Marcello Mastroianni

Jeanne Moreau

Monica Vitti

Bernhard Wicki

Rosy Mazzacurati

Maria Pia Luzi

Guido A. Marsan

Vittorio Bertolini

Vincenzo Corbella

Ugo Fortunati

Gitt Magrini

Giorgio Negro

Roberta Speroni

Umberto Eco

Michelangelo Antonioni

Ennio Flaiano

Tonino Guerra

Franco Freda

Roberto Cocco

Franco Indovina

Berto Pelosso

Liana Ferri

Claudio Maielli

Pasqualino De Santis

Mimì Chaperon

Amalia Paoletti

Simone Knapp

Mauro Bertinotti

Mario Solá

Giuseppe Ranieri

Sergio Strizzi

Gianni Di Venanzo

Emanuele Cassuto

Giorgio Gaslini

Eraldo Da Roma

Piero Zuffi

Paolo Frascà

Drama

Romance

La notte

Nepi Film

Silver Films

Sofitedip

Italy

France

CinemaSerf

I have always thought Jeanne Moreau to be one of the most striking of actresses. He expressions with her smile and her eyes would have made her a fantastic silent film star. Here she portrays "Lidia", married to "Giovanni" (an equally potent Marcello Mastroianni), with whom she has a pretty open relationship in what is a rapidly deteriorating marriage. It's only after they visit a terminally ill friend "Garani" (Bernhard Wicki) that she becomes distraught, leaves the hospital and her thoughts start to focus a little. She visits the home of her youth, he goes to a party to celebrate the release of his latest tome then they both end up at a lavish soirée where they are as if independent of each other - both pretty shamelessly flirting with other, younger, people whilst maintaining just about enough of a façade to remember that this is all about business. Michelangelo Antonioni has created the ultimately crafted fly-on-the-wall film, here. The photography is intimate, almost invasive, at times as we watch these two people heading on a crash course to marital oblivion taking a great deal of themselves with them too. Though at times outwardly superficial, the characterisations are actually quite complex and both play with a subtle, nuanced charisma that compliments the more obvious symptoms of their declining interest in each other. What also adds a richness to this is a distinct paucity of dialogue. Giorgio Gaslini has provided us with a score that allows the photography to tell us great swathes of the story using imagery only - the lack of needless conversation between the characters helps it to showcase the ostentatiousness of their ball or the use of the Milanese city-scape in the darkness illuminated only by the occassional street-light - and that frequently creates a compelling atmosphere as sterile and barren as is their failing partnership. By the end, we know that something has to give, but what might that be? For two hours it just flies by. It's Golden Bear was well won.