Confessions of a Hedonistic Writer: What Lies Beneath the Glitter

On Saturday at 7:15 p.m., the Szczecin cinema "Pionier" will present the film "The Great Beauty" directed by Paolo Sorrentino.

"The Great Beauty" is a visually stunning, contemplative journey through Rome and the life of its protagonist, Jep Gambardella, an aging journalist and writer who, after years of hedonistic living, begins to reckon with his past. Renowned for his ironic detachment and his habitué of elite parties, Jep drifts through the world of Italian high society with apparent composure. However, beneath the glitz and conversations about art and philosophy lies a deep longing for authentic beauty and spiritual fulfillment.

Paolo Sorrentino's film is not only a melancholic meditation on the passage of time and the emptiness of social life, but also a love letter to Rome – a city full of contrasts, histories, and hidden wonders. Rome, nostalgic and cruel, becomes an equal protagonist. Its monuments, streets, and nightlife create a contrast between historical beauty and contemporary decadence. Stylish direction, refined cinematography, and symbolic imagery combine to create a film that has been compared to the works of Federico Fellini, particularly "La Dolce Vita."

Darek Arest wrote on filmweb: "In 'The Great Beauty,' form is more important than diagnosis and plot, and in this respect the film is closer to '8 1/2' than to 'The Dolce Vita.' There's a procession of oddities, images swirling, constantly transforming into something new. The director forces reality through a thick sieve to squeeze the water out of it and condense it to the limit. Everything is exaggerated, drawn with sharp, thick lines on an overly stretched canvas. Even a pleasant smile turns into a strange grimace, from behind which something real emerges. The tools that provide realism sometimes prove too poor to tell the story of reality. In Fellini, behind the riot of strangeness, even when it bordered on ugliness, there was always life. In Sorrentino, it's more like death."

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