of the movie, not on the narrative ones.

If you're really into cinema, I mean as an artistic media more than as entertainment, you MUST see "Satyricon", as it's to my sense the most *visually* outstanding movie ever made. Be prepared for some disappointment about the movie as a whole, though...