Amarcord (1973)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Federico Fellini

Writers:

Federico Fellini (writer)
Tonino Guerra (screenplay)

Release Date:

19 September 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

The Fantastic World of Fellini!

Plot:

A year in the life of a small Italian coastal town in the nineteen-thirties, as is recalled by a director...

Plot Keywords:

Small Town | Motorcycle | Harem | Tobacconist | Breaking The Fourth Wall

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 13 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Pupella Maggio	...	Miranda Biondi, Titta's Mother
Armando Brancia	...	Aurelio Biondi, Titta's Father
Magali Noël	...	Gradisca, The hairdresser (as Magali' Noel)
Ciccio Ingrassia	...	Teo - the mad uncle
Nando Orfei	...	Patacca, Titta's Uncle
Luigi Rossi	...	Lawyer
Bruno Zanin	...	Titta Biondi
Gianfilippo Carcano	...	Don Baravelli
Josiane Tanzilli	...	Volpina, prostitute
Maria Antonietta Beluzzi	...	Tobacconist
Giuseppe Ianigro	...	Titta's Grandfather
Ferruccio Brembilla	...	Fascist Leader
Antonino Faa Di Bruno	...	Count Lovignano (as Antonino Faa' Di Bruno)
Mauro Misul	...	Philosophy Teacher
Ferdinando Villella	...	Fighetta, Greek Teacher

Also Known As:

Amarcord (France) (USA)
I Remember (International: English title) (literal title)

Runtime:

123 min

Country:

Italy | France

Language:

Italian | Greek

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Italy:T | Hungary:16 | Netherlands:12 | South Korea:15 (2002) | UK:X (original rating) | Spain:T | Argentina:18 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:12 | Peru:18 | Portugal:17 (original rating) | Portugal:M/12 (DVD rating) | Singapore:M18 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 (re-rating) (2004) | USA:R | France:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Anzio, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

F.C. Produzioni

Trivia:

The title is the phonetic translation of the words "Mi ricordo" (I remember) as spelled in the dialect of Rimini, the town in which the director Federico Fellini was born, and where the film is set. The correct spelling should be "A m'arcord".

Quotes:

Teo, Titta's Uncle: I want a woman!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Man yan (2004)

Four seasons in Fellini's life as he remembers theirimpact

I never thought of this movie as carnivalesque, but you could argue about that. I like to think it is surrealistic in the way that your memory can distort history and all that you once dreamed of or was scared of. Those memories evolve into caricatures of persons, their behaviour and caricatures of situations. We not only see Federico's memories, but also the supposed memories of people once surrounding him.

Also this is said to be Fellini's most accessible film. Well, I was 15 when I saw it first, and it is still one of my favorites. About 10 Fellini-films later I read that this won the academy-award for best foreign picture, which I never expected, but think is quite rightly. The many surrealistic scenes stick to the mind for decades. Hilarious, tragic, oppressive (upcoming fascism: so most of it must take place just before ww2), nostalgic, poetic: there's something for everyone (and every age) to appeal to, while Fellini makes no compromises. If this was higher-paced, you wouldn't have time to appreciate the details, the photography and the music (Nino Rota). Don't look for a plot here.

The cinematography (Giuseppe Rotunno) has comparable feel with some films by Mike Nichols (Catch-22 (1970), Carnal Knowledge (1971), Graduate (1967)). Rotunno worked with Mike Nichols on three films: Carnal Knowledge, Regarding Henry and Wolf. And with Fellini on 9 films (e.g. City of women (1980)). I don't know if this is relevant, but Fellini is said to have had a conversation with Mike Nichols during the production of Catch-22. Otherwise I can't think of many films that are comparable with this fabulous collage of events happening apparently in spring, summer, autumn, winter and ends in spring to conclude some cycle (generation ?) accompanied by beautiful distinctive music. Why o why can't we vote 11 :(