mesmerizing and moving

Rating: 10/10 (3 October 2015)

After the movie ended I could not bring myself to get out of my seat and leave the cinema. Soon I felt the urge to see it again for it has moved and mesmerized me.
Why did this movie have such an effect on me? There are several reasons: One is because the movie stays physically very close to its main characters – similar to the movie Birdman but with other artistic measures. The result is the same though - you get sucked into mental web.
Another reason is the way the main character is introduced - namely with a question posed to him. The storyline makes a full circle to get to the answer at the end of the movie. We are caught in this circle and taken along a philosophical journey through the meaning of life with all its important issues.
A third reason is the director's talent for subtle comic insertions that loosen the seriousness. Sorrentino manages to show the tragic moments not agitated and with an understatement which Michael Caine is the ideal actor to achieve.
It's not a movie about old people for old people. It's a movie about life for all people.
A role as important as the characters are the beautiful musical score and the visual presentation: highly artistic and with a lot of power of imagination and creativity. There are unusual and unexpected combinations of picture and sound, never seen like that before. It all makes a well-rounded entity and establishes Sorrentinos own authentic style.
This is an important movie to be ranked with Tree of life and Synecdoche New York.