Fellini Satyricon (1969)

A series of disjointed mythical tales set in first century Rome.

Director:

Federico Fellini

Writers:

Petronius (book), Federico Fellini (adaptation)

Stars:

Martin Potter, Hiram Keller, Max Born

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 5 wins & 7 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 (as Danica la Loggia)
Giuseppe Sanvitale	...	Abinna
Genius	...	Hermeros, liberto arricchito
Lucia Bosè	...	La matrona (as Lucia Bosé)
Joseph Wheeler	...	Il suicida (as Joseph Weelher)
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:

banquet | slave | venus the roman goddess | mercury the roman god | ancient rome | 

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Taglines:

There Is No End...No Beginning... There Is Only the Infinite Passion of Life...

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | History

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Martin Potter was chosen because of his close similarity to Terence Stamp, who was unable to reunite with Federico Fellini, for whom he had played the title role in the Toby Dammit segment of Spirits of the Dead (1968) the previous year.

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Goofs

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

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Quotes

[first lines]
Encolpio: The earth has not managed to swallow me into the abyss nor has the sea engulfed me with its raging storms. I have fled from the law and escaped the arena. I've even stained my hands with blood only to end up here, destitute, exiled from my country, abandoned!

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Connections

Referenced in Clive Barker: The Art of Horror (1992)

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Soundtracks

The Drums for the Niegpadouda Dance
From Anthology of Music of Black Africa
Recorded by Everest Records
Arranged by Bernard C. Salomon
Published by Arvon Music

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...

Details

Country:

Italy France

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)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,515

Company Credits

Production Co:

Produzioni Europee Associate (PEA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

129 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1