Journey to Italy

                                         

What can one get out from a voyage to an unknown place? Other than immersing yourself in the scenery and culture of the undiscovered country, a spiritual awakening can be the most precious souvenir to the soul. If you are asking for such an experience, you are invited: Roberto Rossellini’s ‘Journey to Italy’ (1954) will certainly be a satisfying one!

‘Journey to Italy’ is an important film in the middle era of Rossellini’s directorial career, sandwiched between his Neo-Realist cinema of the 1940s and the clinical docudramas of the 1960s. This film is an acid test for distinguishing between contrasting beliefs and cinematic taste. When it premiered, it divided critics and audience alike. The traditional filmmakers and members of audience hated the style of the film, and the film performed poorly financially. Rather, it was the young generations of the filmmakers – in particular the French New Wave – that got the meaning of the film and lauded it as a masterpiece. Now ‘Journey to Italy’ is seen as one of Rossellini’s greatest achievement. Furthermore, the film illustrates the gradual evolution of Rossellini’s style. From his strong commitment to realism in his earliest days to the spiritual / transcendental style in his late films, ‘Voyage of Italy’ represents a combination of the two distinct style – with a consistent (albeit loosely told) storyline and the transcendental images such as a religious procession and natural landscape.

The story concerns an English couple, Alex Joyce (George Sanders) and Katherine Joyce (Ingrid Bergman), who travelled to Naples to deal with some business issues, and had an opportunity to do some sightseeing there. Yet, any fun in travelling soon gave way to domestic drama : Alex and Katherine had a strained relationship and throughout the journey that reached a breaking point. Both sides decided to keep some distance and therefore they parted way for a few days and did their own travelling instead. Alex spent his time, much like the characters in any 1960s films by Antonioni, and ended up achieving only emptiness in his soul. Katherine decided to immerse in the natural landscape and history of Naples and explored around the city. They eventually reached a common resolution though – a divorce was inevitable. Who would step in and save the day?

‘Journey of Italy’ is seen as a modernist film, a term much preferred by the forward-thinking filmmakers for the 1960s. Rossellini adopted a loose and episodic storyline for the film, and he also tried to enhance spontaneity by giving dialogues to the actors only shortly before shooting individual scenes. By eschewing rehearsal and preventing analysis, the actors could deliver an organic performance that resonated well with the episodic structure of the film.

Rossellini’s film not only influenced the young European filmmakers of the 1960s, it also exerted an observable influence on Michelangelo Antonioni’s films of the 1960s. The style and content of ‘Journey of Italy’ is very similar to Antonioni’s ‘L’Avventura’, and Rossellini’s use of landscapes to express transcendental or spiritual ideas was also emphasized by Antonioni in his work. Though the abandonment of a conventional story-telling approach, the usual peripheral landscape can be seen in a new light. The audience has to find active meanings through a new and unprecedented perspective, and that is the sentiment that gives the landscape an otherworldliness and ‘transcendence’, though not necessarily religious and spiritual by nature.

Speaking of perspective, ‘Journey of Italy’ is about a miracle that solved the English couple’s marriage problems. Alex and Katherine looked for alternatives for consolation of the soul. The film climaxed in a religious procession, where they miraculously reconciled and confirmed their love for each other. This is like a spiritual enlightenment for the couple, and the approach to show the scene is very similar to the miracle scene in Carl Theodor Dreyer’s ‘Ordet’, where the transcendental act is a portrayed like a spiritual black box. The final crane shot which showed the couple’s embrace testified their victory against a key problem in human relationships. 

What a brilliant masterpiece from the husband-and-wife team, Roberto Rossellini and Ingrid Bergman!

by Ed Law 

Film Analysis

Venetian Odyssey

 

Great paintings often provide us a window to the past. They show us about the people of the past, and how their beliefs shape our world. In early February, I went to an exhibition about the paintings of the Venetian Renaissance. Taking place in the Hong Kong Museum of Art, the event featured paintings from the Venetian School, among Titian and other artists. This influential artistic school is unique in terms of style, when one compares it to the other contemporary schools in Italy. As I am always fascinated with the Renaissance, this serves as an odyssey to a bygone era.

In European history, the Renaissance represents a dawn of modernity. Human civilization has experienced a paradigm shift intellectually: the theologically- and monarchically-oriented Medieval Era was metamorphosed into the secular age of Humanism. The rediscovery of Greek and Latin Classics has rejuvenated the intellectual spirit that has motivated the endeavor of Man's inquisition into himself and his surroundings. 

That is, however, a caveat to this sentiment. While a certain perspective of the Renaissance tends to emphasize the humanistic dimension of the period, from the establishment of the city states to the Realistic political philosophy of Machiavelli; this view appears to overlook the religious and/or spiritual dimension of the era. The inspiring aspect about the Renaissance is the fine balance that was struck between the spiritual and the secular. One can realize this through the appreciation of the Venetian paintings.

Titian is considered as the most famous painter from the Venetian school. Through his portrayal of idealized feminine beauty, mythological / religious icons, natural landscapes and rural lives, he has revolutionized some of the themes prevalent in the school, and has also influenced many subsequent artists. Titian was in particular noted for his meticulous use of color to give depth and contrast to his work. Believe it or not, he has used almost all the readily available and rare pigments of his time. His ‘arsenal’ of color has certainly punched up his work!

Titian was among the first to work in the genre of ‘bella’, which showed portraits of idealized beauty. Often nude, always beautiful, the reclining body posture has become a Titian signature. The placement of a minor object was often highlighted by a sharp use of colour, which provided a contrast to the major theme. On the other hand, Titian expressed rich human emotions through his depiction of natural landscapes, an approach similar to the use of mise-en-scene in cinematic art.

Regarding these Venetian paintings, a more realistic feel can be observed, in contrast to the prior work from the Medieval era. Dynamic action like battles can be portrayed on a static canvas, and this represents a testament to the craftsmanship of the artists. The Renaissance painting has demonstrated the use of one-point perspective. The spiritual theme of a painting is organized in a symmetric manner, signifying divine providence and the rational order of the universe. The Venetian style shows a composition in depth similar to deep focus cinema. The foreground and background are shown with layered emphasis, and the human figures at different positions are all portrayed with clarity. 

A highly enjoyable experience!

by Ed Law

Conatus Classics

書 . 道 - 觀賞'翟仕堯書法展'

'放懷天地 - 翟仕堯書法展' @ 香港藝術館 (4-2-2024)

強烈推薦!!

by Ed Law

新活日常 (Perfect Days)

                                     

德國電影大師Wim Wenders的作品-新活日常，將一個平凡人的生活描述得很不平凡。Wenders受小津安二郎的電影所啓發，而他亦對日本文化有颇深入獨到的體會，在比片亦有加以表述。

電影中主角的職業，很多人會視為一種不討好，甚至厭惡性的工作。但Wenders想稱頌的是，日本人無論從事甚麼工作，都會全程投入，去deliver一個standard出來，有些人會詮釋為一種處事之'道'，亦可見其儀式感。小津大師說過，他自己拍電影，其實和一個廚師製作豆腐没有兩樣。當我們看到每一齣小津的電影都圍繞着一樣的主題和影像風格時，就能體會到這句說話背後的哲理。

電影中主角的生活，並沒有因為其單調的工作而褪色，反而是色彩斑斕。因為他有很多有意義的興趣，自得其樂之餘，亦成為了其生命的一個個亮點，算是無比精彩。波瀾為人生的歷程帶來起伏，平復後就成為一個個令自己思維成長的經歷。

Wenders老驥伏櫪，到了這個年紀仍在電影中流露出暖暖的人情味。大家亦可以看看其經典作品'巴黎德州'和'慾望之翼'。

值得一看的治癒系佳作! 

by Ed Law 

以戲服人 Film Analysis