Giulietta degli spiriti (1965)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Federico Fellini

Writers:

Federico Fellini (story) &
Tullio Pinelli (story) ...

Release Date:

3 November 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

Fellini's Masterpiece !

Plot:

Visions, memories, and mysticism all help a 40-something woman to find the strength to leave her cheating husband.

Plot Keywords:

Vision | Sex | Memory | Psychic | Eccentric

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 8 wins

Cast

Giulietta Masina	...	Giulietta Boldrini
Sandra Milo	...	Suzy / Iris / Fanny
Mario Pisu	...	Giorgio (Giulietta's husband)
Valentina Cortese	...	Valentina
Valeska Gert	...	Pijma
José Luis de Villalonga	...	Giorgio's friend (as José De Villalonga)
Friedrich von Ledebur	...	Medium (as Fredrich Ledebur)
Caterina Boratto	...	Giulietta's mother
Lou Gilbert	...	Grandfather
Luisa Della Noce	...	Adele
Silvana Jachino	...	Dolores
Milena Vukotic	...	Elisabeta (the maid)
Fred Williams	...	Lynx-Eyes' agent
Dany París	...	Desperate friend
Anne Francine	...	Psychodramatist

Also Known As:

Juliet of the Spirits (USA)
Juliette des esprits (France)

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

Italy | France

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Italy:VM14 | Sweden:15 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Safa-Palatino, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Rizzoli Film

Trivia:

Federico Fellini's first full-color feature.

Quotes:

Giorgio: Jose owns one of the biggest bull farms. Sometimes at night this madman puts on his own bullfight.
Giulietta Boldrini: What courage! Isn't it dangerous?
Giorgio's friend: No, signora, it's poetry. Poetry is never dangerous. My best friends are toreadors. They compose music, write verse, and abhor blood.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Michelangelo Antonioni storia di un autore (1966) (TV)

Juliet is a Delight!

I loved this movie. For me, as a relatively new student of Fellini, I understand that there is a progression in his films over the years. His initial films are more generally coherent stories like "La Strada" and then his later films are more focused on the visual and surreal, like "8 1/2".

This movie is somewhere in between. There is the coherent storyline of Juliet and her philandering husband and all the other strange characters in her life, like family and friends, but then there is also the psychedelic and surreal element of the spirit world that Juliet is in close contact with everyday.

Masina is great as usual--she acts a lot just with her eyes and the expressions on her face.

This film is just a delight. My suggestion is that you don't try to analyze it too deeply. Just sit back and let the colors, settings, costumes, and larger than life characters wash over you.