Open Roads. Dispatch 7.

Something approaching the "high-concept" documentary found its way into the festival via Primo Levi's Journey (La Strada di Levi), screening Wednesday evening and Thursday afternoon, in which someone decided (presumably the director Davide Ferrario) that it would be a terrific idea to make the same journey taken by chemist, writer and perhaps most famous of Auschwitz survivors, Primo Levi, following his concentration camp liberation and prior to his return to Italy. OK. But why? This is not Primo Levi's journey, after all - even if it does take the same route as Levi took. His journey encompassed so much more than mere points of travel, coming as it did on top of his experience in the camp. His was a forced journey. Levi would have preferred to return immediately to his home in Italy. He could not, and so he made the best of it, as he seemed to do with everything in his life.

Rather than being forced into anything, the filmmakers have chosen to re-make this journey. They have their own agenda, and that is what, finally, this movie is all about. Not nearly enough Levi reaches the screen. There are some marvelous quotations here and there, though not so many as we might like, and some sense of history and what was going on in the various countries in Levi's time, but, again, not enough. The film could have as easily been titled Eastern Europe Now, for it is basically concerned with how the various countries visited - Poland, Russia, Romania, Hungary, Austria, Germany - and their citizens are faring (none too well, in most cases) and whether, in some instances, these citizens might not prefer the return of Communism to help lighten their load and save them from the perils of rabid capitalism, as practiced Russian-satellite style.

This agenda admittedly has its place, and the filmmakers - as do we - learn a few interesting things along the way. But the bouncing back and forth between Levi's journey then and the filmmakers' now does not really bear much connection. What's here almost seems like two different documentaries, edited into a whole that does not cohere, does not tell us much about what its own title promises and does not in any major manner connect Levi's journey with the present day. I'm sorry, but following the same map is simply not enough.

Even failed attempts provide their blessings, however, and watching the film might make some American viewers go back to Levi's original writings (I know I now want to) and take more interest in what is happening today in that sprawling mass of land and peoples we used to think of as being held behind an Iron Curtain.

Primo Levi's Journey brings to a close this year's Open Roads series, and I am left with some questions and observations. No classics here, but a number of good films, with even the not-so-good still worth the time spent in the dark. Again (as with the yearly festivals of new films from France and Spain), viewing these Italian movies, sometimes more than once, left me with a much stronger sense than I had going into the festival about the Italy of today. And that Italy seems to be a very thoughtful, quiet, serious and often dark place. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does make me wonder if Italians in general are feeling a little "down" lately. And why not, given the state of the world?

Even the few films that you might say - if pressed against the wall - offered a happy ending (Billo, One Out of Two, The Unknown Woman, In Memory of Me) were so filled with shadows, guilt, angst and some truly terrible events, that a typical American idea of the Italian character mentioned in my opening piece - "gregarious, loud, fun and sensual" - could hardly be found. Except perhaps in Mario Monicelli's lovely Desert Roses - which, interestingly enough, is set 60-odd years in the past. The only other film that offered a version of "gregarious, loud, fun and sensual" (well, leave out the fun) is set even further back in time: the historically "packaged," beautifully shot but otherwise disappointing Caravaggio.

Are Italians simply not making comedies these days? Nanni Moretti's skewering of Silvio Berlusconi, Il Caimano, was much anticipated but then seemed to fall afoul of many critics internationally, so I guess we'll not be able to judge for ourselves. God knows the Spanish and French fests have given us comedic pleasures from Sin Verguenza to I Do!

Earlier Opens Roads offered delights such as My Name Is Tanino or romance with laughter and intelligence, as in Bread and Tulips or Casomai. Any romance this year usually ended up rather badly for the romancers. Ok, then, we'll just remain dark, thoughtful, quiet and alert. And wait for next year. Oh, yes - and thank the Film Society of Lincoln Center, Richard Peña and all of the Italian moviemakers, their casts and crews for providing us with this - often quite beautiful - food for thought.

Posted by dwhudson at June 13, 2007 1:21 AM