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Cinema Paradiso is, however, a film that is both accessible and beautiful and cannot fail to be appreciated by anyone with a love of cinema. That it is subtitled is far from distracting, the photography taking care of the story for the most part and one is quickly subsumed into a world ... Read review
Giuseppe Tornatore's beautiful 1988 film about a little boy's love affair with the movies ... more
deservedly won an Oscar for Best Foreign Film and a Special Jury Prize at Cannes. Philippe Noiret plays a grizzled old projectionist who takes pride in his presen...
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A nostalgic look at a young boy's coming-of-age in postwar Italy and his fascination with ... more
a small local cinema, CINEMA PARADISO from director Giuseppe Tornatore is a famed and beloved classic.'Alfredo is dying'... those words jolt the successful filmmaker Salvatore (played as a child by Salvatore Cascio, as a teen by Marco Leonardi, and as an adult by Jacques Perrin), into contemplating his childhood and the hours he spent in the projection booth of his adored local movie theater, Cinema Paradiso. Alfredo (Philippe Noiret), owner of the moviehouse, befriended and encouraged young Salvatore, known as 'Toto' as he grew up in his small Sicilian home town, ravaged by the horrors of the war. The cinema offered escape and fantasy to the townspeople, including Toto's mother, a grieving war widow. In one breathtaking scene a popular comedy is projected onto the walls of the town square and the entire town glows in the dreamy light of projected celluloid, washing away the harsh realities of poverty and grief. As Toto grows to manhood, his friendship with his mentor deepens. With the love and guidance of the aging man, Toto navigates the trials of first love and builds on his ever-growing passion for the cinema. Ultimately, it is Alfredo who convinces Toto to leave his village to pursue his dreams of becoming a director. But as Salvatore thinks back on his youthful romances and his innocent love of movies, he comes to realise that perhaps his success has come at a very high price. A beautifully filmed tribute to the power of movies that captivated an entire generation of filmgoers, CINEMA PARADISO is an unforgettable masterpiece.
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Advantages: Beautiful, artistic, accessible Disadvantages: Some may be put off by the subtitling
...background.
Cinema Paradiso is, however, a film that is both accessible and beautiful and cannot fail to be appreciated by anyone with a love of cinema. That it is subtitled is far from distracting, the photography taking care of the story for the most part and one is quickly subsumed into a world that is all encompassing.
Post-war Italy was a very different place to the society in which we live now. Cinema was true ... ...going to the cinema was akin to going to church with the same sense of occasion and importance. Through a series of flashbacks we follow the life journey of a young boy (Salvatore aka Toto) obsessed by the movies and the life that they breathe into the town. Cinema Paradiso is romantic without being soppy and manipulates the audience's emotion with complete disregard to decorum. There's a warmth to the film despite the audience's emotions going though ... more
FILM ONLY (with brief reference to the Director's Cut)
Foreign language films are rarely top of my watch list although I have seen some cracking examples. Invariably those that I like tend to the arty side of cinema. Occasionally there'll be a foreign language breakthrough like Amelié which brings this genre to the attention of a wider audience whereas films such as Tous les Matins du Monde will remain forever in the background.
Cinema Paradiso is, however, a film that is both accessible and beautiful and cannot fail to be appreciated by anyone with a love of cinema. That it is subtitled is far from distracting, the photography taking care of the story for the most part and one is quickly subsumed into a world that is all encompassing.
Post-war Italy was a very different place to the society in which we live now. Cinema was true escapism and heavily censored by the church. The act of going to the cinema was akin to going to church with the same sense of occasion and importance. Through a series of flashbacks we follow the life journey of a young boy (Salvatore aka Toto) obsessed by the movies and the life that they breathe into the town. Cinema Paradiso is romantic without being soppy and manipulates the audience's emotion with complete disregard to decorum. There's a warmth to the film despite the audience's emotions going though the whole gamut of feelings; funny, sad, anger and love are all experienced and leave one feeling that this was indeed a clever film.
The plot is simplicity itself - a fly on the wall style reminiscence of a man who, as a boy, would abscond with the milk money in the hope of catching a moment on the screen. A boy who became obsessed with the cinema and who, in turn made it his life. The mystique of the cinema remains to this day and, for this reason alone I think the film works. We can all empathise with the feelings yet still know nothing of the circumstance.
The culmination of the story sees us torn between sadness and pure joy as some of the best cinematic moments of years gone by are played in succession, a very irreverent freeing of the soul.
The characterisation in the film is first class, the only weakness perhaps being the adult Salvatore (or Toto) with whom we get little opportunity to know. The direction and acting serve to draw the audience into the story and you genuinely feel part of the action. That you finish the film wondering just what has passed in the preceding 2 hours is, I think, testament to the quality of this piece of art.
The soundtrack for the film is superb. One would expect no less from cinematic giants Ennio and Andrea Morricone (more oft associated with the spaghetti Westerns). It serves to enhance rather than detract from the pictorial image.
Cinema Paradiso has been released in two formats, a shorter version used for the cinema and a longer "director's" version that is worth seeking out as it draws far more together in terms of the lost years over which we look.
For some this film might seem a tad too sentimental, to simplified in its look at life, for most I suspect, it will draw you in and delight. It's a picture of a regret which has as much relevance today as it would have had at the time. Grow with the film, be subsumed by it, and go away in peace...
... but don't switch off before the end of the very clever credits!
Italian with English Subtitles 1989 Rated PG in the UK
In 1989 a shorter version of CinemaParadiso won Best Foreign Film Oscar for director Giuseppe Tornatore. Originally almost three hours running time, , It had been cut for the US market as it was deemed too long. This DVD, the "Director's Cut" restores the film as it was meant to be.
One of the great all-time weepies, CinemaParadiso tells the tale of Salvatore, a successful film director who returns to the poor Sicilian village where he grew up following the passing of an old friend.
The film opens with an adult Salvatore receiving the call while in bed with his latest mistress notifying him of a death. . We then flashback immediately to our hero (Jacques Perrin) as "Toto" an adorable small boy fascinated by the films he sees illicitly at his local fleapit, with the help of his friend ...
Advantages: Direction, cinematography, story Disadvantages: It's quite a long film, especially the Director's Cut!
Man it goes on for a while but stick with it 'cause this is one of the all time classics of world cinema. Italian cinema every so often seems to throw out a real pearler and in recent years it's been down almost exclusively to Giuseppe Tornatore, who in this instance decided to go for a semi-autobiographical epic. It's set in Sicily and is done through a series of flashbacks to key times in the central character's life using three actors to play him as he matures. There are a number of big themes in life touched on here, you could call it a love story, you could call it a coming of age film, you could see it as someone living out their dreams and the celebrating the richness of life. You can see it however you want, that's the beauty of it all. There is of course the pitfall of sentimentality when a director launches into a project such ...
Advantages: Moving and heartwarming story, one of the most beautiful film endings ever. Disadvantages: That the version for UK and US release cuts out key scenes.
This has to be one of my favourite ever films and will be a sheer delight to those who love the cinema. Directed by Giuseppe Tornatore, the film was originally released in Italy in 1988, was reworked following critics reaction and was re-released in 1989. The edited version went on to win the Jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival and the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film (it is in Italian with subtitles). The recent DVD release (2003) comprises both the 1989 original theatrical version and the director?s cut, with original and extra scenes added, and is a real treat!
The film begins in the present day, where we are introduced to Salvatore, a film director, as he learns that an old friend from his hometown has died. As he prepares to return for the funeral, flashbacks take us back to the small town in Sicily, then coming to ...
In this delightful Academy Award-winning film, a young boy (Marco Leonardi) in a small Italian village is overjoyed when the local movie projectionist (Philippe Noiret) reveals to him the mysteries of moviemaking, beginning his lifelong love affair with cinema.
"...Movie lovers will lose their hearts to CINEMA PARADISO....Magic, romance and fun..." (Rolling Stone, p.39, 22/02/1990)
"...CINEMA PARADISO itself possesses enough command and self-conviction to demonstrate that movies can still manage to manifest an alternative universe..." (Sight and Sound, p.64, 01/12/1989)
DVD Description
A nostalgic look at a young boy's coming-of-age in postwar Italy and his fascination with a small local cinema, CINEMA PARADISO from director Giuseppe Tornatore is a famed and beloved classic.
'Alfredo is dying'... those words jolt the successful filmmaker Salvatore (played as a child by Salvatore Cascio, as a teen by Marco Leonardi, and as an adult by Jacques Perrin), into contemplating his childhood and the hours he spent in the projection booth of his adored local movie theater, Cinema Paradiso. Alfredo (Philippe Noiret), owner of the moviehouse, befriended and encouraged young Salvatore, known as 'Toto' as he grew up in his small Sicilian home town, ravaged by the horrors of the war. The cinema offered escape and fantasy to the townspeople, including Toto's mother, a grieving war widow. In one breathtaking scene a popular comedy is projected onto the walls of the town square and the entire town glows in the dreamy light of projected celluloid, washing away the harsh realities of poverty and grief. As Toto grows to manhood, his friendship with his mentor deepens. With the love and guidance of the aging man, Toto navigates the trials of first love and builds on his ever-growing passion for the cinema. Ultimately, it is Alfredo who convinces Toto to leave his village to pursue his dreams of becoming a director. But as Salvatore thinks back on his youthful romances and his innocent love of movies, he comes to realise that perhaps his success has come at a very high price. A beautifully filmed tribute to the power of movies that captivated an entire generation of filmgoers, CINEMA PARADISO is an unforgettable masterpiece.
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