Rocco e i suoi fratelli

Although the French Nouvelle Vague gets all the press, it is the Italian neorealist movement that has had the greatest impact on American cinema. Let's face it, aside from some of Godard's editing tricks in Breathless, what kind of influence did the Nouvelle Vague really have? Godard. Truffaut. Chabrol. Rohmer. Rivette. Resnais. Decent filmmakers all, but, when one looks closely, more interesting for their influences than for their influence. But the Italians, oh, the Italians. Bava. Fellini. Rossellini. De Sica. Bertolucci. Visconti. I think it is safe to say that, without the films of these incredible innovators, American movies would have rotted away into nothing. It was the post WWII Italian neorealist movement, and its heady brew of Marxism and melodrama, that inflamed the imaginations of filmmakers like Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese, and led them, especially in Coppola's case, to use many of the same personnel on their own productions. Vittorio Storaro. Giuseppe Rotunno. Nino Rota. Ferdinando Scarfiotti. Danilo Donati. Where would the great American films of the seventies be without the contributions of these astoundingly talented artists and technicians?

Rocco and His Brothers is a jaw-dropping work, so ferociously brilliant that it takes your breath away. As a Visconti fan, I have been waiting to watch it for years. Yet, despite my eagerness, the DVD sat on top of the television for two weeks before I finally popped it in. Curiously, I had the same reaction to The Leopard, another Visconti masterwork, a couple of years ago. As I get older, I find it harder and harder to abandon myself to a work of art. Great works of art force one to give oneself over to them completely, suspend judgment, accept them unconditionally. When one is young and unformed, the process is easy; as one gets older, and the carapace of personality hardens, the process becomes more difficult. There is a good reason for this; the effort is often not worth while; one comes out of the experience diminished, drained, let down.

Rocco and His Brothers holds no such disappointment. It is a vast, capacious work, complex, generous, passionate, and intensely moving. The talent on display here defies analysis: Alain Delon is luminous as the saintly Rocco; Katina Paxinou achieves Shakespearean grandeur as the Parondi family matriarch; Giuseppe Rotunno's cinematography is starkly beautiful; and Nino Rota's music is heartbreaking. I do not want to give too much of this film away, but I must point out that, contrary to what some reviews on this site have to say, this film is not just about the corruption that big city life brings to a peasant family. Rocco may be a saint, but his all-forgiving nature drives much of the tragedy that unfolds. It is Ciro, the compassionate but just brother, and successful entrant into Milan's urban proletariat, who will lead the family into an uncertain but perhaps hopeful future.

Let me just finish by pointing out how wonderful it is to see a movie that ends with a meaningful and distinctive final shot. You don't see much of that anymore.

Visconti at his peak. We are in the fifties, when Italian economy experiences a post-war boom. A Sicilian family arrives to Milan running from south's poverty. They dream with a new life at the industrial pole of the north. But Milan is not precisely a land of opportunities. Exploitation and xenophobia is the common destiny for those who came from south of the country. This film is a perfect sequel to "La Terra Tembla", one of the earliest Visconti's looks on Marxism. The hopes and lives of this five brother's family sink onto a pit at the same time as they destroy themselves. "Rocco and ..." is intensely played by the entire cast, including a young and delicate Alain Delon as the idealistic Rocco, an exquisite Annie Girardot as a prostitute trying to survive to her own hell and a terrific Renato Salvatori. But is the figure of the peasant mother, played superbly by Katina Paxinou, the most remarkable piece of this operatic story. Claudia Cardinale made some kind of Italian debut in this film. Nino Rota composes his most pitiful score and the black and white photography is stunning. The scene at the rooftop of Milan's Duomo is one of my all-time favorites. The American version is usually cut so try to find the original or some DVD restoration. A must see film.

I am a fan of Visconti movies. for the Barroco nuances and poetry of small things. for beauty of details and courage to present slices of a neorealism in which is mixed nostalgic crumbs of a world fall and need of new society definition. Rocco was first movie by him who I saw it. a film - bitter story. picture of a family, map of searches, touching drawing of a victory of city and the love as delicate web. and, sure, one of wonderful roles of Alain Delon. in fact, a gate, or only a window to a time who becomes ours. because story is universal. and the figure of poor mother - letter of a never ending poem , is remarkable. end of an age. seed of a new form of self definition for Italian cinema. but, very important, testimony, not about a period. but a state of soul. must see it !

Now I understand why Visconti regards this classic as his personal favorite!!

Overwhelmingly Terrific! The acting, design, music, cinematography, and especially direction are superb.

This epic, grand, personal, and highly dramatic tale of five brothers and their mother who move from Southern Italy to Milan to change their station in life is filled with wonderful vignettes and powerful set pieces.

The fight between two of the brothers in the slums of the city is one of the most harrowing and touching scenes ever in cinema history. This is the kind of fight which actually means something. When they hit each other you feel it down to the core of your being, not just watching mindless brutality like you would in some brainless movie.

The cast is uniformly good with standouts from Katina Paxinou as the long suffering mother, Annie Girardot as the doomed prostitute who is the catalyst of the story, and especially Alain Delon who is blessed with a cinematic beauty which adds poetry to everyone of his close-ups. The one actor who really surprised me was Renato Salvatori as the violent brother Simone. His gradual and completely believable change from sweet young man to violent brute is incredible to watch.

This film satisfies every true movie lovers dream. To visit a place you don't know, with characters who fascinate you, and are framed in a true CINEMATIC style, that succeeds on every level.

GO SEE THIS MOVIE!! I will add my voice to those who cry out for the DVD release of this true classic.

It is quite widespread to evaluate a movie after forty or more years in terms of time test. In many cases, we may claim that some movies are like wine: the older they are, the better they occur to be. Yet, not many movies are great in the intensity of being captivating on multiple levels. This can be said about ROCCO E I SUOI FRATELLI by Count Visconti, a film considered not only by its director to be his best one but still appreciated by lots of viewers worldwide. Let me consider some of its strongest points that I noticed while seeing the film.

The most important thing that drew my attention in ROCCO E I SUOI FRATELLI was the wide range of life situations, themes and feelings which one can enumerate endlessly. The viewer is truly given an insight into profound development of charming affection, bitter humiliation, outrageous mockery, sweet desire, wretched rivalry, Utopian idealism, cruel vengeance, sad disappointment, intense sorrow, indefatigable disillusion, upsetting despair directing themselves towards final hope. By analyzing the content and trying to identify with the characters (note that it is not "observing" the characters but "identifying" with them like in classic Greek tragedies), the viewers dive into life situations which, at the same time, can be present in their own experiences: family ties, unemployment, social status, honor, social pressure, plotting, crimes...are they not all up to date now as they were in 1960? But this aspect cannot be separated from the characters.

CHARACTER ANALYSIS. Rocco (Alain Delon) is an idealist, a very good person but too noble to succeed in this world. He appears to be a sort of biblical king David whose pardoning and love lead him to omit the teaching example and forget those who really care for him. His brother Ciro (Max Cartier), however, is a good realist who knows what the family means, how it matters; yet, who does not ignore the purifying punishment for wickedness. He seems to be as good hearted as Rocco; however; his mind is indeed more "earthly." He heads for goodness filled with honest intentions but keeping both feet firmly on the ground. Vincenzo is most individual and, thanks to getting married, most separated from the family. The "villain" brother is Simone (Renato Salvatori) who becomes a successful boxer but gradually turns to declining psychological strength poisoned by desire, jealousy and vengeance. In between comes a poor mother Rosaria Parondi (Katina Paxinou) who copes with true psychological suffering of lost hope and humiliation. An interesting character is a "fallen woman" Nadia (Annie Girardot) who is as changeable and as romantic as a classical tragic female in her dreams but down to earth and desperate in her acts. When it seems possible for her to fulfill the dreams of a better life, it is too late...

There is so much profoundity and complexity in the movie that one could dwell in the themes for long. However, let me focus on the ARTISTIC FEATURES of the movie, too.

Visconti's movie is a very valuable cinematic work with truly stunning cinematography, perfect direction, excellent script, wonderful moments. Anyone who decides to see this film should not ignore three moments that appear to be the milestone of film's harmony. The first one is Rocco and Nadia on the top of Milanese cathedral where she opens her psyche to him and, at the same time, his reaction is like a great blow of individual reality affecting the mutual one: "We'll never meet again" The second moment is the scene when all the family except for Simone celebrate Rocco's championship in boxing. The two bells that ring: the first one being a mysterious visit, the second one being Simone's entrance leave critical thoughts and conclusions. The third is the final moment when Ciro talks to their youngest brother Luca about life, future, and errors that should never be made again. However, that is not all. There is something more that makes Visconti's film an artistic pearl, PERFORMANCES.

All cast do excellent jobs portraying their characters in a genuine way with a necessary invitation for viewers to identify. Alain Delon is unforgettable as Rocco: gentle, kind hearted, sometimes weak, sometimes very straightforward in personal decisions. The opposite counterpart appears to be Renato Salvatori who perfectly portrays Simone - so wild, so tremendously unstable, so easily led to fear, addiction and tragic despair. Another performance that deserves appreciation is Katina Paxinou's in the role of mother Rosaria: religious with a bit of superstition, so dominant over her sons, and generally so good hearted. A mention should be made of a minor role of Claudia Cardinale who plays Ginetta, Vincenzo's wife.

ROCCO E I SUOI FRATELLI is a must see, a movie that everyone should watch profoundly addressing three levels of attention: first, a sole interest in Visconti being one of Neorealist directors aside DeSica, Rossellini and others; second, the artistic side including cinematography, direction, charm, performances; third, insight into both content and characters, their realistic complexity, humanity of life. Then, these three hours of watching will not occur in vain.