First off, I LOVE Italian genre pictures from the 60s and 70s. I love the look, the plot, the acting, the music, the sets, the fashions. The entire thing.
This movie had so much promise, but flushed it all down the toilet. For me the fatal flaw was the main character, Paul. He was not likable. In the least. I could see no reason that he should have any friends, or a girlfriend, or a job. He is a self-absorbed schmuck. In every scene, he has the ability to make his life better (or at least push the plot in a direction that would be mildly interesting). He COULD say or do something to improve his relationship with his girlfriend. He COULD say or do something to make the woman he is attracted to like him. He COULD say or do something to make his boss excited about his potential. Alas. Paul does almost nothing, and what little he does is irritating and/or cringe-inducing. He squints. He furrows his eyebrows. He stares. A lot. He utters the minimum amount of dialogue necessary to interact with the other characters. His utterances are all awkward and and painful to experience. Note that this appears to be the goal of the writer, director and actor. I give them credit in that they achieved their goal. I simply do not appreciate what they have achieved.
Paul is not the only fictional character to be a man of inaction. Alvy in Annie Hall. Or Hamlet. However, Paul is certainly no Hamlet and he isn't even an Alvy. Hamlet frustrates us with his inaction and digressions. However, our frustration with Hamlet is ultimately relieved. We are left with a sense of satisfaction once Hamlet finally becomes a man of action. Also, let us not forget that Hamlet is a victim. So even when he frustrates us, he has our sympathy. Paul's life is pretty crappy because he is a man of inaction, not because of some external forces operating on him. His failure to say or do anything meaningful is the cause of his crappy life, not the result of a crappy life.
A movie homage to Italo genre films should have some zip, some pizazz. This has none. The movie does have great music, great fashion, great shots. But it is all for naught because at the core of this rotten apple, is an unlikable character who is too lazy to irritate us by his actions. The best he can do is irritate us with his lack of action.
This movie had so much promise, but flushed it all down the toilet. For me the fatal flaw was the main character, Paul. He was not likable. In the least. I could see no reason that he should have any friends, or a girlfriend, or a job. He is a self-absorbed schmuck. In every scene, he has the ability to make his life better (or at least push the plot in a direction that would be mildly interesting). He COULD say or do something to improve his relationship with his girlfriend. He COULD say or do something to make the woman he is attracted to like him. He COULD say or do something to make his boss excited about his potential. Alas. Paul does almost nothing, and what little he does is irritating and/or cringe-inducing. He squints. He furrows his eyebrows. He stares. A lot. He utters the minimum amount of dialogue necessary to interact with the other characters. His utterances are all awkward and and painful to experience. Note that this appears to be the goal of the writer, director and actor. I give them credit in that they achieved their goal. I simply do not appreciate what they have achieved.
Paul is not the only fictional character to be a man of inaction. Alvy in Annie Hall. Or Hamlet. However, Paul is certainly no Hamlet and he isn't even an Alvy. Hamlet frustrates us with his inaction and digressions. However, our frustration with Hamlet is ultimately relieved. We are left with a sense of satisfaction once Hamlet finally becomes a man of action. Also, let us not forget that Hamlet is a victim. So even when he frustrates us, he has our sympathy. Paul's life is pretty crappy because he is a man of inaction, not because of some external forces operating on him. His failure to say or do anything meaningful is the cause of his crappy life, not the result of a crappy life.
A movie homage to Italo genre films should have some zip, some pizazz. This has none. The movie does have great music, great fashion, great shots. But it is all for naught because at the core of this rotten apple, is an unlikable character who is too lazy to irritate us by his actions. The best he can do is irritate us with his lack of action.