Rapid Response: Amarcord

“Amarcord” is a smattering of Italian family life in a small town as recalled in autobiographical form by a director at the end of his career but never more at the top of it.

Federico Fellini’s lovely and hilarious art film, the title of which literally translates into “I Remember,” is an easily accessible and rollicking comedy filled with moments of beauty and empathy.

Some of the moments I enjoyed most were a montage of classroom scenes with a student using a tube of paper to transfer his piss to the front of the class while another is doing a problem at the board. Another was a family dinner moment with everyone lovingly at each others’ throats the way any Italian family would be (We’re not yelling; we’re Italian.). And yet another as a character presumably a young Fellini goes to confession but regrets to tell the priest about all the times he’s touched himself.

All of Fellini’s movies are filled with life and grandeur, even if not all of them are in striking color the way “Amarcord” is. And they’re also all autobiographical in some way, but this is deemed his last masterpiece and one of the best movies ever made because it is a film made by a director considered one of the best of all time around when he made the film who then turned around and made a personal film about all of his joys, fantasies and memories.

It’s a gorgeous film, and probably the best looking comedy ever made outside of maybe “Manhattan.” It’s got all of Fellini’s natural cinematic flourishes and Nino Rota’s enchanting score. “Amarcord” is a real treat, the kind of art film you can show just about anyone and they’ll love, even your Italian mother.

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