Mi è piaciuto molto, ma ho rischiato di addormentarmi diverse volte.
Cinematografia e costumi incredibili. Non sono nelle condizioni di analizzare molto, bello.

Mi è piaciuto molto, ma ho rischiato di addormentarmi diverse volte.
Cinematografia e costumi incredibili. Non sono nelle condizioni di analizzare molto, bello.

An excellent adaptation of a wonderful and fascinating story.

Knowing the book, as soon as I saw the runtime I expected a much slower overall pace, if not an outright “boring” one; instead, it’s a film that manages to stay engaging in every scene, with incredible cinematography, settings, and costumes that give an epic feel to a story whose very purpose is to portray waiting without anything ever really happening.

I perhaps expected more emphasis on the theme of endless waiting itself, and also on the total detachment from everything that existed beyond Fortress Bastiani, that is almost completely abandoned after the opening scenes, but the film still works.

An excellent adaptation of a wonderful and fascinating story.

Knowing the book, as soon as I saw the runtime I expected a much slower overall pace, if not an outright “boring” one; instead, it’s a film that manages to stay engaging in every scene, with incredible cinematography, settings, and costumes that give an epic feel to a story whose very purpose is to portray waiting without anything ever really happening.

I perhaps expected more emphasis on the theme of endless waiting itself, and also on the total detachment from everything that existed beyond Fortress Bastiani, that is almost completely abandoned after the opening scenes, but the film still works.

Horrific, disintegrating and haunting. A ghost story from warriors past, present and future, that never were and never will be. Time is our punishment for being arrogant enough to create enemies and armies inside our rotting minds and bodies. One of the best anti-war manifesto ever put to film.

Horrific, disintegrating and haunting. A ghost story from warriors past, present and future, that never were and never will be. Time is our punishment for being arrogant enough to create enemies and armies inside our rotting minds and bodies. One of the best anti-war manifesto ever put to film.

I need to rewatch this ASAP. ***7.0/10
***

I need to rewatch this ASAP. ***7.0/10
***

A slow-burn monumental masterpiece. Il Deserto dei Tartari presents the isolating, suffocating pressure of an outdated structure imposed on the individual. The garrison of the fortress is stuck in a limbo of endless waiting, obeying senseless orders, decaying and fading away. Waiting for a mythical enemy (and an even more mythical glory of war) turns their lives into a prison-like confinement.

In some ways, Il Deserto dei Tartari reminds me of Claire Denis’ Beau Travail. Both films offer a perspective on enclosed, rigid, fully male environments and their effects on psychological well-being.

Luciano Tovoli’s cinematography is definitely one of the pillars that makes Il Deserto dei Tartari so powerful. The play of light and shadow in that hostile, harsh environment makes the fortress feel like a character of its own.

Truly an exceptional film, from the all-star ensemble cast to the striking clash between the officers’ maximalist clutter and the minimalist ancient fortress.

A slow-burn monumental masterpiece. Il Deserto dei Tartari presents the isolating, suffocating pressure of an outdated structure imposed on the individual. The garrison of the fortress is stuck in a limbo of endless waiting, obeying senseless orders, decaying and fading away. Waiting for a mythical enemy (and an even more mythical glory of war) turns their lives into a prison-like confinement.

In some ways, Il Deserto dei Tartari reminds me of Claire Denis’ Beau Travail. Both films offer a perspective on enclosed, rigid, fully male environments and their effects on psychological well-being.

Luciano Tovoli’s cinematography is definitely one of the pillars that makes Il Deserto dei Tartari so powerful. The play of light and shadow in that hostile, harsh environment makes the fortress feel like a character of its own.

Truly an exceptional film, from the all-star ensemble cast to the striking clash between the officers’ maximalist clutter and the minimalist ancient fortress.