Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.
It's amazing what creative genius can accomplish with even a small budget. The Conformist (1970), produced for a relative pittance, helped launch the career of Bernardo Bertolucci. Many critics still consider the film his best; I would call it among his best.
Historical Background: Bernardo Bertolucci got his first film experience working as an assistant to Pasolini on Accattone! (1961). His own debut film, The Grim Reaper (1962) was unsuccessful but his second film, Before the Revolution (1964), met with considerable success. Bertolucci then spent a couple of years making documentaries in Iran for Shell Oil. In the late sixties, Bertolucci made two mediocre films, Vangelo '70 (1967) and Partner (1968), and co-scripted the screenplay for the successful spaghetti Western Once Upon a Time in the West (1967). Bertolucci really hit his stride with two great films in 1970: The Spider's Stratagem (1970), made for Italian television, and The Conformist (1970), which proved to be his international breakthrough film. Bertolucci followed those successes with the controversial Last Tango in Paris (1972), starring Marlon Brando. Other later Bertolucci that I have already reviewed include the epic, 1900 (1976) and The Last Emperor (1987).
The Conformist was based on a fine novel by Alberto Moravia. For this film, Bertolucci once again teamed with Vittorio Storaro, one of the most highly regarded cinematographers of all-time, also known for his work with Francis Ford Coppola (e.g., Apocalypse Now (1979) and One From the Heart (1982)). The Conformist represents one of the preeminent examples, in cinema, of a genuine and magnificently successful collaboration between a director and cinematographer.
The Story: Bertolucci uses an odd structure for the revelation of his story in The Conformist. The opening portion of the film is non-linear, introducing and shifting fluidly between the various chapters of the story, past and present. Later, the narrative settles down into a more traditional linear exposition. Inattentive viewers may find themselves confused and may or may not be able to get back on board as the film progresses. Marcello Clerici (Jean-Louis Trintignant) is a professor in Italy in 1938, as Mussolini is coming to power and the country is falling into the grips of Fascism. Clerici has an inordinate need to "fit in" that derives from a traumatic childhood and dysfunctional family. His father and mother lived decadent lifestyles, culminating in insanity for his father and morphine addiction for his mother. At age thirteen, Clerici had also been molested by the family's homosexual chaffeur, Lino (Pierre Clémenti). The young Marcello had initially followed his curiosity in the matter but later shot the chaffeur to death, presumably out of shame. The always neatly coiffed Marcello imagines that protection from such "excesses" of living lies in adhering to a regimented and repressed life style and conformity to social strictures. Marcello chooses a young wife from the petit-bourgeoisie, Giulia (Stefania Sandrelli), who is something of an airhead, but attractive and socially correct.
When the Fascists come to power, Clerici lets it be known that he is a Fascist and seeks acceptance into the inner circle. Marcello uses his friendship with a blind man, Italo (José Quaglio), to set up a meeting with Il colonello (Fosco Giachetti), which provides induction into the Fascist secret police. To Marcello's shock and surprise, he is soon given an assignment and an associate, Manganiello (Gastone Moshin). He is initially told that the assignment is to observe the activities of an anti-Fascist leader who is in exile in Paris. This opposition leader, Professor Quadri (Enzo Tarascio), was once Clerici's teacher and mentor, so contacting him will be natural enough and should arouse no suspicion. Clerici schedules his honeymoon with his new bride as pretext for visiting Paris. Clerici soon learns, however, that the actual mission involves assassination of his old mentor.
In Paris, Clerici is torn between memories of the traumatic shooting during his childhood, his need to be accepted, and self-doubts. The task is further complicated when Clerici and his bride, Giulia, begin to socialize with Quadri and his young bisexual wife, Anna (Dominique Sanda). Anna is the diametrical opposite of Clerici – an irrepressible free-spirit, who follows her impulses and flirts with men and women alike. Clerici is attracted to Anna and wants to seduce her, but Anna is more interested in Giulia. At a dancehall, Anna and Giulia dance provocatively together while Clerici watches tensely. All the while, Clerici is under the close scrutiny of the Fascist Manganiello. The rest of the story will be best left for viewers to discover for themselves.
Themes: The central theme of the film is the titular one, conformity. Clerici wants nothing more than to lead a life of utter normality – to fit in, in every respect. He hopes in this way to avoid the devastating outcomes of both his mother and his father. One might also speculate that Clerici is driven in part by repressed homosexual urges that he fears might emerge were he to live more in accord with his inner feelings. Clerici, who dresses to please in a tightly buttoned jacket, has an obsessive dedication to being average. The tendency of people to conform is a major part of what allows movements like Fascism and Nazism to take root and expand. Nonconformists are sometimes a pain in the neck to have around, but also sometimes protect a society from thoughtless herd mentality. There's a professor at my university who constantly complains about ethical violations that he perceives and nine times out of ten, his issues are ones that the rest of us view as excessively picky. I've learned to listen to what he has to say, however, because it is worth it for the one time out of ten when the issue is important and he's the first to recognize a real transgression. Society would be a mess if everyone was an obsessive nonconformist, but we need a good number of them as a hedge against mob mentality. In The Conformist, the character Italo can be easily understood as reference to the Italian people as a whole. He was blind and blindly followed the Fascist leaders.
Bertolucci added an element to the filmscript that was not part of the novel by Moravia: a recurrent referencing of the story to Plato's Republic. The connection is made explicit in one portion of the film in which Clerici discusses the cave metaphor in the office of his old mentor. Quadry closes a window so that shadows appear on one wall of the room, just as in Plato's metaphor. For Clerici, the traumas of his childhood play as shadows in his mind, but he mistakes them for reality. If he could recognize them as illusions, to be dealt with and dismissed, he could get on with leading life more openly. The entire film can also be seen as an expression of Plato's meditation on tyranny and the conditions that allow for it. Clerici says to Prof. Quadry, at one point, "You left and I became a Fascist." Although Clerici meant "left Italy," the reference could just as well be to Plato's cave.
There is a third theme in The Conformist which I personally find unconvincing. It is the implied connection between sexual repression and Fascism. The same kind of link has been suggested for other rightwing political philosophies. Hitler, for example, has often been portrayed as a repressed homosexual. I have no doubt that sexual repression contributes to a variety of aberrant choices that people make in life, but whether it is any more often linked to rightwing excesses than leftwing excesses, I have no idea. I think there is some danger in convincing ourselves that individuals who join up with extreme political groups on either side of the spectrum are only those who are sexually repressed or, even, only those with psychological problems. History reveals that there are times when a substantial majority of people will embrace repressive political philosophies and agendas and it is those times that need most concern us.
Production Values: The script for The Conformist is difficult to follow at the beginning of the film. You can either view that as part of the challenge and reward of the film or you can complain about it and give up. After that, the narrative progresses in an orderly manner. The dialog is intelligent throughout and the story suspenseful.
The most exceptional aspect of The Conformist is its inspired and daring cinematography. Storaro is such a master at use of light, shadow, color, and shot-angles as to truly qualify as a visual poet. For some scenes, Storaro uses filters to produce tinted images, such as the orange tint applied to the train scene. The color schemes are attentive to Freudian interpretations of color as well as aesthetically pleasing. Check out the lighting in the dancehall scene or the light streaming through the woods and the leaves swirling through the air in the sweeping wind!
Storaro makes masterful use of plays of light and shadows. Light filtering through apertures, for example, typically indicates an emerging insight on the part of a character or, at least, the potential for such. The closing off of a light source (such as by closing a window or curtain) signifies a triumph of ignorance over comprehension. Usually a film's themes are advanced mainly through dialog and character exposition, but in The Conformist, Bertolucci and Storaro quite remarkably achieve some of this through the photography. We sometimes learn through the images things about the protagonist that the protagonist doesn't even know about himself! If one scene, Clerici is fighting his inner feelings of smallness as he climbs the stairs of the Ministry Palace for a meeting, and we see his shadow shrink as he climbs. In another scene, the lighting turns increasingly gloomy as Clerici approaches the insane asylum where he must visit his father. The result is a visual subtext that few films achieve to the extent of The Conformist.
In sharp contrast to the sumptuous cinematography, the sets provided by Ferdinando Scarlotti are sparse and somewhat noir-like. Together, the sets and camerawork create a surreal tone for the entire film. Georges Delerue provided a lovely and lyrical score.
This film boasts a spectacular cast delivering beautifully stylized performances, matching the stylized cinematography. Dominique Sanda and Stefania Sandrelli were two of the loveliest women in the world when this film was made in 1970. Sandrelli delivers a likable innocence despite her character's limited mental resources. Her other work included Divorce Italian Style (1962), The Family (1987), and Stealing Beauty (1996). Sanda delivers exuberance and wily coquettishness along with sumptuous beauty. Her resume includes A Gentle Woman (1969), The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (1971), and 1900 (1976). Their voluptuous sensuality contrasts sharply with Jean-Louis Trintignant's up-tight and angular performance. Trintignant's performance, notable for its repression rather than expressiveness, is the best of the film and a significant part of what makes the film a success. His other work includes And God Created Woman (1956), The Sleeping Car Murder (1965), A Man and a Woman (1966), Bad Girls (1968), My Night at Maud’s (1969), Z (1969), La Nuit de Varennes (1982), and Red (1994) (See Three Colors). The secondary roles were also very well performed.
Bottom-Line: If you go searching for this film for purchase, you need to be aware that there are distinct differences between the various releases. For many years, The Conformist was available in America only in a dubbed and cut version. Paramount released a VHS version a while back that restores four minutes of footage excised from the original American release. The Paramount version also provides improved color and clarity, which is especially important for this film. Vittorio Storaro, the cinematographer, supervised the restoration process. I noticed that one can also purchase the original Italian version of the film with English subtitles from an internet auction site, but it looks to me like they're selling bootleg copies, to which I have ethical aversion. Obviously, what Bertolucci fans really want is a DVD version with the restored minutes, great video transfer, and the original Italian language with English subtitles.
The Conformist is a great film by every standard. It succeeds thematically, emotionally, visually, and as suspenseful narrative. I highly recommend it, but try to find the restored version on Paramount. The running time for the restored version is 115 minutes.
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You might want to check out these other excellent films from Italy:
A man named Clerici Jean-Louis Trintignant attempts to escape his emotional past by subscribing to totalitarianism in Bernardo Bertolucci's masterpiec...More at Family Video
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