by Aaron Schweitzer, Editor
Welcome to 20th Century Flicks, where we take a look at some of the most important, influential, and incredible films of the 1900s. I’m filling in for Reid this month and it’s largely because there is a film I cannot get out of my head. There are three versions of Cinema Paradiso that exist: an original theatrical cut (about two hours and 30 minutes), a modified theatrical cut (about two hours and four minutes), which is the most known version of the film, and a director’s cut (about three hours). The original cut doesn’t seem to be available, and I’ve only seen the theatrical cut in full (with seeing most of the bits from the director’s cut right after the last viewing). Plus, in my opinion, the two hour and four minute cut of this film is the superior version. This last time, I also saw Arrow’s 4K release of this film, which is truly magnificent. Now that we’ve got all that out of the way, let’s dive into why this film that I saw for the first time a month ago has become one of my all-time favorites (number 24, to be precise).
This is the first entry in the 20th Century Flicks series to take us outside of Hollywood and while I am far from an expert in international films, there is something undeniably special about this Cinema Paradiso. Giuseppe Tornatore, an unknown at the time, managed to make one of the most heartfelt love letters I have every had the pleasure of witnessing. As any good love letter does, this film is layered in its themes, which makes it different with each watch.
During my first watch, I saw it as a love letter to the cinemas and its comparison to the love of a woman. The first hour of this movie focuses on Salvatore Di Vita, known as “Toto,” and his growing fondness for cinema and the local projectionist Alfredo, portrayed perfectly by the late Philippe Noiret. As I watched this film, seeing Toto fall in love with film reminds me of each of our stories of how we came to love movies. For me, it was watching the ultimate story of hope in the first two Star Wars films over and over again. Recalling the times where I would watch Star Wars because I was fascinated with the characters, the world, the fights, and the things that are worth fighting for really brought me back to a state of pure ecstasy. As any great film does, it elicits our own response as we watch Toto experience the same things and fall in love with the cinema. Guided by Alfredo, who wants bigger and better things for Toto, we see true magic happen on screen. As the film transitions to the second half, we jump to Toto’s teenage years, where we see the same response, but to a woman. He is willing to do anything to win her love, and when he finally gets her, it is all he can fixate on. Tornatore is trying to show that love, in all its forms, is the most powerful thing we can ever experience and our only response can be to completely envelop ourselves in that.
My second viewing changed my perspective. While I still believe in all of that, we do end the film with Toto’s separation from Elena and a recommitment to pursue her in his older years. The director’s cut shows his pursuit, and while it certainly isn’t bad, it is by far the weakest segment of the movie. So while it can be about love and finding or rekindling love, it seems to be sending a stronger message. Tornatore describes the theme of Cinema Paradiso to be “stolen kisses.” This is mirrored in each act with Father Adelfio’s demands to cut anything of a crude nature, particularly sexual, with Toto’s lost years with Elena. While the film is about love and watching people in love, it shines when the highlight is on the absence of that love; when we experience stolen kisses. As we experience these two stories with Toto, we pour our own soul to invest in that love because we know there is no worse experience than to lose something or someone you love.
I am so eager to see what more I will continue to take from this film as I give it many more viewings in my lifetime. But it does not live and die by its themes. Sure, the themes elevates the film to become really special, but this film has so much working for it. Capturing life in a poor, small, Italian town square in the early 1900s and the lived-in characters that make you feel a part of the community, this film took me more into Italy than when I visited myself in person! It also harkens back to the days of cinema that I would give anything to be a part of where going to the cinema what a communal event and the cinema was the place that you just got to be at. All of this is accompanied by what has already become one of my favorite film scores of all time, beautifully composed by the legendary Ennio Morricone. I really feel like, even though the film is in a language I know about three words of, you could close your eyes and still be teary-eyed at the end.
Speaking of the ending, Cinema Paradiso goes down as one of the greatest movie endings of all time. With Morricone’s score accompanying Jacques Perrin (older Toto) giving one of the most authentic performances you will ever see set to the ultimate manifestation of stolen kisses, it is nearly impossible to keep the tears in your eyes. I’m not a very emotional person, but I like the idea of being one and when a film can make me experience something so overwhelming like this, it is something that I will never be able to forget. To misquote one of my other all-time favorite films, “How can you not to be romantic about the cinema?”
Cinema Paradiso is not just one of the best 20th Century Flicks, it’s one of the best films of all time, foreign and domestic. I held off seeing this movie for so long because of its age and nationality, but now I feel like I’ve been missing something my whole life without even knowing it. This film filled all the stolen kisses I never realized I had.
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