Fellini: Je suis un grand menteur (2002)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Damian Pettigrew

Writers:

Damian Pettigrew (scenario) and
Olivier Gal (scenario)

Genre:

Documentary | Biography

Plot:

A look at Fellini's creative process. In extensive interviews, Fellini talks a bit about his background...

Plot Keywords:

Interview | Reality | Improvisation | Puppet | Archive Footage

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Roberto Benigni	...	Himself / La Voce della Luna
Luigi 'Titta' Benzi	...	Himself / Ami d'enfance
Italo Calvino	...	Himself / Ecrivain
Dante Ferretti	...	Himself / Chef décorateur
Rinaldo Geleng	...	Himself / Peintre
Tullio Pinelli	...	Himself / Scénariste
Giuseppe Rotunno	...	Himself / Directeur de la photographie
Terence Stamp	...	Himself / Toby Dammit
Donald Sutherland	...	Himself / Casanova
Daniel Toscan du Plantier	...	Himself / Producteur
Federico Fellini	...	Himself

Also Known As:

Federico Fellini: I'm a Big Liar (USA) (literal English title)
Federico Fellini: Sono un gran bugiardo (Italy)
Fellini: I Am a Born Liar (Australia)
Fellini: I'm a Born Liar (USA)
Fellini: Sono un gran bugiardo (Italy)
I'm a Born Liar (International: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some language and sexual content.

Runtime:

USA:105 min

Country:

France | Italy | UK

Language:

English | Italian | French

Color:

Color | Black and White (archive footage)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | France:U | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Bagnoregio, Viterbo, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Portrait & Cie

Quotes:

Donald Sutherland: He's a tyrant.

Movie Connections:

References Amarcord (1973)

Superb

Superb documentary fantasia and as visually stunning as Fellini's best films but without the excess. I'm paraphrasing David Denby's review in The New Yorker. It's "a thrilling masterclass in aesthetics conducted by the Maestro himself with intelligent footnotes provided by Damian Pettigrew." That's what A O Scott writes in The New York Times. A "daunting, intellectually subtle internal monologue of a movie that focuses on Fellini's unique temperament." That's Harper Barnes writing in The St Louis Post Dispatch. Film Comment says the film has "haunting imagery and attention to physical presence." I'm a fan of this wonderfully original and mind-stirring film on and with the late great Federico Fellini - and the positive reviews are international. The film has been acclaimed in France, Italy ("beyond the lesson in cinema, the film is perhaps the best film ever made on Fellini's character") and Spain, USA, Canada, Brazil, Australia, Russia, and Japan.

Acknowledged Fellini specialists Peter Bondanella and Tullio Kezich have both praised the film. It has been selected in over 35 major international festivals. It was nominated for The European Documentary Award - Europe's equivalent of the Oscars and won the prestigious Banff Grand Prize for Best Arts Documentary. It is, finally, a piece of precious cinematic history that aficionados will treasure for years to come.