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Maybe life is not so sweet, and maybe art is not all escapist. Following the immediate success of “La Dolce Vita” (The Sweet Life), which introduced Italian films to global success and acclaim at the Academy Awards, director Federico Fellini decided to further expand on the film’s themes of cafe society, Hollywood and life itself. These goals led him to his ninth film, cheekily titled “8 ½.” The Italian film documents the making of the movie you are watching, which creates a metafictional playground for contradictions and confusion. Through the confusion, Fellini crafts an influential and thought-provoking piece.
Marcello Mastroianni, portraying a character with an archetype reminiscent of his role in “La Dolce Vita,” stars as Guido Anselmi, a filmmaker struggling creatively as he unsuccessfully attempts to make an epic science fiction film. Anselmi is clearly not focused on the science fiction aspect, though the audience never quite grasps what film or genre Anselmi is attempting to capture as it seems to constantly change. For example, the scaffolding of a set that is said to be a spaceship clearly does not resemble such a machine, and its true nature remains unclear.
It is hard to decipher exactly what the movie’s core message is, and it requires a very close watch as the dream world of Anselmi’s mind and reality are interwoven and unclearly defined. This confusion seems to be exactly what Fellini aims to produce. At its core, the movie examines the figure of the “Ideal Woman,” who Anselmi imagines will save him from his struggles as a burnt-out director with marital difficulties.
What makes the film successful is its self-referential nature and critique of Anselmi. The film makes clear that Anselmi is responsible for every problem in his marriage, whether that be his cheating nature, or the “inability to love” that the “Ideal Woman” accuses him of possessing. Through Anselmi, Fellini is self-critical. However, other characters are also not morally perfect, as they relentlessly attack Anselmi while continuously trying to use him.
Anouk Aimée plays Anselmi’s wife, Luisa, perfectly. The character’s bipolar nature is expertly contrasted with Anselmi’s one-dimensionality. She goes from loving him in one scene to hating him in the next. Luisa, who knows Anselmi too well, can easily point out when he is lying. Anselmi’s mistress, Carla (Sandra Milo), is the complete antithesis of Luisa. She is loud and shameless and will tell Anselmi exactly what he needs to hear. However, the critique comes with the fact that despite Anselmi’s confused nature, both these women and other female actresses seek his approval, as he is a powerful man in the film industry who can make them very successful. Fellini is criticizing himself — the power he knows he possesses but does not fully know how to handle — and the attitudes within the film industry in general.
In a larger sense, the film is about finding meaning within a fragmented and challenging personal life. It comments on the pressures artists face when expected to deliver profound work while simultaneously dealing with complex personal lives and intense public scrutiny. Vignettes throughout the film touch on various social issues, including a dream sequence of a cardinal religiously guiding Anselmi and references to contemporary events, such as the atomic bomb, which offer a taste of the noise that distracts Anselmi — and Fellini — as he tries to work.
Much of the film’s effectiveness is dependent on how closely the audience is willing to engage with its messaging, genre and structure. In other words, “8 ½” requires a lot of attention to fully grasp. The film, while having aspects of a comedy-drama, toes the line of being a psychological exploration. Reportedly David Lynch’s favorite movie, “8 ½” has inspired countless others in creating the likes of “All That Jazz” (1979) and the show “BoJack Horseman.” “8 ½” pioneered the sub-genre of films centering on morally ambiguous men in Hollywood reckoning with romantic and professional setbacks.
Fellini’s personal ethics, shown throughout the film, are also interesting to study and question. Does he rationalize cheating and personal immaturity because of his career struggles? Landing on one interpretation is impossible since the film focuses more on artistry than clarity.
Despite the difficulty of grasping the full scope of the film’s commentary, it is highly entertaining, funny and enjoyable. While the audience may need a rewatch or a film degree to truly understand the whole thing, the entire narrative functions wonderfully as a piece of true art.