Cinéma Paradiso

Absolutely one of the most beautiful, touching movies I've ever seen. Superbly acted by everyone and totally touched my heart. When he's watching the movie reel at the end I felt an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia, love and happiness for a time gone by when movie theaters were special places to go to lose yourself for a short time to something wonderful. A must see film.

The centre of attraction in the town, a screen where everybody gathers round, showing films in black and white, bringing joy, pleasure, delight, as the reels rotate, the story is unwound. Toto's mesmerised by all he sees and hears, the picture house is where he flees and cheers, getting in Alfredo's way, mischievous eyes so full of play, Father Adelfio, still collars him for prayers. As he gets older more distractions then appear, conscription, briefly ends all premieres, a girl captures his young heart, sends his pulse right off the chart, then comes the time, when he moves on, goes overseas.

Toto's growing up in a small town in Sicily, with the joys of cinematic adventure, amongst a group of characters destined to remain as set in their ways as those captured in Pompeii. But there's always someone to help you change direction, point you at the stars and help you on your way, you just need to find them and then listen.

Still as beautiful and as elegant as it ever was.

I have seen this film at least a dozen times and each time I am carried away to a small village in Italy, where the dreams of a small boy come true and we can join his spellbinding journey. The Italian language (it is subtitled) adds to the film's beauty and music, the characters are so real you can almost smell them. I am absorbed into "Paradiso" each time I watch it, so that when it is over, I am shocked into the realisation that I haven't actually been anywhere except right there, in my theatre seat. I am not a huge "art house" film fan or indeed enjoy subtitled films (it is hard on the old eyes!) but "Paradiso" is a gem and is worth seeing again and again.

The final scene is probably the best in the history.

Whether you are a professional or an amateur it is always wise to avoid superlatives with regard to a movie critique ... but I cannot. 'Cinema Paradiso' is simply the finest movie I have ever seen. Like many who have posted at this site before me I have seen it many many times. It reaches within me to places other movies have never reached and I have often wondered why. Perhaps it is because of it's simplicity. It contains no expensive special effects, it has no gratuitous sex or violence, it has no "multi-millon dollar per performance" actors that I know of, it is arguable whether it even has a story line, and yet it soars far above the nonsense that film makers are producing these days. It's characters are portrayed by each and every actor in award winning style and the music is not only beautiful but absolutely perfect for this film.

It is quite simply the story of a human life and it's tragedies and triumphs within the context of a vocation. A young boy matures and gradually learns the lessons of life, cultivates his passion for the cinema, and is rewarded with professional success; however, he remains unfulfilled for true love has escaped him only to return in the form of a gift of love which transcends time, space, and death to reveal at the closing of the film Toto's one true mistress.

A staggering triumph of both the cinematic art and of story telling and yet there may be found people who do not like this movie .... I tend to keep such people at arms length and maintain a wary eye fixed upon them at all times.