8½

Plot synopsis:
Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni), a famous Italian film director, is suffering from "director's block". Stalled on his new science fiction film that includes thinly veiled autobiographical references, he has lost interest amid artistic and marital difficulties.
While attempting to recover from his anxieties at a luxurious spa, Guido hires a well-known critic (Jean Rougeul) to review his ideas for his film, but the critic blasts them as weak, intellectually spineless, and confusing. Meanwhile, Guido has recurring visions of an Ideal Woman (Claudia Cardinale), which he sees as key to his story. His vivacious mistress Carla (Sandra Milo) comes from Rome to visit him, but Guido puts her in a separate hotel and mostly ignores her.
The film production crew relocates to Guido's hotel in an attempt to get him to work on the movie, but he evades his staff, ignores journalists, and refuses to make decisions, not even telling actors their roles. As the pressure mounts to begin filming, Guido retreats into childhood memories: spending the night at his grandmother's villa, dancing with a prostitute (Eddra Gale) on the beach as a schoolboy, and being punished by his strict Catholic school as a result. The film critic claims that these memories are too sentimental and ambiguous to be used in Guido's movie.
Granted the rare opportunity to have a personal audience with a Cardinal in a steam bath (a scene which Guido plans to replicate in his movie), Guido admits that he isn't happy. The Cardinal responds with quotes from the catechism and offers little insight into his condition.
Guido invites his estranged wife Luisa (Anouk Aimée) and her friends to join him. They dance, suggesting that the couple still has a chance to reconcile, but Guido abandons her for his production crew. The crew tours the steel infrastructure of a life-sized rocket ship set built on the beach, and Guido confesses to his wife's best friend Rosella (Rossella Falk) that he wanted to make a movie that was pure and honest, but he is struggling with something honest to say.
Carla surprises Guido, Luisa, and Rosella outside the hotel, and Guido claims that he and Carla ended their affair years ago. Luisa and Rosella call him on the lie, and Guido slips into a fantasy world where he lords over a harem of women from his life. They bathe him (like at his grandmother's villa) and spray him with powder, but a rejected showgirl starts a rebellion. The fantasy women attack Guido with harsh truths about himself and his sex life, and Guido literally whips them back into shape.
Fed up with delays, the producer (Guido Alberti) forces Guido to review his many screen tests, but Guido still won't make any decisions. The screen tests are for roles portrayed earlier in 8½, such as Carla, the prostitute, the Cardinal, etc. When Luisa sees how bitterly Guido chooses to represent her in the movie, she flees the theater, declaring that their marriage is over since Guido is unable to deal with the truth.
But Guido's Ideal Woman arrives in the form of an actress named Claudia. Guido takes her to visit a proposed set, explaining that his movie is about a burned-out man who finds salvation in this Ideal Woman. Claudia listens intently, but concludes that the protagonist is unsympathetic because he is incapable of love.
Broken, Guido calls off the film, but the producer and the film's staff announce a massive press conference at the rocket ship set. Guido attempts to escape from the frenzied journalists, and when pressed for a statement, he instead crawls under a table and shoots himself in the head.
The crew begins to disassemble the rocket ship, since the film is canceled. The critic praises Guido for making a wise decision, and Guido has a revelation— he was attempting to solve his personal confusion by creating a film to help others, when instead he needs to accept his life for what it is. He asks Luisa for her assistance in doing so, and she says she'll try.
A group of musical clowns, led by a young Guido, transform the rocket ship set into a circus, leading the men and women of Guido's life down the steps of the set. Shouting through a megaphone, Guido directs them into a circus ring, and Carla tells him that she figured out what he was trying to say— that Guido can't do without the people in his life. The men and women hold hands and run around the circle, Guido and Luisa joining them last.

Tags: pornographic, fantasy, whimsical, flashback, psychedelic, humor, satire, romantic

Review:
A famous director is preparing a new film, but finds himself suffering from creative block: he is obsessed by, loves, and feels unending frustration with both art and women, and his attention and ambition flies in so many different directions that he is suddenly incapable of focusing on one possibility lest he negate all others.
With deadlines approaching the cast and crew descend upon him demanding information about the film--information that the director does not have because he finds himself incapable of making an artistic choice.What makes the film interesting is the way in which Fellini ultimately transforms the film as a whole into a commentary on the nature of creativity, art, mid-life crisis, and the battle of the sexes.
The staging of the various shots is unique; one is seldom aware that the characters have slipped into a dream, fantasy, or memory until one is well into the scene, and as the film progresses the lines between external life and internal thought become increasingly blurred, with Fellini giving as much (if not more) importance to fantasy as to fact.The performances and the cinematography are key to the film's success.
Even when the film becomes surrealistic, fantastic, the actors perform very realistically and the cinematography presents the scene in keeping with what we understand to be the reality of the characters lives and relationships.
It's been said before: Marcello Mastroianni plays Guido Anselmi, a fictitious, 43-year-old film director with a personal crisis that stunts his creative flow and his inability to get on with his new film after the enormous success of his previous one.
Or of Guido's touching childhood memories, of the wonderful way in which the movie ends, in a merry-go-round of what really matters in life, when all else has been swiped aside and all that remains is the desire to cherish (with all their imperfections) all those who have really mattered most in our lives....
But it is an incredible piece of filmmaking, and a gripping look at the difficulties of creating not just a movie, but art in general.Guido (Marcello Mastroianni) is a popular movie director who is working on his new film.
The movie mixes in dreams with reality to create a dreamlike world, and put us closer into Guido's own mind.Somebody who is looking for a movie as a two hour piece of entertainment will not enjoy this.
Those of you who write such angry commentary on movies thought to be classics by the vast majority critics seem to think that Fellini was making art so people could sit around pontificating.
First time I saw 8 1/2 over twenty years ago; I did not like it then and I did not care much for a confused director who did not know how to make his next movie or how to deal with all women in his life.
It was a last time the young Guido felt happy without guilt and shame that inevitably came after the encounter and stayed with him forever; he learned that joy and punishment are inseparable There have been fewer than a handful of films that affected me as profoundly as 8 ½ did:Tarkovsky's "Zerkalo"  when the master holds the mirror in front of you that reflects his soul and mind, open you eyes and heart, don't say a word, just watch closely.Tarkovsky's "Andrey Rublev"  What is talent?
Is an Artist free in choosing what to do with that gift?Bergman's "Persona"  How far can one individual go in opening his soul to the other without losing identity and sanity?Fellini's "Nights of Cabiria"  "Dum Spiro  Spero" - While there's life there's hope.In 8 ½, Fellini explored all these subjects and in the final he took the idea of life and hope ever further: after all the characters in his film disappear from the screen, all what left behind is "a little orchestra of Hope with Love as its conductor".
One of the beauties of cinema is to merge the artist's memory and fantasy; Fellini certainly utilized this magic to present his story and characters that embody both humanity and mystery.
This film is an autobiographical piece (of Fellini himself) about a movie director named Guido, how his life is consumed by his increasing obsession with work.
Ultimately, Guido realizes the only way to solve his problems is to face them rather than escaping, accepting himself instead of wishing he was someone else.The opening sequence--one of the most deftly crafted--is taken from Guido's movie (or his dream - can't remember for sure).
Guido wants to make a movie about his (and Fellini's) MEMORIES: how once upon a time he learned about a chant that moves pictures, and the time he danced with the fat feminine prostitute figure.
This invitation to participate in the film is welcome, and if we think about it, a person like Guido who lives in his office might not be able to tell at times whether an event happened in his life or inside his mind..
Fellini presents viewers with a kaleidoscope of surreal B&W images of ordinary objects and eccentric, chattering characters which interact with Guido and with each other, in ways that defy logic, and give breathtaking meaning to the term symbolism.
I feel much the same about Fellini's "8 1/2" as I do about his "La Dolce Vita." It's a film that people tell you you should like, and it seems impressive and profound when you're a young lad studying film and don't yet have the courage to go against critical and popular opinion.
But once you've gained some cinematic sophistication of your own, you realize what an empty-headed exercise it is.Federico Fellini is one of the most self-indulgent filmmakers who ever got behind a movie camera, and I simply don't have the interest or patience for the films of his later career.
Federico Fellini's 8 1/2 is revolutionary.Marcello Mastroianni brilliantly plays the troubled film director Guido which gets mixed up in his own dreams and memories as he tries to find ideas for his next film, while getting constantly annoyed with his producers, crew, friends and his wife.
This is told with stunning visuals and great narrative.8 1/2 can be seen as Fellini's own autobiographical story and is definitely one of the best films I have ever seen.My rating: 10/10.
Fellini's films is one of the main reasons I came to love movies in the first place.
Well, I find myself giving my 19-year-old mind more credit than before.My young adult mind has always found Fellini films interesting in pieces, but empty as a whole, and in particular his surreal dream sequences, to be self-extravagant pieces of nothingness that neither add nor subtract to the story, as being neither particularly deep nor particularly new.
Even the famed sequence with all the women of his life both pampering him like a child and obeying his orders is pretty basic, and develops nothing of either the plot or the Guido's inner turmoil, merely restating what has already become obvious in the non-surreal world.After a while you get annoyed, the story is enough, and the interactions between the characters are actually quite funny, but suddenly, zip another dream sequence that in the end is redundant.I often felt that Fellini got away with this because of a naiveté we Americans have about Europeans, and thus Italians.
Fellini on the other hand, is all over the place, and perhaps this is where the film is most correct in having his creative side be the sideshow magician- he tricked everyone into making him an auteur.But again, this film is not a complete waste of time- the cinematography for this film is amazing, some of the best I have ever scene, and timeless, it is as stirring today as it was then, making the film age less then say, the French New Wave, and Marcelo Mastroanni is charming as Fellini's alter ego, Guido.
I know it's not posh to put down Italy's genius (I seldom see any critics having the balls to do so), but I cannot applaud a respected artist's piece of work simply on name value when, for me, it is meritless as entertainment, does little to stimulate the mind other than to numb it, or further the appreciation of film making.
I had to watch it a few more times before completely understanding how self-reflexive the movie was, and how revealing it was about Fellini himself.
It is not artistic, because the story is extremely uninteresting except a two or three scenes like the scene which the fat woman dances for children on the beach or the director's dream about women and himself or the opening scene was interesting, impressive surrealism.
Mixing memory, fantasy, and reality, Fellini offers up an intense, semi-autobiographical psychological study of Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni), a film director imprisoned by his own success and riven by the conflicting claims of carnal desire and spiritual guilt, of the need for power and the need for love and approval, of high artistic aspiration and the fear of commercial failure.Fellini's oft-expressed opinion that cinema lagged decades behind arts like painting, theater, and literature, no doubt partly motivates the avant-garde style and sensibility found in 8 1/2, a clear break from the director's roots in the Italian Neo-realist movement.
Although such an interpretation may seem a bit heavy, it is supported by a childhood flashback where, surrounded by the loving women of his extended family, Guido is taught a magic phrase by his older female cousin: "asa nisi masa." Decoded (remove every "s" and un-double the vowels), the word is "anima." A magician dredges up the word from Guido's subconscious in a key scene midway through the movie, and the restorative power it represents seems an important part of the film's final scene as well.Of course the ending of 8 1/2 presents an especially difficult interpretive challenge since the film seems to end twice - and in contradictory ways.
I think, that he is trying to escape from his own reality, to another, which would become, with certain modifications, again his.The photography and direction are excellent, characterization is almost perfect.Marcello Mastroianni as Guido Anselmi is a film director, who is trapped between his ambition and his dream.
I watched Fellini's film 8½ for the first time, deciding upon its finale that it is indeed a cinematic masterpiece.
That is the greatness of Fellini, he directs so that each time you watch you are constantly seeing something new.I saw that with his film Juliet of the Spirits as well.
"It's Fellini's masterwork" "all TRUE FILM fans must love this." I see all these grandiose comments and after having seen the movie I just had to laugh.
At times fascinating blend of memories, fantasies, dreams and reality, of all which end up overlapping each other, the film nevertheless fails to tell what I could call a very good story.
In the middle of all his affairs, his women, his attempts at art and making successful films, Guido is lost and unsure of where he is going.And that is about a good a plot summary as I can manage I am afraid!
I do not know enough about Fellini to be able to say this was his life on screen but it certainly had the feel of being a very intimate story that was more about Guido's feelings and fears than any specific narrative about making the film.
I sound a bit harsh because this is what I felt but I still did think that my time was well spent watching the movie because it was imaginative and it was a chance to experience Fellini in full flow in a very personal seeming film.
The rest of the cast are not quite as good and really concentrate on being larger than life characters  only Aimee and a couple of those playing the other main women really struck a note with me.Overall this is still considered a classic and influential film and that is the reason I came back to watch it again.
Federico Fellini's '8½' is one of the most celebrated films of all time, hailed as an undisputed masterpiece by all who watch it.
Nonetheless, rather than putting me off the director, '8½' has rather whet my appetite to see more of his films.The partly-autobiographical plot revolves around an Italian film director, Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni), who is supposed to be producing an epic science-fiction film but is experiencing a debilitating bout of "director's block." At the same time, Guido is also battling momentous marital problems, trying (and failing) to sustain a working relationship with both his wife, Luisa (Anouk Aimée), and his mistress, Carla (Sandra Milo).
With nervous producers constantly pressuring him from all sides, Guido is unable to cope with everything in his life, frequently shifting between reality, fantasies and vivid childhood memories.There are certainly many things to love about '8½.' The autobiographical element of the film was fascinating, and perhaps even an accurate depiction of the psychological barriers faced by a celebrated director whose every picture is expected to be a masterpiece.
Let me start this by saying I am a huge fan of master Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini and a large portion of his work, from the earlier ones like I, Vitteloni to La Dolce Vita, but 8 1/2 is by far the greatest film he ever created, and also high and above the best "film about film" ever.To watch 8 1/2, one will have to be a little patient and observant, and have to deal with the fact that: a.) the film is in Italian, and subtitle reading is necessary, and b.) to really understand to film, and to appreciate its visual mastery (because the first time you see it you might pay more attention to the subtitles) you'll probably have to watch it again.Following the chaotic retreat of a famous Italian film director (Fellini-favorite Marcello Mastroianni), 8 1/2 is a visually stunning mix of daydreams and real life, pulling the viewer deep inside the mind of the main character, and is supposedly a semi-autobiography of Felllini himself.
I have always been able to tell clearly when Guido is slipping into a fantasy, and I don't think multiple viewings are necessary to understand the story, though I think it makes the movie more enjoyable.I don't want to give away any more of the plot line, but the fabulous mix of writer's block, nagging actresses and mistresses, impending guilt, religion, love, life, death, and anything else on the director's mind makes up the main storyline of a dizzying journey through his life.
I also have to mention the really good interpretation of Marcello Mastroianni who played as Guido Anselmi and he was very good at his role.Finally I have to say that "8 ½" is not a movie for everyone to watch and I am sure that in many people did not like.
He is now struggling with his creative juices as actors demand work from him, producers want him to make the next hit movie and there is his messy private life with a wife, a mistress and fantasies of keeping a harem where he tries to keep the women at bay.
The movie that caught the world's fascination over Fellini's self-reflexivity is what is widely considered his masterpiece, and one of the defining films of the 20th century, "8 ½ ".
Woody Allen, much like Fellini, always casts himself or a version of himself in his movies, and every time, that character has a serious problem with women.
Although I respect the art of the making of that film, I cannot recommend it; it is close to three hours of unmitigated spiritual corruption, disappointment, and unresolved Freudian mush.I mention this, because in 8 1?2, Fellini explores pretty much the same territory as La Dolce vita, with one really important exception: here he's willing to allow his protagonist to experience his unresolvable personality difficulties through the fantasies that make him an artists and not just a 'jet-set' clone.The difference, seemingly only a slight matter of perspective, is staggering.
This was actually the second Fellini film I tried to watch, only after Satyricon (far past his peak), and it just didn't work.
I have never really liked Fellini's works, mainly because i don't like the way the "plot" flows, and the way the story is told ,but this movie makes it up being one of the most beautiful B&W films I have ever seen.
A dated movie is one that comes off as a parody of its time.A filmmaker who set out to make a parody of a pretentious early-60s art-house film would end up with something very like 8 1/2.Watching this film, I found myself confirmed in my long-standing belief that artists are among the least interesting people in the world.I do, however, understand why filmmakers and film students love this movie so much: It confirms them in their belief that no matter how rich, famous, and oversexed they get, people will still want to hear them whine about their little problems.The direction, the cinematography, and the performances were adequate, but no more.
Marcello Mastroianni plays the director (Guido) who wears Fellini's hat at times.
The story is a little hard to follow, but I watched it again, and from what I understand, I'll try to explain.Guido is a writer/director who is constantly looking for new ideas for his new film.
This film is one of the reasons Fellini could possibly be the best director of all time.
A famous art film director Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni) is struggling with lack of creativity.
Losing artistic direction for the film at hand, the director retreats completely to his dreams.Fellini didn't just create a world through 8 1/2, he also created a mood, a feeling, and an appreciation for a side of filmmaking that the average movie-goer will never experience.
Fellini's 8 1/2 embodies the same spirit of honoring the movies while showing the struggles of the creative minds behind the films we love.
Fellini invites you to this world anew each time you watch his film.