The Spider's Stratagem

I found interesting to watch this movie since I noticed in it some characteristics that were to be strongly noticed in later films, such as the pleasure for the beauty of the composition (every image caught by the camera is very carefully thought before, considering all the elements in it, from a mirror to a chair, to a flower pot; and also studying its position, wheter the person speaking should be in the center or not, distances, etc.). Bertolucci has also put, I think so at least, a lot of time in this details (which marks a difference from other filming methodes such as those of, let's say, Godard, even though both are worth watching), which grant the film a great artistic quality, since it is very beautiful. I also see in this film the tendency for mixing stories in different times (remember the last emperor?).

A part from this observations, this film has a story to be followed, not as intriguing or as fascinating as others... but still worthy to reflect on. Even though this is a political film, that's not even subtle or hidden, the main theme of this one is, in my point of view, the creation of myths, the creation of heros, idols... Fernando Pessoa, a portuguese poet, said that a myth is "a nothing which is everything". This film confirms it. Athos Magnani, the father, is an absolute nothing, despite his pseudo idealism, he made nothing in concrete except... becoming the hero of those people, except becoming one more reason for the fight. Even though he was admired for that, he wasn't particularly smart... just a bit more educated, and he just saw the chance of immortality... in his death. This is a myth, and myths, at least like this, only exist if people believe them.

Beautiful landscapes, not spectacular acting (the actor who plays both athos Magnani is not exceptionaly convincing as the son but gives an interesting performance as the father). Also a good use of the non original music especially the excerpts from Il Rigolletto. I too enjoyed that the director resisted to the temptation of showing exactly the murdering; he did it in a better way. All this and a Bernardo Bertolucci starting to reveal all he would become.

A young man named Athos Magnani (Giulio Brogi) arrives at the small Italian town of Tara. Magnani's aim is to discover who killed his father, a local hero and anti-fascist, decades earlier. The script makes many references to Mussolini, the Italian fascist leader of the 1930s.

An essentially political film, "The Spider's Stratagem" contains deep themes related to personal identity, the definition of heroes, as well as perceptions of, and the truth about, others. Events and people are not always what they seem to be. The thematic depth is enhanced by competent cinematography, with some clever compositional camera shots.

And yet, I found this film hard to like. There is an overall sense of gloom, with a drab landscape and bleak characters that seem more symbolic of ideas vis-à-vis real people with personal lives. Direction trends theatrical and stagy. And some plot elements seem either unnecessary or deliberately opaque.

Acting also seems stagy and contrived, which may have been the director's intent. Alida Valli's performance is terrible. I dislike the way she smiles at the most inappropriate times. Further, the viewer must endure periodic outbursts of grand opera.

I am thus ambivalent toward "The Spider's Stratagem". It has adequate thematic depth, for viewers wanting a thought-provoking film. But the slow-moving plot is something of a trial to sit through, with irksome characters and gloomy visuals. I found it not entertaining.

Maybe a second viewing, when I have more time to digest the film's political themes, will render an impression that is not so alien and forbidding.

La Strategia del ragno is a beautifully shot, superbly acted movie with a lot of twists. At fist glance the story depicts a man, Athos Jr, who has to solve the murder on his father, Athos Sr. This is asked of him by his father's mistress. Later it becomes clear that that story is the strategy of the mistress to get him to replace his father (the two are identical). The third story that runs through the movie is why Athos Sr was in fact killed. It seems he's a traitor, but it's my guess that he staged his own death from the beginning (including his treason), without his friends knowing. The only one who finds out the whole truth is Athos Jr. The way these stories are told and how they interact is magnificent. There's nothing in the movie that shouldn't be there. Don't try to understand my very short summary, just watch the movie. The Last Emperor is not Bertolucci's best, although I like that one, too. This movie should be in the top of the top 250.

Quite a film, combining lush photography with brilliantly realized scenes, one after another in fact, from the beginning arrival of the train to the ending, set on the waiting platform of the train station, with a story that weaves in and out of the present (1970) and past (1936) about fascism and the difficult and ambiguous forms the opposition took to combat it. Set in Italy's Po River valley in the town of Tara, it beautifully mixes the cinematic elements of plot, music, character, photography, etc... with a story about the well kept secret of how a man's father became a local hero in the struggle against fascism. Like any society caught in repression, the heroes we know today, who led the fight, maybe were forced by the circumstances of the times to take actions that could only be understood in the context in which they took place. Bertolucci does a great in dramatizing that inherent ambiguity that lies under the statue of the popular hero that is in the center of the town. There are some scenes that simply stand out, especially the outdoor dance (1936) where the hero and the fascists eye each other, and then he grabs the prettiest girl there and has all the dance floor while the camera goes from face to face. But in a film that is so well composed, this is but one of the highlights, none of which would mean much if the whole operation didn't have such an astute level of direction guiding it. For a film that relies so much on image, it says a lot, and doesn't squander any of its characters.

After having searched high & low for this ridiculously hard to find film by Bernardo Bertolucci, I finally got a watchable VHS print recently (thanx, Scott). It has been praised by many a critic & film scholar, and deservedly so. Leonard Maltin may not know much, but he was right on the money when he said that this film contains some of the most staggeringly beautiful cinematography ever put on screen. If only somebody would get this on a proper DVD (Criterion, if you're not too busy considering another re-release of The Rock...). The story is, on the surface, a sort of 'search for the truth' mystery/quest that quickly turns into a complex examination of 'the nature of truth'. The pace is slow, and there isn't much in the way of action, mostly just dialog scenes and gorgeous location shots. But I for one was totally engrossed (my wife seemed to dig it as well). Speaking of pace, this struck me as being quite Tarkovsky-esquire a film (barring a few odd cutaway shots), especially with that last scene that puts the whole film into a different spin. Fascinating, heady stuff, but not for all tastes and will be rewarding more to those who are patient and attentive.