Review of La Notte (1961) by Ivan M — 03 May 2012

The fantastic second installment in Antonioni's famous trilogy does not disappoint. It is a brilliant transition from between the other two films, and while it may be true that this is not quite as good as the other two films (definite masterpieces in my opinion), I think it is essential to the trilogy with countless great aspects to it.

The film stars Marcello Mastroianni and Jeanne Moreau as a married couple whose relationship has lost all its flair, Lidia (Moreau) seems to have accepted the fact that she no longer loves her husband, while Giovanni (Mastroianni) wants to stay in denial and keep up the appearance he thinks is expected of him as a successful writer.

The film follows one day in the life of this couple, most of the action taking place at an all night party Giovanni and Lidia have been invited to. This is where Giovanni meets Valentina (Monica Vitti), who reignites his passion for romance but only serves to carry him further away from feeling any affection towards his wife.

I will not go into the details of the plot, as like most great films (and this is certainly great) you need to watch it, to see the images in order to understand it. Perhaps in comparison to the other two in the trilogy this is not so good, but in its own right it's magnificent.