Guiseppe Tornatore's first film after the wonderful Cinema Paradiso got little attention when it came out and is not even available on DVD yet. Perhaps the increasing darkness of tone{ replacing the lightness of early scenes}of the film put people off,but now that we can all see Cinema Paradiso in it's director's cut {rather than the hacked up,simplified version that originally came out in 1989},this should not really be a surprise.
Again we have a film that celebrates life but asks questions about what is best in life,and whether we all make the right decisions. The movie centres on an absolutely wonderful performance by a 70 -odd Marcello Mastroiani,in a role that allows him the full gamut of emotions,from great joy to terrible sadness.
As before mentioned,the film is deceptively lighthearted at first. As Mastroiani travels from Rome to visit his children,Tornatore gives us some amusing and colourful snapshots of Italian life {or rather,life in general}. The observation with a touch of caricature recalls Fellini {another reviewer has pointed out the many similarities to Fellini so I will not repeat them all}. Particularly great is the lunatic who makes a sculpture out of.....aerials,some kind of statement about the evils of technological progress no doubt. Even here,more serious bits creep in,such as a surreal but very symbolic dream scene shown in several bits and an incredibly touching little moment where Mastroiani is in the same hotel room he spent his honeymoon night in and recalls that time.
As the film gets more serious and deeper it becomes a very poignant study of a man who feels lost,out of touch with everything,not just his children,who simply want the best for him but are actually somewhat embarrassed by him,but the world itself. These two elements reach their synthesis in a really haunting scene where Mastroiani,alone and homeless,spends the night in a box and visions of his children,as actual children,come to him. All this is seemingly resolved with just a bit of hope and happiness,than Tornatore delivers a killer of a punchline at the end which really makes us re access our views of Mastroiani's character.
As with {the full version of} Cinema Paradiso, and later on The Starmaker and {perhaps to a lesser extent}Malena,Everybody's Fine is sentimental but in a tough way. There is a great deal of emotion,both for the character's and for us,but its tempered with both a sense of realism and a wider sense of life and what is best for us in life.
With an absolutely superb score by Ennio Morricone,ranging from the jaunty,Baroque-like overture and 'travelling' theme to the tragic waltz for the 'hero',Everybody's Fine is a great film. Of course it's not as good as Cinema Paradiso,but are there many films that are? {I'm biased though,as it's my favourite film!}.
