“More like a symphonic poem than a movie. Your breath is taken away by its baroque compositions.” - Desson Thomson, Washington Post
“The brilliant mix of ideas, the audacity and originality of approach, the sensualist delight in the ravishing play of light and shadow -- all these remain, as bracing and inspirational as ever.” - Hal Hinson, Washington Post
“Stylistic bible for my generation.” -Paul Schrader
In Mussolini's Italy, repressed Jean-Louis Trintignant, trying to purge memories of a youthful, homosexual episode – and murder – joins the Fascists in a desperate attempt to fit in. As the reluctant Judas motors to his personal Gethsemane (the assassination of his leftist mentor), he flashes back to a dance party for the blind; an insane asylum in a stadium; and wife Stefania Sandrelli and lover Dominique Sanda dancing the tango in a working class hall. But those are only a few of this political thriller's anthology pieces, others including Trintignant's honeymoon coupling with Sandrelli in a train compartment as the sun sets outside their window; a bimbo lolling on the desk of a fascist functionary, glimpsed in the recesses of his cavernous office; a murder victim's hands leaving bloody streaks on a limousine parked in a wintry forest. Bernardo Bertolucci's masterpiece, adapted from the Alberto Moravia novel, boasts an authentic Art Deco look created by production designer Ferdinando Scarfiotti, a score by the great Georges Delerue and breathtaking color cinematography by Vittorio Storaro. (Kino Lorber)
Awards & Nominations
Nominee - Best Adapted Screenplay, Academy Awards
Nominee - Golden Bear, Berlin Film Festival
An Evening with Paul Schrader
On Saturday, April 5, Paul Schrader joins us for an intimate conversation about his life and career, followed by the Renaissance Award presentation.
Curated by Paul Schrader Series
Schrader, a passionate and curious cinephile who began his career as a film critic, has also curated four films for the Film Center’s screens, which will run alongside and complement his own films, March 23–April 4.
Directed by Paul Schrader Series
Leading up to the Renaissance Award presentation, we will screen seven films written and directed by Schrader, demonstrating the auteur’s provocative explorations of faith, his perpetual examinations of characters’ values in conflict with society, and his indelible mark on American cinema, March 21–April 5.
The Film Center is ADA accessible. This presentation will be projected without open captions. The theater is hearing-loop equipped. For accessibility requests, please email filmcenter@saic.edu