For anyone who felt that 2001: A Space Odyssey had too much action and moved too quickly, there is hope for you. Another art film exists that is even more glacially paced.
Death in Venice may be the slowest moving film that I have ever seen. But it certainly isn't the dullest; for a truly tedious art film try sitting through The Last Emperor (1987).
Actually, I enjoyed Death in Venice despite its lack of dialogue and action. The costumes, sets, and cinematography are very good. Beyond these assets, the film has a unique, engrossing, almost clinically detached style. The depressive lead character is simply put on camera, without the usual manipulative attempts by the director to make us feel one way or another about him. We share what he sees, and to a lesser extent what he feels. But there is no commentary, excluding various insulting remarks by one of his 'friends' before he embarks for Italy.
The story takes place in Europe, during the early 20th century. Gustav von Aschenbach (Dirk Bogarde) is a dour middle-aged German composer, whose career and health have recently seen some reverses. Trying to regain his composure, he takes a vacation in Venice, Italy. His timing is bad, as Venice has been gripped by a plague.
At the hotel where he is staying, there is also a family, led by demure Silvana Mangano. She has several children, the oldest of which is Tadzio (Bjorn Adresen), a feminine boy of about fourteen. Gustav soon develops an obsession for this boy who, like the rest of his family, often acts as if he is in a trance. Gustav always seems to be running into Tadzio, whether by coincidence or design.
His fixation for Tadzio puts more stress on Gustav, who is already concerned with his health and career troubles. Gustav has apparently not previously dealt with his latent homosexuality, and makes a ineffectual visit to a brothel to resolve his inner conflict. There, the prostitutes are as languid and somnolent as the members of Tadzio's family.
Another interesting scene has Gustav visiting an obsequious barber (Franco Fabrizi). There, makeup and hair dye is applied, to make Gustav appear younger. Perhaps this is done to impress or entice Tadzio, but Gustav seems to be aware of his limitations. Under the warmth of the sun by the seashore, the black hair dye begins to run down his face, making tormented Gustav appear even more pathetic in his search for tranquility and beauty.
Allegedly, the character of Gustav was patterned after the Austrian composer Gustav Mahler (1860-1911). To make the reference more obvious, portions of several of his symphonies are used in the soundtrack. Mahler, who was married and had two children, was unable to sue for libel as he was long dead.
Due to its pedophilic subject matter and its inferences to Mahler, Death in Venice was controversial upon release. But the film is better noted for its unusual reliance upon cinematography instead of dialogue, its agonizingly slow pace, and the distance from which the audience is kept from the characters.
Death in Venice was a French/Italian production. U.S. editions are typically dubbed in English. The film received one Academy Award nomination, for Piero Tosi's costume design.
At the British Academy Awards, however, it did much better, winning for its costumes, art design (Ferdinando Scarfiotti), cinematography (Pasqualino De Santis) and soundtrack. It was also nominated for three other awards, including Best Film, Best Direction (Luchino Visconti), and Best Actor (Dirk Bogarde). (73/100)
Luchino Visconti utilized striking cinematography and a precise narrative in his adaptation of Thomas Mann's DEATH IN VENICE. The filmmaker was known ...More at Family Video
DVDS. Based on a novel by {$Thomas Mann}, {#Death in Venice} stars {$Dirk Bogarde} as a German composer who is terrified that he has lost all vestiges...More at DeepDiscount.com
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