I vitelloni (1953)

Réalisateur:

Federico Fellini

Scénaristes:

Federico Fellini (story) &
Ennio Flaiano (story) ...

Date de sortie:

7 novembre 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Drame

Intrigue:

A character study of five young men at crucial turning points in their lives in a small town in Italy.

Plot Keywords:

Small Town | Group | Sister | Coming Of Age | Adult

Récompenses:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 4 wins & 1 nomination

Avis des utilisateurs:

The Dawn of Federico Fellini

Ensemble

Franco Interlenghi	...	Moraldo Rubini
Alberto Sordi	...	Alberto
Franco Fabrizi	...	Fausto Moretti
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Leopoldo Vannucci
Riccardo Fellini	...	Riccardo
Leonora Ruffo	...	Sandra Rubini (as Eleonora Ruffo)
Jean Brochard	...	Francesco Moretti
Claude Farell	...	Olga
Carlo Romano	...	Michele Curti
Enrico Viarisio	...	Signor Rubini
Paola Borboni	...	Signora Rubini
Lída Baarová	...	Giulia Curti (as Lida Baarowa)
Arlette Sauvage	...	La sconosciuta del cinema
Vira Silenti	...	Gisella
Maja Nipora	...	Caterina

Autre(s) titre(s):

Les inutiles (France)
Les vitelloni (France)
Spivs
The Young and the Passionate
Vitelloni

Durée:

Argentina:101 min | Germany:100 min | USA:104 min | Italy:107 min

Pays:

Italy | France

Langue:

Italien

Couleur:

Noir et Blanc

Rapport de forme:

1,37 : 1

Son:

Mono

Classification:

Australia:G | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-16 | France:U (re-release) | West Germany:16

Lieux de tournage:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Société:

Cité Films

Anecdotes:

At the end of the film, when Moraldo is saying good-bye to the young boy from the train, his "Good-by, Guido" is actually the dubbed voice of director, Fredrico Fellini. It is believed that Fellini did this to emphasize the fact that the film was autobiographical.

Connexions De Film:

Référencé sur Il tassinaro (1983)

The Dawn of Federico Fellini

After LO SCEICCO BIANCO (1952), a young Italian director whose name was at the time barely famous, Federico Fellini manifested his artistic vision not as a Neo-realist, which would logically be associated with the Italian cinema of those days, but as an independent individual figure. Brave as it might have seemed, the young man from Rimini who already worked with some Neo-realists, including Roberto Rossellini, achieved an individual success. I VITELLONI being for many people the first look at the young talent appeared to be the opening door, a dawn for the career of, though controversial, one of the greatest directors.

But that is history and modern viewers usually ask an important question: will I like the film even if I am not a Fellini buff? How is I VITELLONI perceived nowadays? Do people - not the elite but simple ordinary viewers - find Fellini attractive? Although it is hard to answer these questions at once, I will definitely say for myself...although Fellini is not my favorite director, I highly enjoyed this film which, to me, appears to be a combination of autobiography and fantasy, of pleasure and confusion, of chaos and cosmos. Let me look at some aspects in more details.

I VITELLONI has a wonderful content and truly believable characters with captivating stories that one may analyze at different levels and from various perspectives. Fausto (Franco Fabrizi) represents an irresponsible page of man's life. Although he gets married and seems to love his young beautiful wife Sandrina (Leonora Ruffo), his psyche faces a contradiction: desire of women does not allow him to live a stable family life. Other of his friends have more or less similar interests but they are all single. They badly want to leave their province homes for a luxurious life yet only one of them dares to do it... Women are their blessing and their curse, dreams are their fears and their bliss. Yet, carnival is equal for all: a true relief. What a life!

However, the content of I VITELLONI is in no way on the focus. It is rather a movie, like our psyche, built upon details. Every detail makes a perfect sense in the harmony. What details do I mean? MOMENTS that have a powerful impact on the memory and subconsciousness of single viewers. I loved the scene on the beach: cold, windy Sunday and the symbolic look at life. Another brilliant piece is when the men are wandering through the streets and long for Fausto who is in Rome with his newly married wife. Moraldo's conversation with young boy, Guido, at night is also memorable. I was personally overwhelmed by the way Fellini refers to inspiration as sea wind...

But to these moments, I must add an important aspect: wit. Humorous moments are what makes the film a particular atmosphere. It's on the one hand pretty psychological and on the other hand a great, enjoyable, amusing spectacle. The show of the carnival and the flirting, Fausto's new job, the episode with the stolen angel, search for Sandrina, etc. I slipped my sides at some of the moments and particularly when Fausto danced in the street just after his return from Rome.

However, I have not yet touched a significant aspect: why I VITELLONI is so Felliniesque? It is because of the themes he discusses here and continued to rise in his later works: hypocrisy of social conventions like in NIGHTS OF CABIRIA (1957), marital treason like in GIULIETTA DEGLI SPIRITI (1965), family (parent) pressure like in 8 1/2 (1963), journey like in LA STRADA (1956), easy love like in LA DOLCE VITA (1960). These themes are, like in all of his other movies, perfectly embedded in the stories and supplied with aforementioned wit. But it is crucial to mention that I VITELLONI takes the best of Fellini in general. He does not become so psychedelic like in GIULIETTA DEGLI SPIRITI or so easy going like in LA DOLCE VITA. I VITELLONI has the best of his elements with the combination of a particular charm. Therefore, if I am a Fellini buff, so only of his 1950s movies.

But Fellini would not have done so well without great cast. Neo-realism had a tendency to cast infamous people and Fellini goes in the same direction here. Franco Fabrizi, perhaps the only famous actor, is perfect as Fausto. You can find this actor in many Italian productions and this is one of his very best roles. Other male characters all do great jobs. Among female performances, Claude Farell is interesting as Olga, Alberto's sister and Leonora Ruffo is attractive as Sandrina (a bit reminds me of young Valentina Cortese).

If you like Fellini, this film is among the three most significant ones for you - a true must have. If you, however, are not very much in love with the director, you will also find many wonderful aspects of this film. It is not too specific like other Fellini films are: a charming Italian silver screen production, an example of "il grande cinema" 9/10