Review of The Four Times (2010) by Walter M — 08 Apr 2011

"Le Quattro Volte" starts and begins with scenes set around a coal furnace. The next sound we hear is the constant cough of an elderly shepherd(Giuseppe Fuda) who continues to work well into old age because he did not invest wisely in his 401k. In exploring themes of the perpetual cycle of life and death, the movie observes calmly that once he dies, there will be somebody else who will take over for him, as life moves on.

Or perhaps you would prefer a more religious explanation in the ashes to ashes department.(By the way, what kind of medicine is he taking anyway?) In which case, shepherds have always had their part to play in religious allegories.(Not to mention being the names of the lead characters in science fiction series.).

Or if you want to think outside of the box, then how about the old man being reborn as the goat calf we see being born in somewhat graphic fashion? Regardless, while such pastoral scenes are definitely pretty, they can also be sleep inducing which could have been disastrous, considering I was going to a ball game right after this movie.