Have seen this film about 50 times. Should I ever be diagnosed with an incurable disease- during my last hours- I would put this movie on and glide in to Eternity.
I have seen this film 2 times but couldn't really get the message Fellini was trying to say. Can you explain it or all of this is just doesn't mean anything.
@@Hritik9000 its about a filmmaker in a creative crisis. Fellini was in a creative crisis himself at the time. He was not happy with the success of La Dolce Vita and wanted to do something more creative it was very much an autobiographical film. I hope this helps you understand it more.
@@Hritik9000 Ya, he was basically the world's most famous filmmaker after the success & scandal of _La Dolce Vita_ - which is when he hit a creative block and didn't know what to do for his next film... despite the fact he'd already had sets built! 😆 His final voice-over monologue at the end is what he was trying to bring across. The work of Carl Jung was incredibly important to Fellini at the time, too, which is why the heavy focus on dream worlds, memory, imagination and archetypes.
The way I explain this movie to people who don't know Fellini is that it's a movie about a guy making a movie about his life, and the movie he's making is the movie we're watching. I feel like the very latest modern filmmakers are just beginning to catch up with the meta-modernity this movie invented. I've seen a lot of films that reference 8&1/2, or try to imitate what it is, but nothing I've ever seen comes close. Though Day For Night is very good as its own thing.
Yes, that is obviously its description. But I would have to add that it’s a hard task - as in, If you’re going to make a movie about making a move, you better make it well or its self indulgent and this is arguably with self-indulgent at times, but it is also one of the best films ever made!
"I've seen a lot of films that reference 8&1/2, or try to imitate what it is, but nothing I've ever seen comes close." - that's the thing: the conceit is understandable, and people can do things that fit its description, but 8 1/2 is just in a world of its own. I hated everything about the entire premise, "meta films about artists' art", etc. because I'd only seen the imitators, and they were terrible. Then I saw 8 1/2 and then I finally understood why people *tried.*
@@krrrcht Yeah, I think the real danger of imitation is when artists imitate the form of a thing without understanding why it's formed that way. People think of Fellini films as full of random, quirky characters, but none of them are random, and the quirks always have a very specific reason that serves the story. The imitators recreate the surface appearance of randomness and weirdness, thinking that's the point. They think their lack of understanding of what's going on beneath the surface means that there's nothing to understand. But that's the thing about art, you don't have to understand what it means for the meaning to affect you. And the artist doesn't have to understand what his characters mean for them to mean something. But that only applies when those characters are coming from some genuine impulse inside the artist. And imitating some other artist isn't a genuine impulse. I'm all for borrowing ideas from other artists, but it has to be done with care. We can get lost in trying to capture another artist's greatness, rather than expressing something genuine from our own inner world. There's no impulse more deadly to an artist than trying to make "great" art. That's what leads people astray. That's what makes imitation dangerous, trying to achieve godhood through art by imitating artists you elevate to heroic levels. Art isn't about elevating the artist, it's about finding the common humanity in this human existence that keeps us all separate. When we worship artists, we miss the point.
I saw this movie in Liverpool when it was first released. I rate it very highly indeed-only marginally below M [Peter Lorre] and ICH KLAGE AN [early 1940s film about "mercy killing" ]. Having said that, we are blessed with many magnificent and different films ranking pari passu- but M , for me, is primus inter pares. Claudia Cardinale...what a stunning beauty.
It's also a different movie if you watch it at different times in your life. Also, Pulp Fiction. Also two episodes of Canadian comedy The Newsroom which, if you know what I'm talking about, you will understand were totally awesome.
Would one of these generous appraisers here please walk me through the film to underscore the scenes or interactions or whatever that presumably declare the film as a must-see classic? Because all I'm getting is a disjointed approach at depicting narcissism (maybe just the act of being alive is a sort of narcissism?). I think I just don't know enough of film history, films, and/or art direction to figure out how this is a BEST film.
In my mind, this is one of the lesser Fellini films. That's not to say that it's bad, but I feel as if it's a bit too "composed" and self-aware in its execution. Most of his other films feel much more spontaneous and somewhat chaotic in nature, even though they were anything but. Even films like Casanova and City of Women, which are stylized to an almost insane level, seem to embrace their artificial nature in a much more convincing way, whereas this film feels more like a big budget student film to me.
Imo, 8 1/2 is the age he “discovers” an obsession with women and is the age at which he mostly continues to relate to them. It’s in the movie throughout, but especially in the scenes with Saraghina. What is the quote that shows Fellini said it was about the number of movies he made? There’s supposed to be one, but for some reason no one ever quotes or cites it. Would any director call any movie he made “a half a movie”? Meanwhile ask any 8 year old how old they are a couple of months from there 9th birthday. Also look who Fellini chooses as the Guido’s alter ego at the very end of the movie.
The "half" in 8 and a Half is more like three halves and seven full features. Fellini considers his collaborative work with other directors on anthology movies as the halves.
Same here. I mean everything is perfect, what comes to cinematography and aesthetics over all, but everything seems so irrational ( maybe it´s suppose to be just that? ) I don´t get the scripts, dialog, just too much happening...Funny you mentioned Antonioni, cause i think his films are just opposite to Fellini.( at least the movies what i´ve seen on Antonioni ) Nothing actually seems to happen in a sense of actual "action" level, but at the same time, beneath the surface or subtextual level there are this brilliant cleverness and strange atmospheric menace, that really hits and the pace is overall quite calm and dialog works great. Love his works.
@@macmann1956 Thanks, man. Definitely one of my favourite actors. Probably because I love crime films & he's done so many great ones like Le Samourai, The Sicilian Clan, Two Men In Town, Borsalino, Purple Noon, Any Number Can Win, Le Cercle Rouge, Un Flic etc., very cool guy.
@@macmann1956 Good shout. Also, even though it's not a crime film per se, there is a crime element to the story towards the end of the film so I could've mentioned the incredible Rocco & His Brothers too which is high up there on a list of my favourite films of all-time. There's also an argument for it being Delon's greatest performance.
Crazy to think the BFI wouldn’t have funded this (or any of the Great British films) and it wouldn’t have won any awards as it doesn’t conform to their new diversity standards.
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
Have seen this film about 50 times. Should I ever be diagnosed with an incurable disease- during my last hours- I would put this movie on and glide in to Eternity.
I have seen this film 2 times but couldn't really get the message Fellini was trying to say. Can you explain it or all of this is just doesn't mean anything.
@@Hritik9000 its about a filmmaker in a creative crisis. Fellini was in a creative crisis himself at the time. He was not happy with the success of La Dolce Vita and wanted to do something more creative it was very much an autobiographical film. I hope this helps you understand it more.
@@65g4 thanks for the insight I guessed it was about Fellini and his struggles as successful artist but didn’t knew about the Dolce Vita part.
@@Hritik9000 Ya, he was basically the world's most famous filmmaker after the success & scandal of _La Dolce Vita_ - which is when he hit a creative block and didn't know what to do for his next film... despite the fact he'd already had sets built! 😆
His final voice-over monologue at the end is what he was trying to bring across. The work of Carl Jung was incredibly important to Fellini at the time, too, which is why the heavy focus on dream worlds, memory, imagination and archetypes.
nicely said amigo.
One of the greatest movie of all time
This is my top1 movie of all time
Mine too and it has been for more than 30 years!
I love this film with all my heart ❤️
❤️
Absolute classic. Wonderful. Magical.
one of those movies that depending on your age, experience, mood offers a different side to the viewer and a new rich discovery
Such a great film
Wonderful movie and great Marcelo mastroianni.
The way I explain this movie to people who don't know Fellini is that it's a movie about a guy making a movie about his life, and the movie he's making is the movie we're watching.
I feel like the very latest modern filmmakers are just beginning to catch up with the meta-modernity this movie invented. I've seen a lot of films that reference 8&1/2, or try to imitate what it is, but nothing I've ever seen comes close. Though Day For Night is very good as its own thing.
Yes, that is obviously its description. But I would have to add that it’s a hard task - as in, If you’re going to make a movie about making a move, you better make it well or its self indulgent and this is arguably with self-indulgent at times, but it is also one of the best films ever made!
"I've seen a lot of films that reference 8&1/2, or try to imitate what it is, but nothing I've ever seen comes close." - that's the thing: the conceit is understandable, and people can do things that fit its description, but 8 1/2 is just in a world of its own. I hated everything about the entire premise, "meta films about artists' art", etc. because I'd only seen the imitators, and they were terrible. Then I saw 8 1/2 and then I finally understood why people *tried.*
@@krrrcht Yeah, I think the real danger of imitation is when artists imitate the form of a thing without understanding why it's formed that way. People think of Fellini films as full of random, quirky characters, but none of them are random, and the quirks always have a very specific reason that serves the story. The imitators recreate the surface appearance of randomness and weirdness, thinking that's the point. They think their lack of understanding of what's going on beneath the surface means that there's nothing to understand. But that's the thing about art, you don't have to understand what it means for the meaning to affect you. And the artist doesn't have to understand what his characters mean for them to mean something. But that only applies when those characters are coming from some genuine impulse inside the artist. And imitating some other artist isn't a genuine impulse.
I'm all for borrowing ideas from other artists, but it has to be done with care. We can get lost in trying to capture another artist's greatness, rather than expressing something genuine from our own inner world. There's no impulse more deadly to an artist than trying to make "great" art. That's what leads people astray. That's what makes imitation dangerous, trying to achieve godhood through art by imitating artists you elevate to heroic levels. Art isn't about elevating the artist, it's about finding the common humanity in this human existence that keeps us all separate. When we worship artists, we miss the point.
I saw this movie in Liverpool when it was first released. I rate it very highly indeed-only marginally below M [Peter Lorre] and ICH KLAGE AN [early 1940s film about "mercy killing" ]. Having said that, we are blessed with many magnificent and different films ranking pari passu- but M , for me, is primus inter pares.
Claudia Cardinale...what a stunning beauty.
Among the Top 5 films of all time, imo!
It's also a different movie if you watch it at different times in your life.
Also, Pulp Fiction.
Also two episodes of Canadian comedy The Newsroom which, if you know what I'm talking about, you will understand were totally awesome.
The Greatest film of all time.
For me, comparing "peeping tom" w/ "8 1/2" is like comparing "the three stooges" theme song w/ Beethoven´s ninth symphony
This one passed me by so i think ill give it a go.
Would one of these generous appraisers here please walk me through the film to underscore the scenes or interactions or whatever that presumably declare the film as a must-see classic? Because all I'm getting is a disjointed approach at depicting narcissism (maybe just the act of being alive is a sort of narcissism?). I think I just don't know enough of film history, films, and/or art direction to figure out how this is a BEST film.
What he ended with is my experience with La Dolce Vita. It seems like a totally different film every time I watch it.
In my mind, this is one of the lesser Fellini films. That's not to say that it's bad, but I feel as if it's a bit too "composed" and self-aware in its execution.
Most of his other films feel much more spontaneous and somewhat chaotic in nature, even though they were anything but.
Even films like Casanova and City of Women, which are stylized to an almost insane level, seem to embrace their artificial nature in a much more
convincing way, whereas this film feels more like a big budget student film to me.
I have never wanted to see this film. Now I do. I wonder if it will beat my love for ' Nights of Cabiria ? '
Imo, 8 1/2 is the age he “discovers” an obsession with women and is the age at which he mostly continues to relate to them. It’s in the movie throughout, but especially in the scenes with Saraghina. What is the quote that shows Fellini said it was about the number of movies he made? There’s supposed to be one, but for some reason no one ever quotes or cites it. Would any director call any movie he made “a half a movie”? Meanwhile ask any 8 year old how old they are a couple of months from there 9th birthday. Also look who Fellini chooses as the Guido’s alter ego at the very end of the movie.
Hue refers to color no?
so what the half in 8 and a half? is it the movie itself that is the half?
The "half" in 8 and a Half is more like three halves and seven full features. Fellini considers his collaborative work with other directors on anthology movies as the halves.
guido...Guido...GUIDO.
Can't get into Fellini films. They aren't my cup of tea.. I love practically anything by Antonioni though.
Same here. I mean everything is perfect, what comes to cinematography and aesthetics over all, but everything seems so irrational ( maybe it´s suppose to be just that? ) I don´t get the scripts, dialog, just too much happening...Funny you mentioned Antonioni, cause i think his films are just opposite to Fellini.( at least the movies what i´ve seen on Antonioni ) Nothing actually seems to happen in a sense of actual "action" level, but at the same time, beneath the surface or subtextual level there are this brilliant cleverness and strange atmospheric menace, that really hits and the pace is overall quite calm and dialog works great. Love his works.
I have watched it a few times - and find something different with every viewing. Btw - I love le samouri avatar too. That Alain is another great actor
@@macmann1956 Thanks, man. Definitely one of my favourite actors. Probably because I love crime films & he's done so many great ones like Le Samourai, The Sicilian Clan, Two Men In Town, Borsalino, Purple Noon, Any Number Can Win, Le Cercle Rouge, Un Flic etc., very cool guy.
@@NoirFan84 indeed. Very cool actor. Class act. You forgot to mention “red sun”. A western with Charles Bronson and an unforgettable cast (haha).
@@macmann1956 Good shout. Also, even though it's not a crime film per se, there is a crime element to the story towards the end of the film so I could've mentioned the incredible Rocco & His Brothers too which is high up there on a list of my favourite films of all-time. There's also an argument for it being Delon's greatest performance.
Alex in Wonderland.
hated it.. maybe it’ll make more sense when I’m older. the constant yapping just gave me a headache.
Ye wahh !
I made the mistake of watching this while tired rather than recording it for later viewing and didn’t understand a thing about it
Same here
eight and a half nigel, not eight and a hawf
The best film about filmmaking is probably American Movie (1999)
Dean H Needs a Bluray release so bad it’s not even funny.
Also one of the most underrated quoteable films ever made.
Uhhh no, this is better.
I mean... its a pretty good movie, but not half as good as this.
Thats like your opinion man
@@65g4on’t worry, my opinions are facts.
(If you take this comment seriously, then that says a lot about you)
Crazy to think the BFI wouldn’t have funded this (or any of the Great British films) and it wouldn’t have won any awards as it doesn’t conform to their new diversity standards.
there was no bfi or diversity back then
@@littlejimdavies30 How is Marxism to blame?
@@remotefaith Lol, exactly, I don't remember Marx talking about diversity in film.