| The Conformist |
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Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, Italy 1970 WINNER : INTERFILM AWARD AT 1970 BERLIN FILM FESTIVAL |
| Summary: |
At the peak of his creative powers the 29-year-old Bernardo Bertolucci eschewed the influence of his mentor, Jean-Luc Godard, and partnered famed cinematographer Vittorio Storaro to develop his own style for one of the most visually dazzling and intriguing films of all time. Told in a non-linear structure, the story begins in Rome in 1938 where Jean-Louis Trintignant is a young fascist who takes on the job of assassinating his former professor who has fled to Paris. An adaptation of Alberto Moravia's novel which has influenced film-makers such as Martin Scorsese, Paul Schrader, Francis Ford Coppola and Michael Mann and remains one of the triumphs of world cinema. |
| What the Critics say: |
| "Bertolucci manages to combine the bravura style of Fellini, the acute sense of period of Visconti and, better still, a lack of self-indulgence ...'The Conformist', which memorably co-stars Dominique Sanda as a sexually ambiguous beauty, is not merely an indictment of fascism - with some swipes at ecclesiastical hypocrisy as well - but also a profound personal tragedy." (Kevin Thomas - Los Angeles Times) |