Bertolucci - The Conformist

[Bobby Beksinski]

I think I liked this film. It is that uncertainty that kills the whole
experience. While watching The Conformist, I become intrigued by
Bertolucci's technical prowess, the non-linear movement in its
storyline, and of course the exquisite cinematography. But these
moments of intrigue seem to come and go and the interest fades. There
is never any build to the tension of misplaced suspense music that
attempts to excite the viewer or at least prepare us for something of
the foreboding type, then nothing happens. Or if it does, it goes by
quietly and almost unnoticed, forgettable. I think I liked this movie,
I certainly respect it. One can respect the talent that comes across
the screen from a Grand master of Cinema but not exactly enjoy the
piece as a whole (in its entirety). I would rate this film about a
7/10

This review I found on IMDB also really hits at what I am trying to
say but even better.

"Beautiful, yes. Insightful, no. I have heard films criticized before
because their visual style stymied the work as a whole. I am not sure
what the critics meant (they did not explain themselves), but I feel
justified in leveling a similar criticism against The Conformist. For
all his outstanding technical prowess, Bertolucci's decision to refuse
all freedom to his actors ultimately blunts the film's potential. It's
rendered opaque. Bertolucci could not possibly have wanted the
beautiful climax in which both the professor and his wife are brutally
murdered to pass by me without increasing my heart rate one beat, but
that's about how it played out. He doesn't provide us with a human
perspective. Marcello (the protagonist) would appear to be the logical
choice, but Bertolucci keeps shifting camera shots, showing us one
mind-blowing view after another, instead of letting the scene settle
down. I don't know if Jean-Louis Trintignant has any chops or not, but
this should have been the scene in which I found out. No matter how
committed Bertolucci is to his visual style, he should have let
Trintignant let it rip. But he didn't. We get a muted response from
Marcello, and as a result, our reaction can only be muted, at best. "
written by molypocho

[Thorkell A. Ottarsson]

I felt the same way when I saw it first Bobby. I have to see it again.
I think this might be a film one likes more the 2nd time around.

[Jake Fredel]

Bobby and Thorkell, to confirm your assumptions, I feel this is a film where it's almost required that you watch it multiple times before you will be able to appreciate it. I originally felt the same way as both of you the first time I saw. I was driven to watch it a few more times after that because (like Mulholland Dr. the first time around, which is now my favorite film by the way) the first time I watched it, it didn't seem that great to me, but I also felt uneasy about this opinion because I felt that I had missed something. Which turned out to be the case. This is now my favorite Bertolucci film (although I still haven't gotten to Novecento), and there's certainly an elusive quality to it. The cinematography is striking, the editing is intriguing, and the actors seem wooden at times - but there's more to the film than this. I sense a certain command of the screen underneath, a subdued urgency, a poetic disguise of the complex as simplistic, a cold enormity that is perhaps too much for the viewer to wean at first glance. Give it another try, guys. I think it might be Bertolucci's master work.

-Jake

[David D]

Interesting that for many of you a second or third viewing heightened
your appreciation of the film. The opposite (unfortunately) happened
to me. I saw this film when it came out over 40 years ago. Knew
nothing about it or the director, and it was probably the second film
in a double-feature. I was stunned by the film. Since then many of the
images have stayed with me (whether I'm remembering them correctly or
not): the dance between the two women, the chauffeur removing his cap
and seducing the boy, the last shot of Dominique Sanda pounding on the
car window, the final scene in prison. Probably I related to it
personally because I too was living a life (a lie?), being a
conformist. And in the end, I think the cost of Trintingant's
conformity was tremendous. OK. So maybe a year or so ago I either saw
this again on TCM or got a DVD, but the color was muddy, the subtitles
were difficult to read and it just seemed to move ever. so. slowly.
Reading your comments makes me want to see it again. Hopefully I will
because, as I said, this is one of the films that had an effect on me
and stayed with me throughout my lifetime.