Juventude

Once again, Paolo Sorrentino proves to be a master of cinema and doesn't disappoint. The story is set in an apparently isolated place: a luxury hotel in the mountains of Switzerland inhabited mainly by artists and people from the show business (curious the reference to Maradona, thanked by Sorrentino during his Oscar acceptance speech).

Youth is a tender film in both the characters and the themes: growing old and the fears related to it are common to all men. Fred (Michael Caine) is an old man who still has a lot going on in his life: he has to deal with friendship, love, family and his career. The only thing that makes him different from the younger people surrounding him is that he is aware of memory. It is through memory that he has lost and that he tries to regain his identity. Everyone in the film is in search for identity: the contrast between how people see them and what they want to be seen as.

The screenplay is complex and intense and for this reason sometimes hard to follow. I loved the irony Sorrentino always puts in his movies: through surrealism he is capable of expressing humanity in a simple but yet beautiful way. All the cast delivers great performances and cinematography is absorbing as always. Sorrentino is a director of places: no matter if it is the Eternal City of Rome or an hotel immersed in nature - he is able to capture all the beauty of it.

What the film teaches us, in the end, is that we are what we do - so, I'd add, it's better if we do what we are - but we are nothing without love, which is the driving force of humanity.

Greetings again from the darkness. With a Best Foreign Language Oscar for his previous film The Great Beauty (La grande bellezza), expectations were sky high for this one from writer/director Paolo Sorrentino. Cinematographer Luca Bigazzi is also back and the two create yet another artistic entrée that is a visual extravaganza, worthy of the admission price even if no dialogue existed. Combine the visual artistry with a commentary on age and emotions, and the result is a film that will either enchant or stultify … with probably no middle ground.

Michael Caine stars as Fred Ballinger, a renowned Orchestra conductor, who is vacationing at a stunning Swiss Alps spa with his daughter Lena (Rachel Weisz) and his long-time best friend, screenwriter Mick Boyd (Harvey Keitel). Fred, a self-professed retiree, is being pursued by Queen Elizabeth's representative to perform one last concert. Fred is adamant in his refusal … for personal reasons we later learn are due to his nostalgic belief that his wife (no longer able to sing) is the only one who will sing his "simple" songs as long as he is alive. In the meantime, Mick is working with a group of ambitious young writers in an attempt to leave a legacy with his most important film ever. So you can already see that both men are working through their golden years in different ways.

Lena is devastated when her husband dumps her for a young pop singer (played by the real pop singer, Paloma Faith). Oh, one other detail … Lena's husband is also Mick's son (Ed Stoppard). This makes for some awkward (but entertaining) moments, and also leads to one of the film's best scenes – Lena spilling her emotional guts to Fred while they are both covered in a mud bath. Director Sorrentino is a master at twisting these poignant moments with dashes of levity or irony. Another example is when Miss Universe (Romanian model Madalina Diana Ghenea) puts a condescending movie actor (Paul Dano) in his place with a devastating shift in tone and a comeback for the ages.

Sorrentino executes a couple of bizarre dream or fantasy sequences – one with Fred conducting a cow pasture (replete with cows and other bits of nature), and another with Mick being haunted in a meadow by all the female stars from his films (each in costume of their character). Suffice to say, this is not a conventional look at aging. What's also clear is that Sorrentino believes our emotions drive our actions. The most jarring example is the aftermath when Mick's long-time leading lady Brenda Morel (played by Jane Fonda) declines to appear in his latest film.

Even the most bizarre segments are presented with a visual artistry that forces our brains to process overtime. How about an obese Diego Maradona (played by Roly Serrano) repeatedly kicking tennis balls into the air? Or big time actor Jimmy Tree (Dano) struggling with his decision to sellout by appearing in a popular robot movie instead of pursuing his desire to be taken seriously as an actor? Or Lena bouncing back with a socially awkward mountain man? Or the seemingly minor role of a young masseuse (played by Luna Zimic Mijovic) who has us yearning for more? In addition to how each of these segments is startling to look at, Jane Fonda's role has so many nuances that an entire movie could be made about her.

As with The Great Beauty, the film will have the most profound impact on those of us old enough to be looking through the binoculars and noticing how far away the past looks … and wondering just how long until "Life's Last Day".

What a Beautiful Film, i Think it's too late to say This one it's a must See, Don't Mind The Negative Reviews.

* The parade of weird characters in the Alpine luxury resort where the entire film is set - from an obese football player with a tattoo of Karl Marx on his back to a masseuse with braces who declares she likes touching more than talking, and imitates dancing cartoon characters in her spare time.

* The way Jane Fonda's character is introduced - initially filmed from the back, then showing her smile in the reflection of a mirror, and finally facing the camera, radiating maximum diva charisma.

* The abundance of funny dialogue. Here's just one example: - 'Im great in bed'. - 'I know' - 'How do you know?' - 'Because you're my daughter'.

* The lush cinematography, making the film a feast for the eyes.

* The fact that this film is funny, dramatic and melancholic at the same time, and also surprising, entertaining, beautiful, philosophical and versatile.

* Michael Caine, at 82, playing one of the best parts of his career.

* The completely over-the-top video clip by Paloma Faith, which is integrated in the film as a dream sequence.

* The end of the dramatic conversation between Jane Fonda and Harvey Keitel, with both faces filmed sideways in close-up, on both sides of the screen, and finally Fonda's hand on Keitel's cheek.

* The overall sense of watching an extraordinary film.

There is a sense of nostalgia in the films of Paolo Sorrentino. The nostalgia often comes across as a sense of regret for the loss of innocent love experienced by the central characters during their youth. Such a regret can easily fills one's heart with melancholy but Sorrentino seems to have mastered the art of mixing gravity with levity. His films can be both serious and farcical at the same time and that's why they are more complex than what they prima facie appear. Youth‬ is no different.

Here is a film about larger-than-life oldies pining for their long past golden years of youth. We have a retired conductor (Michael Caine), a self-indulgent filmmaker well past his prime (Harvey Keitel), an insecure actor (Paul Dano), a mountaineer, a Miss Universe with brains, and an overweight footballer (most probably based on Maradona). There is a lively cameo from Jane Fonda who plays a legendary actress from Hollywood and then there is Rachel Weisz who plays the conductor's daughter.

Among other things (which certainly include Sorrentino's brilliant direction), it is the performances of Caine and Keitel that makes it a treat to watch. While Keitel steals every scene that he is a part of, Caine delivers a deeply nuanced performance around which the entire movie revolves. Youth is nowhere near being Sorrentino's best but it is certainly one of the best films of the year.

For more on the world of cinema, please visit my film blog "A Potpourri of Vestiges".