Othello *
Orson Welles, 1952
US/Italy
@ SIFF Cinema

Lots of quick cuts; couldn't tell what might have been due to the age of the film. Very cinematic retelling of a play. Some parts were almost too fast for someone unfamiliar with the material.

See also: IMDb

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly ***
Sergio Leone, 1967
Italy
@ SIFF Cinema

Amazing in the theater, but not as astonishing as Once Upon a Time in the West. Kind of like the difference between Johnnie To's Election and Exiled, just a difference in the grandiosity, though I suspect this was also less expensive.

See also: IMDb | TCMDb

8 1/2 ***
Federico Fellini, 1963
Italy
@ Northwest Film Forum

I found this possibly less amazing than last time but that may be appropriate as it's Fellini, who I appreciate but who also never totally lines up with my idea of what cinema ought to be. Probably if I waited another ten or fifteen years to see it again the film would regain some of its power.

See also: IMDb | TCMDb

La Dolce Vita ***
Federico Fellini, 1960
Italy
@ Northwest Film Forum

I can understand now why this is viewed on the same level as 8 1/2, but it reinforces why Fellini will never quite be one of my favorites. His dreamlike scenes are magical in their own right, but somehow fail to cohere into a thematic structure that really resonates with me. This sounds idiotic as I type, but it's at least very close to what I feel watching his films.

See also: IMDb | TCMDb