I hardly know what to say. It's beautifully shot. The artistic sensibility is unique, and there are some remarkably complex sequences. And the story is unique. The personal nature of it isn't lost on me, but it isn't a very accessible movie.
Strangely, as I watched this, I realized that the movie is mostly an exploration of the demands that are placed on the director, and despite that, I never felt like I got any insight to his feelings. He comes across as mildly annoyed sometimes, but otherwise seems to be pretty distant.
The vignettes we see of his life are vague, but it's possible to ascribe meaning to them. That meaning never feels explicit. There's one line, close to the end, when the director is told "You know, I understand what you want to say. You're trying to say you can't do without us." I suppose that's as clear as the movie gets. It's about the relationship between an artist's ability to work, and the people who surround him, influencing the work.
What bothered me was that there wasn't a clear language to the direction. It wasn't clear when we saw a flashback, or a fantasy. We had to figure that out for ourselves. I found myself confused through most of it, and wondering if the logic of the picture would be clearer if I spoke Italian.
It's a very personal movie. And it's very influential, both in content and in the direction. In particular, I noticed several sequences that reminded me a lot of Boogie Nights, where the main character is walking around, and speaks with several people in sequence. Lots of people moving in and out of frame, and the camera dancing around them. Remarkable blocking, but the difficulty with following a narrative was a real problem.
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