RECORDATI DI ME is a beautifully written and constructed film by Italian director Gabriele Muccino about the workings of a 'normal middle class' family and the bonds and challenges that peak at the time of fragmentation of the family unit that accompanies 1) middle age of the parents and 2) departure of the children at the end of high school. How those crises and adjustments inform the durability of the family unit makes up this thoroughly engrossing and touching film.
Carlo Ristuccia (Fabrizio Bentivoglio) is the father embedded in a life long job that is mundane and not at all in line with his dreams of being a writer (he has been writing a novel for years, yet unfinished). His wife Giulia (Laura Morante) is a committed mother but longs to return to the acting stage she abandoned for marriage. Their two children are Valentina (Nicolette Romanoff) who is determined to become a glamorous TV star and Paolo (Silvio Muccino) who is aimless in his desire for a life of meaning, a life which would prove he is not as unexceptional as he views himself.
Gradually each member of the family encounters escape routes: Carlo meets his old girlfriend Alessia (Monica Bellucci) and begins an affair with her; Giulia is asked to audition for a part in a play directed by one Alfredo (Gabriele Lavia) who makes her feel desirable and noticed; Valentina sleeps around to land a part in a TV giveaway show 'Ali Babbi', and Paolo attempts to attach himself to a girlfriend by planning a birthday party with contraband hashish which he feels will make him appear important in the eyes of his peers. As each of these crises reaches a peek, Carlo sustains a back injury while fleeing his home and his resultant hospitalization results in altered perceptions of what the family is all about.
The twists and turns of the plot are, of course, far more involved than this short synopsis, and it is the development of each of these characters and the way that they approach change that makes the film work so well.The acting is excellent and the direction is past paced even for a two and a half hour movie. Yes, much of this has been said before, but the wit and pathos combine to create a story well worth telling and watching. It is a story about dreams, lost possibilities, and the need to fulfill them.
