Review of The Leopard (1963) by Kevin N — 22 Dec 2010
Like one elegant exhalation, Luchino Visconti's visually stunning epic about the fading out of a Sicilian prince is an extraordinary observation on revolution and the awkwardness between generations.
It's a long movie, but the story really benefits from its length; the surroundings become like one of those see-through optical illusions, and once we've seen past all the silly aristocratic decor there is nothing left but a very naked human being- Don Fabrizio Salina, played with raw humanity by the great American actor Burt Lancaster.
His embodiment of the prince would resonate in great later performances, particularly Brando's latter Oscar-winner, but this one at this time is wholly original. Backing him up are Alian Delon and Claudia Cardinale, mascots of a new tide, who are too innocent and carefree to be a threat but too representative to avoid blame; they are the generation who can no longer stand for Salina's kind, and in a way they are the termites that eat him away from the inside, leading to his slow disintegration.
Visconti's powerful eye for composition leads to picturesque sequence after picturesque sequence, and sometimes the mise-en-scene just swallows the characters- in fact, all the best scenes do. A vibrant color palette and magnificent camera work make this film beautiful to look, shedding a light on the human characters that makes them look both tragically destructive and ponderously insignificant.
This review of The Leopard (1963) was written by Kevin N on 22 Dec 2010.
The Leopard has generally received very positive reviews.
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